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Economic liberalisation trumps democratisation in EU Neighborhood Policy, says Bankwatch


Tbilisi, Georgia — The strategic review of the European Neighbourhood Policy [1] initiated by the European Commission last year should ensure that funds disbursed through the ENPI [2] mechanism truly promote the development of democratic institutions, human rights and environmental sustainability in Partnership countries, says CEE Bankwatch Network.

In a recent written submission to the review process [3] Bankwatch highlights how eight years since its inception, the ENP continues to prioritise economic liberalisation over the social and democratic goals it is mandated to promote. In the majority of countries targeted by the policy, national Action Plans [4] completely lack provisions regarding agriculture, poverty eradication, the development of a reliable social security net, or health services.

Manana Kochladze, Regional Coordinator for Caucasus at CEE Bankwatch Network, says: “Since singing the ENP, Georgian authorities have pushed for a complete liberalisation and deregulation of the economy, leading to the abolition of 85 percent of all licensing legislation, including in the food, industry and vehicle safety spheres. Even though the EU itself has taken a critical attitude towards some of Georgia’s reforms concerning environmental issues and labour and consumer rights, the ENP does little to remedy such deficiencies.”

Bankwatch is asking the Commission to develop guidelines that ensure civil society participation to elaborate and implement national indicative plans. This would make the ENP respond to the needs of partner societies and increase the transparency in funding allocations. “Given that 90 percent of funds disbursed through the ENP framework go towards budget support, it is crucial that payments are conditioned by strict anti-corruption measures,” added Iryna Holovko, Bankwatch national coordinator in Ukraine.

For more information

Manana Kochladze
Bankwatch Regional Coordinator for Caucasus
manana AT bankwatch.org
m.: +995-99-91 66 47

Iryna Holovko
Bankwatch Ukraine National Coordinator
iryna AT bankwatch.org
m: +38 050 647 67 00

Notes to the editors

1. The European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) was developed in 2004, with the objective of avoiding the emergence of new dividing lines between the enlarged EU and our neighbours and instead strengthening the prosperity, stability and security of all. This ENP framework is proposed to the 16 of EU’s closest neighbours Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Egypt, Georgia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Moldova, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Syria, Tunisia and Ukraine.

2.European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI) – From 1 January 2007 onwards, as part of the reform of EC assistance instruments, the MEDA, TACIS and various other programmes have been replaced by a single instrument – the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument.

3. See the CEE Bankwatch Network position on the review of the ENP (pdf).

4. Action Plans (AP) are documents negotiated with and tailor-made for each country, which define an agenda of political and economic reforms for short and medium-term. They cover political dialogue and reform, economic and social cooperation and development, trade-related issues and market and regulatory reform, cooperation in justice and home affairs, sectors and a human dimension.

Bankwatch urges EC to make sure all budget support procedures in Ukraine are transparent


CEE Bankwatch Network acknowledges the motivations of the European Commission decision to temporarily suspend 30 million euros budget support because of faulty public procurement procedures. Bankwatch urges the EC to inspect all untransparent practices associated with the budget support they provide, not only in the area of public procurement.

On February 22, the EC ambassador to Ukraine, Jose Manuel Pinto Teixeira, announced that EU budget support for Ukraine was not to be paid out because of changes in the public procurement law which made public spending more vulnerable to corruption. In total, over 100 million euros in EU grant money for Ukraine risk being postponed indefinitely.

Non-transparent public procurement is, in fact, not the only problem with how budget support functions in Ukraine, Iryna Holovko, CEE Bankwatch Network national coordinator for Ukraine, says. For example, the transport strategy that is to be financed with EC money was developed without wide public involvement and without mechanisms to allow for public monitoring of its implementation.

EC technical and financial support is very important to Ukraine, added Holovko. But, to make this support as effective as possible, the designing and implementation of all sectoral support should be fully transparent and protected against corruption. The EC needs to work more with governmental officials and civil society in Ukraine to move towards such transparency.

