2000/483/EC: Partnership agreement between the members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States of the one part, and the European Community and its Member States, of the other part, signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 - Protocols - Final Act - Declarations

• (e) assist the ACP State or region in setting up short term disaster prevention and preparedness mechanisms, including for prediction and early warning, with a view to reducing the consequences of disasters.

The development and strengthening of national, regional and all-ACP disaster risk reduction and management mechanisms shall assist ACP States to build their resilience to the impact of disasters. All related activities may be pursued in cooperation with regional and international organisations and programmes that have a proven track record in disaster risk reduction.

Article 73

Implementation

CHAPTER 7 Investment and private sector development support

Article 74

Cooperation shall, through financial and technical assistance, support the policies and strategies for investment and private sector development as set out in this Agreement.

Article 75

Investment promotion

The ACP States, the Community and its Member States, within the scope of their respective competencies, recognising the importance of private investment in the promotion of their development cooperation and acknowledging the need to take steps to promote such investment, shall:

• (a) implement measures to encourage participation in their development efforts by private investors who comply with the objectives and priorities of ACP-EC development cooperation and with the appropriate laws and regulations of their respective States;

• (b) take measures and actions which help to create and maintain a predictable and secure investment climate as well as enter into negotiations on agreements which will improve such climate;

• (c) encourage the EU private sector to invest and to provide specific assistance to its counterparts in the ACP countries under mutual business cooperation and partnerships;

• (d) facilitate partnerships and joint ventures by encouraging co-financing;

• (e) sponsor sectoral investment fora to promote partnerships and external investment;

• (f) support efforts of the ACP States to attract financing, with particular emphasis on private financing, for infrastructure investments and revenue generating infrastructure critical for the private sector;

• (g) support capacity building for domestic investment promotion agencies and institutions involved in promoting and facilitating foreign investment;

• (h) disseminate information on investment opportunities and business operating conditions in the ACP States; and

• (i) promote national, regional and ACP-EU private sector business dialogue, cooperation and partnerships, in particular through an ACP-EU private sector business forum. Support for operations of an ACP-EU private sector business forum shall be provided in pursuit of the following objectives:
• (i) to facilitate dialogue within the ACP/EU private sector and between the ACP/EU private sector and the bodies established under the Agreement;
• (ii) to analyse and periodically provide the relevant bodies with information on the whole range of issues concerning relations between the ACP and EU private sectors in the context of the Agreement or, more generally, of economic relations between the Community and the ACP countries; and
• (iii) to analyse and provide the relevant bodies with information on specific problems of a sectoral nature relating to, inter alia, branches of production or types of products at regional or sub-regional level.

Article 76

Investment finance and support

• (a) grants for financial and technical assistance to support policy reforms, human resource development, institutional capacity-building or other forms of institutional support related to a specific investment, measures to increase the competitiveness of enterprises and to strengthen the capacities of the private financial and non-financial intermediaries, investment facilitation and promotion and competitiveness enhancement activities;

• (b) advisory and consultative services to assist in creating a responsive investment climate and information base to guide and encourage the flow of capital;

• (c) risk-capital for equity or quasi-equity investments, guarantees in support of domestic and foreign private investment and loans or lines of credit on the conditions laid down in Annex II ‘Terms and Conditions of Financing’ to this Agreement; and

• (d) loans from the Bank's own resources and the Investment Facility, the terms and conditions of which are set out in Annex II to this Agreement. Such loans may also be used to finance public investment in basic infrastructure.

Article 77

Investment guarantees

• (a) reinsurance schemes to cover foreign direct investment by eligible investors; against legal uncertainties and the major risks of expropriation, currency transfer restriction, war and civil disturbance, and breach of contract. Investors may insure projects for any combination of the four types of coverage;

• (b) guarantee programmes to cover risk in the form of partial guarantees for debt financing. Both partial risk and partial credit guarantee shall be available; and

• (c) national and regional guarantee funds, involving, in particular, domestic financial institutions or investors for encouraging the development of the financial sector.

Article 78

Investment protection

TITLE III TECHNICAL COOPERATION

Article 79

• (a) be demand-driven and thus made available only at the request of the ACP State or States concerned, and adapted to recipient needs;

• (b) complement and support ACP efforts to identify their own requirements;

• (c) be monitored and followed up to guarantee effectiveness;

• (d) encourage the participation of ACP experts, consultancy firms and educational and research institutions in contracts financed from the Fund and identify ways of employing qualified national and regional personnel on Fund projects;

• (e) encourage the secondment of ACP national cadres as consultants to an institution in their own country, or a neighbouring country, or to a regional organisation;

• (f) aim at developing knowledge of national and regional manpower constraints and potential and establish a register of ACP experts, consultants and consultancy firms suitable for employment on projects and programmes financed from the Fund;

• (g) support intra-ACP technical assistance in order to promote the exchange between the ACP States of technical assistance, management and professional expertise;

• (h) develop action programmes for long-term institution building and staff development as an integral part of project and programme planning, account being taken of the necessary financial requirements;

• (i) support arrangements to enhance the capacity of the ACP States to build up their own expertise; and

• (j) give special attention to the development of the ACP States' capacities in project planning, implementation and evaluation, as well budget management.

