WRITTEN QUESTION No. 552/99 by Anita POLLACK Development aid
21. 12. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 370/59 (1999/C 370/081) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0547/99 by Ursula Stenzel (PPE) to the Commission (12 March 1999) Subject: Emergency aid For the last few weeks, the Alpine regions of Italy, France, Austria and Switzerland have been struck by heavy avalanches. The regions of the Tyrol and Vorarlberg in Austria in particular have been hit the most heavily by the disasters. The largest avalanche disaster in Austria since the Second World War occurred yesterday afternoon in the small village of Galtür in the Tyrol. Up to now sixteen people have been found dead, including two small children, and more than 30 people are still missing. Unfortunately, the number of victims is expected to rise. The village, a locality of 700 inhabitants, has been severely damaged by the large masses of snow. In its 1999 budget the EU made funds available in budget heading B4-330 for civil protection and environmental emergencies. Does the Commission see any possibility of making funds for reconstruction from this budget heading available to the regions and villages concerned, including the Tyrolean mountain village of Galtür, which is so badly affected? Answer given by Mrs Bjerregaard on behalf of the Commission (30 April 1999) Budget heading B4-3300 ‘Civil protection’ does not permit intervention either in the rebuilding of disaster areas or for granting economic or emergency aid. The Commission would remind the Honourable Member that, in 1997, Parliament deleted heading B4- 3400, which enabled emergency assistance to be granted to disaster victims. In this connection, the Honourable Member is requested to refer to the answer given to written question P-763/99 by Mr Cornelissen (1). (1) OJ C 348, 3. 12. 1999, p. 129. (1999/C 370/082) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0552/99 by Anita Pollack (PSE) to the Commission (12 March 1999) Subject: Development aid Why is EC aid to middle income countries allegedly three times more than for low income countries on a per capita basis? Are there any plans to re-focus EC development aid on poverty eradication and to shift resources, from 2000 to 2006, toward low income countries? Answer given by Mr Pinheiro on behalf of the Commission (6 May 1999) The Honourable Member is right that the proportion of aid to the poorest countries has declined over recent years. The Community is committed to fostering the campaign against poverty in the developing countries. The Commission is naturally concerned that this shift should not undermine that campaign, and therefore intends to keep under close review the proportion of Community aid devoted to the poorest countries. The problem of ensuring coherence and effectiveness in development aid strategy, which lies at the heart of the Honourable Member’s question, is nevertheless complex. Allocation of aid cannot depend solely on poverty levels. Factors such as historical or cultural ties, foreign policy objectives, political and economic stability, the quality and extent of the partnership, and the level of development of civil society inevitably enter into the equation, as both the Council and the Parliament have recognised. It should also be emphasised that local absorption capacity and the prevailing degree of good governance in the country or