For more information

Iryna Holovko
Ukrainian National Coordinator, CEE Bankwatch Network
iryna AT bankwatch.org
m: +38 050 647 67 00

Putin’s visit to BXL: Russian NGOs call on Barroso to stop European financing of Russian motorways in light of HR abuses


Ahead of tomorrow’s meeting between Russian PM Vladimir Putin and EU representatives, a coalition of major Russian NGOs is urging President Barroso to make sure that EU financing institutions halt their participation in toll motorway projects in Russia until there are serious improvements in the human rights and public participation situation associated with these projects. [1]

The call to Mr. Barroso comes one day after Russian authorities have renewed their intimidation attempts at activists trying to stop the section of Moscow-St. Petersburg highway planned to pass through the Khimki forest in the suburbs of Moscow.

Yesterday, 22.02.2011, Russian authorities threatened to deprive Evgenia Chirikova, the leader of the Movement to Defend Khimki Forest, of her children. On Monday, local officials raided the homes of Evgenia Chirikova’s neighbours. The officials claimed that the neighbours had made complaints stating that Evgenia treats her children badly, that they are “dirty” and that Evgenia’s flat is often visited by “homeless people”. The neighbours deny being the authors of such complaints. Nevertheless, on Tuesday, the officials said that they still wanted to “investigate” the case against Chirikova. [2]

On Feb 10, Khimki police had arrested another activist of the Movement for the Defence of Khimki Forest. Alla Chernyshova and her daughters of 3 and 6 had to spend more than five hours in custody where she was questioned as the main suspect for a false bomb threat.

The letter to President Barroso includes a list of Russian motorway projects likely to go ahead without taking into account the principles of sustainable development, conservation of biodiversity, or public participation. It also details the involvement of EU financing institutions and European companies in planned Russian motorways.

For more information, please contact:

Pippa Gallop
Research coordinator, CEE Bankwatch Network
pippa.gallop AT bankwatch.org

Ms. Gallop can put you in touch with the Russian activists authoring this letter. You can also call the Prague Bankwatch office at + 420 274 816 571.

Notes for editors

1. The letter to President Barroso is available online at https://bankwatch.org/documents/letter_Barroso_RUroads_23Feb2011.pdf

2. See http://ecmo.ru/news/n-1566/

more information about Chernyshova’s arrest:
https://www.bankwatch.org/newsroom/highlights.shtml?x=2276945

EU urged to use regional funds for sustainability


Brussels, Belgium — European Ministers meeting on Monday (February 21) are being urged to reform Europe’s spending to ensure it supports a green economy.

CEE Bankwatch Network and Friends of the Earth Europe are calling on member states to commit to spending more of the billions of Euros of structural funds for new member states on energy savings and other green measures. The call follows warnings in a European Commission report that insufficient Structural and Cohesion Funds are being used for energy savings and environmental programmes.

“Central and eastern European countries are lagging behind in improving energy efficiency for residential buildings, burdening their populations with high energy costs and jeopardising their emissions reduction objectives, and this is just one example of a wasted opportunity to ensure spending has long-term benefits for the environment and people. Governments must use the money available to make energy efficiency measures in residential buildings their priority. This would ensure the creation of numerous green jobs and strengthen the European economy,” says Markus Trilling, EU Funds campaigner at CEE Bankwatch Network and Friends of the Earth Europe.

“Considering how beneficial greener spending would be to Europeans still struggling with the economic crisis, it is all the more disappointing to see the current tendency among Member States to refrain from clear commitments towards Europe’s sustainable development goals,” added Trilling.

Brook Riley, climate justice and energy campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe says: “With less than 1% of the Community budget currently going to energy efficiency and renewables, the European Commission’s call for more and better funding is overdue but very welcome. Redirecting EU funding to energy efficiency and renewables will create new jobs, cut CO2 emissions, and save up to EUR1000 per household every year. But funding for sustainability goals must go hand in hand with strong legislative action: making the EU’s energy efficiency target binding would help ensure the funds are properly used.”