Article 80

With a view to reversing the brain drain from the ACP States, the Community shall assist ACP States which so request to facilitate the return of qualified ACP nationals resident in developed countries through appropriate re-installation incentives.

TITLE IV PROCEDURES AND MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

Article 81

Procedures

Management procedures shall be transparent, easy to apply and shall enable the decentralisation of tasks and responsibilities to the field. The implementation of ACP-EU development cooperation shall be open to non-State actors in areas that concern them. The detailed procedural provisions for programming, preparation, implementation and the management of financial and technical cooperation are laid down in Annex IV on Implementation and Management Procedures. The Council of Ministers may review, revise and amend these provisions on the basis of a recommendation from the ACP-EC Development Finance Cooperation Committee.

Article 82

Executing agents

For the implementation of financial and technical cooperation under this Agreement, executing agents are designated. Detailed provisions for the responsibilities of the executing agents are laid down in Annex IV on Implementation and Management Procedures.

Article 83

ACP-EC Development Finance Cooperation Committee

• (a) ensure the overall achievement of the objectives and principles of development finance cooperation and establish general guidelines for their effective and timely implementation;

• (b) examine the problems arising from the implementation of development cooperation activities and propose appropriate measures;

• (c) review the annexes to the Agreement to ensure their continued relevance and recommend any appropriate amendments to the Council of Ministers for approval; and

• (d) examine the operations deployed within the framework of the Agreement to attain the objectives of promoting private sector development and investment and the operations of the Investment Facility.

PART 5

GENERAL PROVISIONS FOR THE LEAST-DEVELOPED, LANDLOCKED AND ISLAND ACP STATES (LDLICS)

CHAPTER 1 General provisions

Article 84

• (a) the strengthening of regional cooperation;

• (b) transport and communications' infrastructure;

• (c) the efficient exploitation of marine resources and the marketing of products so produced and, in the case of landlocked countries, inland fisheries;

• (d) structural adjustment where account shall be taken of the level of development of these countries and equally, at the implementation stage, of the social dimension of adjustment; and

• (e) the implementation of food strategies and integrated development programmes.

CHAPTER 2 Least-developed ACP States

Article 85

• (a) a third State in a comparable situation accedes to this Agreement; and

• (b) the economic situation of an ACP State changes considerably and durably to the extent that it needs to be included in the least-developed category or its inclusion in that category is no longer justified.

Article 86

The provisions adopted in respect of the least-developed ACP States are contained in the following Articles: 2, 29, 32, 35, 37, 56, 68, 84, 85.

CHAPTER 3 Landlocked ACP States

Article 87

Article 88

The provisions adopted in respect of the landlocked ACP States are contained in the following Articles: 2, 32, 35, 56, 68, 84, 87.

CHAPTER 4 Island ACP States

Article 89

Article 90

The provisions adopted in respect of the island ACP States are contained in the following Articles: 2, 32, 35, 56, 68, 84, 89.

PART 6

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 91

Conflict between this Agreement and other treaties

No treaty, convention, agreement or arrangement of any kind between one or more Member States of the Community and one or more ACP States may impede the implementation of this Agreement.

Article 92

Scope of territorial application

Subject to the special provisions regarding the relations between the ACP States and the French overseas departments provided for therein, this Agreement shall apply, on the one hand, to the territories in which the Treaty establishing the European Community is applied and under the conditions laid down in that Treaty and, on the other hand, to the territories of the ACP States.

Article 93

Ratification and entry into force

For such States this Agreement shall become applicable on the first day of the second month following the completion of these procedures. These States shall recognise the validity of any measure taken to implement the Agreement after the date of its entry into force.

By way of derogation from paragraph 4, the countries concerned which are signatories to the Agreement may complete the ratification procedures within twelve months of the restoration of government institutions.

The countries concerned which have neither signed nor ratified the Agreement may accede to it by means of the accession procedure provided for in Article 94.

Article 94

Accession

If the request is approved by the Council of Ministers, the State concerned shall accede to this Agreement by depositing an act of accession with the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, which shall send a certified copy to the ACP Secretariat and notify the Member States. The Council of Ministers may lay down any amending measures that might be necessary.

The State concerned shall enjoy the same rights and be subject to the same obligations as the ACP States. Its accession may not infringe on the benefits enjoyed by the ACP States signatory to this Agreement under the provisions on development cooperation financing. The Council of Ministers may lay down the conditions and specific arrangements for the accession of an individual State in a special protocol that shall form an integral part of the Agreement.

Any new Member State of the European Union shall become a Party to this Agreement from the date of its accession by means of a clause to that effect in the act of accession. If the act of accession to the Union does not provide for such automatic accession of the Member State to this Agreement, the Member State concerned shall accede by depositing an act of accession with the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, which shall send a certified copy to the ACP Secretariat and notify the Member States.

The Parties shall review the effects of the accession of new Member States on this Agreement. The Council of Ministers may decide on any transitional or amending measures that might be necessary.

