Article 25a
1. The budget shall be implemented in compliance with effective and efficient internal control. 2. For the purposes of the implementation of the budget, internal control is defined as a process applicable at all levels of the management and designed to provide reasonable assurance of achieving the following objectives: (a) effectiveness, efficiency and economy of operations; (b) reliability of reporting; (c) safeguarding of assets and information; (d) prevention and detection of fraud and irregularities; (e) adequate management of the risks relating to the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions, taking into account the multiannual character of programmes as well as the nature of the payments concerned.