CEE Bankwatch Network and Friends of the Earth Europe have written to European Ministers outlining the priorities for reform of the EU Cohesion Policy to put Europe on the path of sustainable development. [1]

For more information, contact:

Brook Riley
Climate justice and energy campaigner
Friends of the Earth Europe
Tel: +32 (0) 2893 1030
Mob: +32 (0) 470 041 539
brook.riley AT foeeurope.org

Markus Trilling
EU funds campaign coordinator
CEE Bankwatch/ Friends of the Earth Europe
markus.trilling AT foeeurope.org
mob: + 32 (0) 484 056 636

Notes for the editor:

1. See the letter sent by CEE Bankwatch Network and FoEE to European Ministers at https://bankwatch.org/publications/document.shtml?x=2277803

Hundreds to protest against ArcelorMittal in Bosnia and Herzegovina


Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina — Hundreds of people are expected to attend a protest against illegal levels of air pollution from the local ArcelorMittal steelmill this Friday afternoon. The action has been organized through social media and is supported by local NGOs Dosta! and Zenica Eko-Forum.

The protest follows a similar one last Friday. Attended by roughly five hundred people, this was the largest action in the city’s history of environmental mobilization against the polluting plant. The two protests this month were triggered by particularly high emission levels in January: for example, the sulphur dioxide concentration reached alarm levels on 19 days last month.

Pippa Gallop from CEE Bankwatch Network explains the reasons for the discontent: “In 2005, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development approved a 25 million euros loan for ArcelorMittal to be used as working capital and for improving energy efficiency. The money was conditioned on the implementation of environmental investments.

“But, in more than five years, we have seen no improvements in air quality — on the contrary. ArcelorMittal is claiming that it resurrected the Zenica steelmill after the war. But what’s the benefit if the local people’s health is destroyed,” commented Gallop. “We demand of ArcelorMittal to finally install filters at the plant.”

For more information, contact:

in Zenica:

Samir Lemes (Zenica Eko-Forum)
Mob: +387 61 805 565

For background on ArcelorMittal and environmental issues:

Pippa Gallop,
Research Co-ordinator
CEE Bankwatch Network
pippa.gallop AT bankwatch.org

Notes:

EBRD information about its project: http://www.ebrd.com/pages/project/psd/2005/36116.shtml

Photo from last week’s protest: http://dosta.ba/latinica/svako-je-trovacica-svoje-sudbine-zenica-04-02-2011/

CEE countries must demand binding targets for energy efficiency, say NGOs


Brussels, Belgium — Ahead of Friday’s European Council on Energy, CEE Bankwatch Network is urging political will from both the Hungarian EU Presidency and other central and eastern European heads of state to ensure binding targets for improving energy efficiency by 20 percent by the year 2020 if the bloc is to play its part in meeting climate targets under the Europe 2020 strategy.

To realise this shift, according to Bankwatch at least one third of the Cohesion and Structural funds need to be earmarked for spending on energy efficiency and new renewable sources in order for the EU energy efficiency and consumption reduction goals to be met. While CEE states have both great potential and demand for energy efficiency spending, by the end of 2009 less than 20 percent of EU funds allocated for energy efficiency measures were spent. [1]

Ondrej Pasek, Bankwatch climate and energy campaigner, said “In the cases where EU financial instruments were designed in a sensible way to address the needs and specificities of the final beneficiaries, EU energy efficiency measures met with enormous interest in the region. Binding targets would help create the right environment to streamline energy efficiency measures in the region.”

“In CEE, energy efficiency measures could reduce between 40 to 60 percent of emissions coming from buildings, which in their turn account for 40 percent of all GhG emissions,” adds Pasek. „At this Council, member states should push for strong measures to improve energy efficiency in existing buildings, which represent the majority of buildings, with financial support from the Cohesion and Structural Funds in the future financial period.”

For more information, contact:

Ondrej Pasek
Climate and Energy Campaigner, Centrum pro dopravu a energetiku
Mobile +420 608 381 602

Anelia Stefanova
EU Affairs Coordinator, CEE Bankwatch Network
Mobile + 393338092492

Notes:

1. See the Bankwatch report ‘Potential unfulfilled: EU funding and Cohesion policy can do more for sustainable climate and energy development in central and eastern Europe’ – https://bankwatch.org/documents/Potential_unfulfilled.pdf