Article 95

Duration of the agreement and revision clause

Ten months before the expiry of this five-year period, the Parties shall enter into negotiations with a view to examining any possible amendments to the provisions that were the subject of the notification.

Article 93 shall also apply to the amendments made.

The Council of Ministers shall adopt any transitional measures that may be required in respect of the amended provisions until they come into force.

The Council of Ministers shall adopt any transitional measures that may be required until the new Agreement comes into force.

Article 96

Essential elements: consultation procedure and appropriate measures as regards human rights, democratic principles and the rule of law

1a. Both Parties agree to exhaust all possible options for dialogue under Article 8, except in cases of special urgency, prior to commencement of the consultations referred to in paragraph 2(a) of this Article.

2.

• (a) If, despite the political dialogue on the essential elements as provided for under Article 8 and paragraph 1a of this Article, a Party considers that the other Party fails to fulfil an obligation stemming from respect for human rights, democratic principles and the rule of law referred to in Article 9(2), it shall, except in cases of special urgency, supply the other Party and the Council of Ministers with the relevant information required for a thorough examination of the situation with a view to seeking a solution acceptable to the Parties. To this end, it shall invite the other Party to hold consultations that focus on the measures taken or to be taken by the Party concerned to remedy the situation in accordance with Annex VII. The consultations shall be conducted at the level and in the form considered most appropriate for finding a solution. The consultations shall begin no later than 30 days after the invitation and shall continue for a period established by mutual agreement, depending on the nature and gravity of the violation. In no case shall the dialogue under the consultations procedure last longer than 120 days. If the consultations do not lead to a solution acceptable to both Parties, if consultation is refused or in cases of special urgency, appropriate measures may be taken. These measures shall be revoked as soon as the reasons for taking them no longer prevail.

• (b) The term ‘cases of special urgency’ shall refer to exceptional cases of particularly serious and flagrant violation of one of the essential elements referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 9, that require an immediate reaction. The Party resorting to the special urgency procedure shall inform the other Party and the Council of Ministers separately of the fact unless it does not have time to do so.

• (c) The ‘appropriate measures’ referred to in this Article are measures taken in accordance with international law, and proportional to the violation. In the selection of these measures, priority must be given to those which least disrupt the application of this agreement. It is understood that suspension would be a measure of last resort. If measures are taken in cases of special urgency, they shall be immediately notified to the other Party and the Council of Ministers. At the request of the Party concerned, consultations may then be called in order to examine the situation thoroughly and, if possible, find solutions. These consultations shall be conducted according to the arrangements set out in the second and third subparagraphs of paragraph (a).

Article 97

Consultation procedure and appropriate measures as regards corruption

Article 98

Dispute settlement

Between meetings of the Council of Ministers, such disputes shall be submitted to the Committee of Ambassadors.

2.

• (a) If the Council of Ministers does not succeed in settling the dispute, either Party may request settlement of the dispute by arbitration. To this end, each Party shall appoint an arbitrator within thirty days of the request for arbitration. In the event of failure to do so, either Party may ask the Secretary-General of the Permanent Court of Arbitration to appoint the second arbitrator.

• (b) The two arbitrators shall in turn appoint a third arbitrator within thirty days. In the event of failure to do so, either Party may ask the Secretary-General of the Permanent Court of Arbitration to appoint the third arbitrator.

• (c) Unless the arbitrators decide otherwise, the procedure applied shall be that laid down in the optional arbitration regulation of the Permanent Court of Arbitration for International Organisations and States. The arbitrators' decisions shall be taken by majority vote within three months.

• (d) Each Party to the dispute shall be bound to take the measures necessary to carry out the decision of the arbitrators.

• (e) For the application of this procedure, the Community and the Member States shall be deemed to be one Party to the dispute.

Article 99

Denunciation clause

This Agreement may be denounced by the Community and its Member States in respect of each ACP State and by each ACP State in respect of the Community and its Member States, upon six months' notice.

Article 100

Status of the texts

The Protocols and Annexes attached to this Agreement shall form an integral part thereof. Annexes Ia, II, III, IV and VI may be revised, reviewed and/or amended by the Council of Ministers on the basis of a recommendation from the ACP-EC Development Finance Cooperation Committee.

This Agreement, drawn up in duplicate in the Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish and Swedish languages, all texts being equally authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union and the Secretariat of the ACP States, which shall both transmit a certified copy to the government of each of the Signatory States.

Hecho en Cotonú, el veintitrés de junio del año dos mil.

Udfærdiget i Cotonou den treogtyvende juni to tusind.

Geschehen zu Cotonou am dreiundzwanzigsten Juni zweitausend.

Έγινε στην Κοτονού, στις είκοσι τρεις Ιουνίου δύο χιλιάδες.

Done at Cotonou on the twenty-third day of June in the year two thousand.

Fait à Cotonou, le vingt-trois juin deux mille.

Fatto a Cotonou, addì ventitré giugno duemila.

Gedaan te Cotonou, de drieëntwintigste juni tweeduizend.

Feito em Cotonu, em vinte e três de Junho de dois mil.

Tehty Cotonoussa kahdentenakymmenentenäkolmantena päivänä kesäkuuta vuonna kaksituhatta.

