L 213/6 Official Journal of the European Communities 30.7.98 COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1659/98 of 17 July 1998 on decentralised cooperation THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 130w thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1), Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 189c of the Treaty (2), Whereas decentralised cooperation is a new approach to development cooperation which places the agents at the focal point of implementation and hence pursues the dual aims of gearing operations to needs and making them viable; Whereas the importance of a decentralised approach to development cooperation has been emphasised in the Fourth ACP-EC Convention, Council Regulation (EEC) No 443/92 of 25 February 1992 on financial and technical assistance to, and economic cooperation with, the developing countries in Asia and Latin America (3), and the Council Resolution of 27 May 1991 on cooperation with NGOs and in numerous European Parliament Resolutions; Whereas the budgetary authority decided to include in the 1992 budget a heading for the promotion of this approach in all developing countries; Whereas a financial reference amount, within the meaning of point 2 of the Declaration by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission of 6 March 1995 on the incorporation of financial provisions into legislative acts (*) is included in this Regulation for the period 1999 to 2001, without thereby affecting the powers of the budgetary authority as they are defined by the Treaty; Whereas decentralised cooperation is intended to help bring about a real change in the long term of the Union’s development cooperation procedures; Whereas decentralised cooperation makes an important contribution to achieving the development cooperation (1) OJ C 250, 26.9.1995, p. 13. (*) Opinion of the FEuropean Parliament delivered on 15 December 1995 (O] C 17, 22.1.1996, p. 460). Council Common Position of 5 November 1997 (O] C 43, 9.2.1998) and Decision of the European Parliament of 1 April 1998 (OJ C 138, 4.5.1998). () OJ L 52, 27.2.1992, p. 1. (*) OJ L 102, 4.4.1996, p. 4. policy objectives of the Community as set out in Article 130u of the Treaty; Whereas administrative procedures should be established accordingly, HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: Article 1 The Community shall support operations and initiatives on sustainable development undertaken by decentralised cooperation agents of the Community and the developing countries, in particular those designed to promote: — a more participatory approach to development, responsive to the needs and initiatives of the populations in the developing countries, — a contribution to the diversification and reinforcement of civil society and grassroots democracy in the countries concerned, — the mobilisation of decentralised cooperation agents in the Community and the developing countries in pursuit of these objectives within the structured programmes. All developing countries shall be eligible for operations to promote decentralised cooperation. Article 2 The priority fields for operations under this Regulation shall be: — the development of human and technical resources and local rural or wurban social and economic development in the developing countries, — information and the mobilisation of decentralised cooperation agents, — support for strengthening the institutional capacities of such agents and their capacity for action, — methodolical back-up and follow-up for operations. Article 3 The cooperation partners eligible for financial support under this Regulation shall be decentralised cooperation