Som skedde i Cotonou den tjugotredje juni tjugohundra.

Pour Sa Majesté le Roi des Belges

Voor Zijne Majesteit de Koning der Belgen

Für Seine Majestät den König der Belgier

Cette signature engage également la Communauté française, la Communauté flamande, la Communauté germanophone, la Région wallonne, la Région flamande et la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale.

Deze handtekening verbindt eveneens de Vlaamse Gemeenschap, de Franse Gemeenschap, de Duitstalige Gemeenschap, het Vlaamse Gewest, het Waalse Gewest en het Brusselse Hoofdstedelijke Gewest.

Diese Unterschrift bindet zugleich die Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft, die Flämische Gemeinschaft, die Französische Gemeinschaft, die Wallonische Region, die Flämische Region und die Region Brüssel-Hauptstadt.

For Hendes Majestæt Danmarks Dronning

Für den Präsidenten der Bundesrepublik Deutschland

Για τον Πρόεδρο της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας

Por Su Majestad el Rey de España

Pour le Président de la République française

Thar ceann Uachtarán na hÉireann

For the President of Ireland

Per il Presidente della Repubblica italiana

Pour Son Altesse Royale le Grand-Duc de Luxembourg

Voor Hare Majesteit de Koningin der Nederlanden

Für den Bundespräsidenten der Republik Österreich

Pelo Presidente da República Portuguesa

Suomen Tasavallan Presidentin puolesta

För Republiken Finlands President

På svenska regeringens vägnar

For Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Por la Comunidad Europea

For Det Europæiske Fællesskab

Für die Europäische Gemeinschaft

Για την Ευρωπαϊκή Κοινότητα

For the European Community

Pour la Communauté européenne

Per la Comunità europea

Voor de Europese Gemeenschap

Pela Comunidade Europeia

Euroopan yhteisön puolesta

På Europeiska gemenskapens vägnar

Pour le Président de la République d'Angola

For Her Majesty the Queen of Antigua and Barbuda

For the Head of State of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas

For the Head of State of Barbados

For the Government of Belize

Pour le Président de la République du Bénin

For the President of the Republic of Botswana

Pour le Président du Burkina Faso

Pour le Président de la République du Burundi

Pour le Président de la République du Cameroun

Pour le Président de la République du Cap-Vert

Pour le Président de la République Centrafricaine

Pour le Président de la République Fédérale Islamique des Comores

Pour le Président de la République démocratique du Congo

Pour le Président de la République du Congo

For the Government of the Cook Islands

Pour le Président de la République de Côte d'Ivoire

Pour le Président de la République de Djibouti

For the Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica

For the President of the Dominican Republic

For the President of the State of Eritrea

For the President of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia

For the President of the Sovereign Democratic Republic of Fiji

Pour le Président de la République gabonaise

For the President and Head of State of the Republic of The Gambia

For the President of the Republic of Ghana

For Her Majesty the Queen of Grenada

Pour le Président de la République de Guinée

Pour le Président de la République de Guinée-Bissau

Pour le Président de la République de Guinée équatoriale

For the President of the Republic of Guyana

Pour le Président de la République d'Haïti

For the Head of State of Jamaica

For the President of the Republic of Kenya

For the President of the Republic of Kiribati

For His Majesty the King of the Kingdom of Lesotho

For the President of the Republic of Liberia

Pour le Président de la République de Madagascar

For the President of the Republic of Malawi

Pour le Président de la République du Mali

For the Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands

Pour le Président de la République Islamique de Mauritanie

For the President of the Republic of Mauritius

For the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia

Pour le Président de la République du Mozambique

For the President of the Republic of Namibia

For the Government of the Republic of Nauru

Pour le Président de la République du Niger

For the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

For the Government of Niue

For the Government of the Republic of Palau

For Her Majesty the Queen of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea

Pour le Président de la République Rwandaise

For Her Majesty the Queen of Saint Kitts and Nevis

For Her Majesty the Queen of Saint Lucia

For Her Majesty the Queen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

For the Head of State of the Independent State of Samoa

Pour le Président de la République démocratique de São Tomé et Príncipe

Pour le Président de la République du Sénégal

Pour le Président de la République des Seychelles

For the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone

For Her Majesty the Queen of the Solomon Islands

For the President of the Republic of South Africa

For the President of the Republic of the Sudan

For the President of the Republic of Suriname

For His Majesty the King of the Kingdom of Swaziland

For the President of the United Republic of Tanzania

Pour le Président de la République du Tchad

Pour le Président de la République togolaise

For His Majesty King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV of Tonga

For the President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

For Her Majesty the Queen of Tuvalu

For the President of the Republic of Uganda

For the Government of the Republic of Vanuatu

For the President of the Republic of Zambia

For the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe

ANNEXES TO THE AGREEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS	TABLE OF CONTENTS
	ANNEX I: FINANCIAL PROTOCOL
	ANNEX IA: MULTIANNUAL FINANCIAL FRAMEWORK OF COOPERATION UNDER THIS AGREEMENT
	ANNEX IB: MULTIANNUAL FINANCIAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE PERIOD 2008 TO 2013
	ANNEX IC: MULTIANNUAL FINANCIAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE PERIOD 2014-2020
	ANNEX II: TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF FINANCING
	Chapter 1: Investment financing
	Chapter 2: Special operations
	Chapter 3: Financing for short-term fluctuations in export earnings
	Chapter 4: Other provisions
	Chapter 5: Investment protection agreements
	ANNEX III: INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT
	ANNEX IV: IMPLEMENTATION AND MANAGEMENT PROCEDURES
	Chapter 1: Programming (national)
	Chapter 2: Programming and preparation (regional)
	Chapter 3: Appraisal and financing
	Chapter 4: Implementation
	Chapter 5: Monitoring and evaluation
	Chapter 6: Fund-resource management and executing agents
	ANNEX VI: LIST OF LDLICS
	ANNEX VII: POLITICAL DIALOGUE AS REGARDS HUMAN RIGHTS, DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES AND THE RULE OF LAW
	PROTOCOLS
	PROTOCOL 1 ON THE OPERATING EXPENDITURE OF THE JOINT INSTITUTIONS
	PROTOCOL 2 ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES
	Chapter 1: Persons taking part in the work of the Agreement
	Chapter 2: Property, funds and assets of the Council of ACP Ministers
	Chapter 3: Official communications
	Chapter 4: Staff of the Secretariat of the ACP States
	Chapter 5: Commission Delegations in the ACP States
	Chapter 6: General provisions
	PROTOCOL 3 ON SOUTH AFRICA

ANNEX I

FINANCIAL PROTOCOL

• 1.For the purposes set out in this Agreement and for a period of five years commencing 1 March 2000, the overall amount of the Community's financial assistance to the ACP States shall be EUR 15 200 million.

• 2.The Community's financial assistance shall comprise an amount up to EUR 13 500 million from the 9th European Development Fund (EDF).

• 3.The 9th EDF shall be allocated between the instruments of cooperation as follows:

• (a) EUR 10 000 million in the form of grants shall be reserved for an envelope for support for long-term development. This envelope shall be used to finance national indicative programmes in accordance with Articles 1 to 5 of Annex IV ‘Implementation and management procedures’ to this Agreement. From the envelope for support for long-term development:
• (i) EUR 90 million shall be reserved for the financing of the budget of the Centre for the Development of Enterprise (CDE);
• (ii) EUR 70 million shall be reserved for the financing of the budget of the Centre for the Development of Agriculture (CTA); and
• (iii) an amount not exceeding EUR 4 million shall be reserved for the purposes referred to in Article 17 of this Agreement (Joint Parliamentary Assembly).

• (b) EUR 1 300 million in the form of grants shall be reserved for the financing of support for regional cooperation and integration of the ACP States in accordance with Articles 6 to 14 of Annex IV ‘Implementation and management procedures’ to this Agreement.

• (c) EUR 2 200 million shall be allocated to finance the Investment Facility according to the terms and conditions set out in Annex II ‘Terms and conditions of financing’ to this Agreement without prejudice to the financing of the interest rate subsidies provided for in Articles 2 and 4 of Annex II to this Agreement funded from the resources mentioned in paragraph 3(a) of this Annex.

• 4.An amount of up to EUR 1 700 million shall be provided from the European Investment Bank in the form of loans made from its own resources. These resources shall be granted for the purposes set out in Annex II ‘Terms and conditions of financing’ to this Agreement in accordance with the conditions provided for by its statutes and the relevant provisions of the terms and conditions for investment financing as laid down in the aforementioned Annex. The Bank may, from the resources it manages, contribute to the financing of regional projects and programmes.

• 5.Any balances remaining from previous EDFs on the date of entry into force of this Financial Protocol, as well as any amounts that shall be decommitted at a later date from ongoing projects under these Funds, shall be transferred to the 9th EDF and shall be used in accordance with the conditions laid down in this Agreement. Any resources thus transferred to the 9th EDF that previously had been allocated to the indicative programme of an ACP State or region shall remain allocated to that State or region. The overall amount of this Financial Protocol, supplemented by the transferred balances from previous EDFs, will cover the period of 2000-2007.

• 6.The Bank shall administer the loans made from its own resources, as well as the operations financed under the Investment Facility. All other financial resources of this Agreement shall be administered by the Commission.

• 7.Before the expiry of this Financial Protocol, the Parties shall assess the degree of realisation of commitments and disbursements. This assessment shall constitute the basis for re-evaluating the overall amount of resources as well for evaluating the need for new resources to support financial cooperation under this Agreement.

• 8.In the event of the funds provided for in any of the instruments of the Agreement being exhausted before the expiry of this Financial Protocol, the joint ACP-EC Council of Ministers shall take the appropriate measures.

• 9.By derogation from Article 58 of this Agreement, an amount of EUR 90 million shall be transferred to the intra ACP envelope under the 9th EDF. This amount may be allocated to finance devolution for the period 2006 to 2007, and shall be managed directly by the Commission.

ANNEX Ia

Multiannual financial framework of cooperation under this Agreement

• 1.For the purposes set out in this Agreement and for a period beginning on 1 March 2005, a multiannual financial framework of cooperation shall cover commitments beginning on 1 January 2008 for a period of five or six years.

• 2.For this new period, the European Union shall maintain its aid effort to ACP States at least at the same level as that of the 9th EDF, not including balances; to this shall be added, based on Community estimates, the effects of inflation, growth within the European Union and enlargement to 10 new Member States in 2004.

• 3.Any required amendments to the multiannual financial framework or relative parts of the Agreement shall be decided by the Council of Ministers by derogation from Article 95 of this Agreement.

ANNEX Ib

Multiannual financial framework for the period 2008 to 2013

• 1.For the purposes set out in this Agreement and for a period starting on 1 January 2008, the overall amount of the financial assistance for the ACP Group of States within this multiannual financial framework shall be EUR 23 966 million, as specified in points 2 and 3.

• 2.The sum of EUR 21 966 million under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF), shall be made available on entry into force of the multiannual financial framework. It shall be allocated between the instruments of cooperation as follows:

• (a) EUR 17 766 million to finance national and regional indicative programmes. This allocation will be used to finance:
• (i) the national indicative programmes of the ACP Group of States in accordance with Articles 1 to 5 of Annex IV to this Agreement concerning implementation and management procedures;
• (ii) the regional indicative programmes of support for regional and inter-regional cooperation and integration of ACP Group of States in accordance with Articles 6 to 11, 13(1) and 14 of Annex IV to this Agreement concerning implementation and management procedures;

• (b) EUR 2 700 million to finance intra-ACP and inter-regional cooperation with many or all of the ACP Group of States, in accordance with Articles 12, 13(2) and 14 of Annex IV to this Agreement concerning implementation and management procedures. This envelope shall include structural support to the joint institutions: the CDE and the CTA referred to and supervised in accordance with the rules and procedures set out in Annex III to this Agreement, and the Joint Parliamentary Assembly referred to in Article 17 of this Agreement. This envelope shall also cover assistance for the operating expenditures of the ACP Secretariat referred to in points 1 and 2 of Protocol 1 attached to this Agreement;

• (c) EUR 1 500 million to finance the Investment Facility in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in Annex II (Terms and conditions of financing) to this Agreement, comprising an additional contribution of EUR 1 100 million to the resources of the Investment Facility, managed as a revolving fund, and EUR 400 million under the form of grants for the financing of the interestrate subsidies provided for in Articles 2 and 4 of that Annex over the period of the 10th EDF.

• 3.The operations financed under the Investment Facility, including the corresponding interestrate subsidies, shall be managed by the European Investment Bank (EIB). An amount of up to EUR 2 000 million in addition to the 10th EDF shall be made available by the EIB in the form of loans from own resources. These resources shall be granted for the purposes set out in Annex II to this Agreement, in accordance with the conditions laid down in the statutes of the EIB and the relevant provisions of the terms and conditions for investment financing in that Annex. All other financial resources under this multiannual financial framework shall be administered by the Commission.

• 4.After 31 December 2007 or after the date of entry into force of this multiannual financial framework, whichever is the later, balances from the Ninth EDF or from previous EDFs and funds decommitted from projects under these EDFs shall no longer be committed, unless the Council of the European Union decides otherwise by unanimity, with the exception of the balances and funds decommitted after the date of entry into force resulting from the system guaranteeing the stabilisation of export earnings from primary agricultural products (STABEX) under the EDFs prior to the Ninth EDF, and the remaining balances and reimbursements of the amounts allocated for the financing of the Investment Facility, excluding the related interestrate subsidies. The funds possibly committed after 31 December 2007 until the entry into force of this Agreement, as referred to above, will be used exclusively to ensure the working ability of the EU administration and to cover the ongoing costs to sustain running projects until the 10th EDF comes into force.

• 5.The overall amount of this multiannual financial framework shall cover the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2013. The funds of the 10th EDF, apart from amounts allocated to the Investment Facility, excluding the related interestrate subsidies, shall no longer be committed beyond 31 December 2013, unless the Council of the European Union decides otherwise by unanimity, on a proposal from the Commission.

• 6.The Committee of Ambassadors, acting on behalf of the ACP-EC Council of Ministers, may, within the overall amount of the multiannual financial framework, take appropriate measures in order to meet programming requirements under one of the allocations provided for in point 2, including the reassignment of funds between these allocations.

• 7.The Parties will conduct a performance review, assessing the degree of realisation of commitments and disbursements, as well as the results and impact of the aid provided. This review will be undertaken on the basis of a proposal prepared by the Commission in 2010. It shall contribute to a decision on the amount of the financial cooperation after 2013.

• 8.Any Member State may provide the Commission or the EIB with voluntary contributions to support the objectives of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement. Member States may also co-finance projects or programmes, for example in the framework of specific initiatives to be managed by the Commission or the EIB. ACP ownership at the national level of such initiatives must be guaranteed.

ANNEX Ic

Multiannual financial framework for the period 2014-2020

• 1.For the purposes set out in this Agreement and for a period starting on 1 January 2014, the overall amount of financial assistance available to the ACP States within this multiannual financial framework shall be EUR 31 589  million, as specified in points 2 and 3.

• 2.The sum of EUR 29 089  million under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF), shall be made available from the date of entry into force of the multiannual financial framework. It shall be allocated between the cooperation instruments as follows:

• (a) EUR 23 940 million to finance national and regional indicative programmes. This allocation will be used to finance:
• (i) the national indicative programmes of individual ACP States in accordance with Articles 1 to 5 of Annex IV to this Agreement concerning implementation and management procedures;
• (ii) the regional indicative programmes of support for regional and inter-regional cooperation and regional integration of ACP States in accordance with Articles 6 to 11 of Annex IV to this Agreement concerning implementation and management procedures;

• (b) EUR 4 015 million to finance intra-ACP and interregional cooperation with many or all of the ACP States in accordance with Articles 12 to 14 of Annex IV to this Agreement concerning implementation and management procedures. This envelope shall include support to joint institutions and bodies created under this Agreement. It shall also cover assistance with the operating expenditure of the ACP Secretariat referred to in points 1 and 2 of Protocol No 1 on the operating expenditure of the joint institutions;

• (c) EUR 1 134  million to finance the Investment Facility in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in Annex II (Terms and conditions of financing) to this Agreement, comprising an additional contribution to EUR 500 million to the resources of the Investment Facility, managed as a revolving fund, and EUR 634 million under the form of grants for the financing of the interest rate subsidies and project-related technical assistance provided for in Articles 1, 2 and 4 of that Annex over the period of the 11th EDF.

• 3.The operations financed under the Investment Facility, including the corresponding interest rate subsidies, shall be managed by the European Investment Bank (EIB). An amount of up to EUR 2 500  million in addition to the funds available from the 11th EDF shall be made available by the EIB in the form of loans from own resources. These resources shall be granted for the purposes set out in Annex II to this Agreement, in accordance with the conditions laid down in the statutes of the EIB and the relevant provisions of the terms and conditions for investment financing in that Annex. All other financial resources under this multiannual financial framework shall be administered by the Commission.

• 4.After 31 December 2013 or after the date of entry into force of this multiannual financial framework, whichever is the later, balances from the 10th EDF or from previous EDFs and funds decommitted from projects under these EDFs shall no longer be committed, unless the Council of the European Union decides otherwise by unanimity, with the exception of the remaining balances and reimbursements of the amounts allocated for the financing of the Investment Facility, excluding the related interest rate subsidies, and the remaining balances of the primary agricultural export receipt stabilisation guarantee system (STABEX) under the EDFs prior to the 9th EDF.

• 5.The overall amount of this multiannual financial framework shall cover the period from 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2020. The funds of the 11th EDF, and, in the case of the Investment Facility, the funds stemming from reflows, shall no longer be committed beyond 31 December 2020, unless the Council of the European Union decides otherwise by unanimity, on a proposal from the Commission. However, the funds subscribed by Member States under the 9th, 10th and 11th EDF to finance the Investment Facilities shall remain available after 31 December 2020 for disbursement.

• 6.The Committee of Ambassadors, acting on behalf of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers, may, within the overall amount of the multiannual financial framework, take appropriate measures in order to meet programming requirements under one of the allocations provided for in point 2, including the reassignment of funds between these allocations.

• 7.At the request of either Side, the Parties may decide to conduct a performance review, at a mutually agreeable time, assessing the degree of realisation of commitments and disbursements, as well as the results and impact of the aid provided. This review would be undertaken on the basis of a proposal prepared by the Commission. It could contribute to the negotiations provided for in Article 95(4) of this Agreement.

• 8.Any Member State may provide the Commission or the EIB with voluntary contributions to support the objectives of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement. Member States may also co-finance projects or programmes, for example in the framework of specific initiatives to be managed by the Commission or the EIB. ACP ownership of such initiatives at the national level must be guaranteed.

ANNEX II

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF FINANCING

CHAPTER 1 INVESTMENT FINANCING

Article 1

Article 2

Resources of the investment facility

• (a) provide risk capital in the form of:
• (i) equity participation in ACP enterprises, including financial institutions;
• (ii) quasi-capital assistance to ACP enterprises, including financial institutions; and
• (iii) guarantees and other credit enhancements which may be used to cover political and other investment-related risks, both for foreign and local investors or lenders.

• (b) provide ordinary loans.

• (a) conditional loans, the servicing and/or the duration of which shall be linked to the fulfilment of certain conditions with regard to the performance of the project; in the specific case of conditional loans for pre-investment studies or other project-related technical assistance, servicing may be waived if the investment is not carried out;

• (b) participating loans, the servicing and/or the duration of which shall be linked to the financial return of the project; and

• (c) subordinated loans, which shall be repaid only after other claims have been settled.

• (a) in the case of conditional or participating loans, the remuneration shall normally comprise a fixed interest rate of not more than 3 % and a variable component related to the performance of the project; and

• (b) in the case of subordinated loans, the interest rate shall be market related.

• (a) for infrastructure projects, that are a prerequisite for private sector development in the Least Developed Countries, in post-conflict countries and in post-natural disaster countries. In such cases, the interest rate of the loan will be reduced by up to 3 %;

• (b) for projects which involve restructuring operations in the framework of privatisation or for projects with substantial and clearly demonstrable social or environmental benefits. In such cases, loans may be extended with an interest rate subsidy, the amount and form of which will be decided with respect to the particular characteristics of the project. However, the interest rate subsidy shall not be higher than 3 %.

The final rate of loans falling under point (a) or (b) shall, in any case, never be less than 50 % of the reference rate.

Article 3

Operations of the investment facility

• (a) be managed as a revolving fund and aim at being financially sustainable. Its operations shall be on market-related terms and conditions and shall avoid creating distortions on local markets and displacing private sources of finances;

• (b) support the ACP financial sector and have a catalytic effect by encouraging the mobilisation of long-term local resources and attracting foreign private investors and lenders to projects in the ACP States;

• (c) bear part of the risk of the projects it funds, its financial sustainability being ensured through the portfolio as a whole and not from individual interventions; and

• (d) seek to channel funds through ACP national and regional institutions and programmes that promote the development of small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

1a. The Bank shall be remunerated for the cost incurrred in managing the Investment Facility. For the first two years after the entry into force of the second financial protocol, this remuneration shall be up to an amount of 2 % p. a. of the total initial endowment of the Investment Facility. Thereafter, the remuneration of the Bank shall include a fixed component of 0,5 % p. a. of the initial endowment and a variable component of an amount of up to 1,5 % p. a. of the portfolio of the Investment Facility that is invested in projects in ACP countries. The remuneration shall be financed out of the Investment Facility.

Article 4

Bank own resource loans

• (a) contribute, through the resources it manages, to the economic and industrial development of the ACP States on a national and regional basis; and to this end, finance as a priority productive projects and programmes or other investments aimed at promoting the private sector in all economic sectors;

• (b) establish close cooperation links with national and regional development banks and with banking and financial institutions of the ACP States and of the EU; and

• (c) in consultation with the ACP State concerned, adapt the arrangements and procedures for implementing development finance cooperation, as set out in this Agreement, if necessary, to take account of the nature of the projects and programmes and to act in accordance with the objectives of this Agreement, within the framework of the procedures laid down by its statute.

• (a) the reference rate of interest shall be the rate applied by the Bank for a loan with the same conditions as to currency and the repayment period on the day of signature of the contract or on the date of disbursement;

• (b) however, for countries which are not subject to restrictive borrowing conditions under the HIPC or other internationally agreed debt sustainability frameworks:
• (i) in principle, public sector projects shall be eligible for an interest rate subsidy of up to 3 %;
• (ii) private sector projects falling into the categories specified in Article 2(7)(b) shall be eligible for interest rate subsidies on the terms specified in that provision. The final interest rate shall, in any such case, never be less than 50 % of the reference rate;

• (c) the repayment period of loans made by the Bank from its own resources shall be determined on the basis of the economic and financial characteristics of the project. These loans shall normally comprise a grace period fixed by reference to the construction period of the project.

Article 5

Conditions for foreign exchange rate risk

In order to minimise the effects of exchange rate fluctuations, the problems of exchange rate risk shall be dealt with in the following way:

• (a) in the case of equity participation designed to strengthen an enterprise's own funds, the exchange rate risk shall, as a general rule, be borne by the Investment Facility;

• (b) in the case of ordinary loans and risk capital financing for small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the exchange rate risk shall, as a general rule, be shared by the Community, on the one hand, and by the other Parties involved, on the other. On average, the foreign exchange rate risk should be shared equally; and

• (c) where feasible and appropriate, particularly in countries characterised by macroeconomic and financial stability, the Facility will endeavour to extend loans in local ACP currencies, thus de facto taking the foreign exchange risk.

Article 6

Conditions for foreign exchange transfer

The ACP States concerned shall, in respect of operations under the Agreement, and in respect of which they have given their written approval within the framework of this Agreement:

• (a) grant exemption from all national or local duties, fiscal charges on interest, commission and amortisation of loans due in accordance with the law or laws of the ACP State or States concerned;

• (b) place at the disposal of the beneficiaries the currency necessary for the payment of interest, commission and the amortisation of loans due in terms of financing contracts granted for the implementation of projects and programmes on their territories; and

• (c) make available to the Bank the foreign currency necessary for the transfer of all sums received by it in national currency at the exchange rate applicable between the Euro or other currencies of transfer and the national currency at the date of the transfer. These include all forms of remuneration, such as, inter alia, interest, dividends, commissions and fees, as well as the amortisation of loans and the proceeds from the sale of shares due in terms of financing contracts granted for the implementation of projects and programmes on their territories.

Article 6a

Annual reporting on the Investment Facility

Representatives of the EU Member States responsible for the Investment Facility, Representatives of the ACP States, as well as the European Investment Bank, the European Commission, the EU Council Secretariat and the ACP Secretariat shall meet annually to discuss the operations, performance and policy questions concerning the Investment Facility.

Article 6b

Review of performance of the Investment Facility