Brussels, 06/03/2001 (Agence Europe) - The Commission adopted a report on the EU's activities in favour of small and medium sized enterprises (SME) since 1997 (report which is part of the framework of the contributions to the Stockholm European Summit on 23 and 24 March. The aim is to translate the priority given to SMEs in the wider political context of the Luxembourg process relating to the European employment strategy. If the report paints a "globally positive assessment", it recognises that improvements remain possible. In particular, it underlines that enterprise policy was integrated into the more general Community policies and programmes, and analyses the financial instruments notably managed by the European Investment Bank, the Structural Finds, the research and development programme… Its title is "Creating an Entrepreneurial Europe - the activities of the European Union for SMEs". It is the fifth and last report on the framework of the third multi-annual programme for SMEs which finished in 2000. The new multi-annual programme was adopted by the Council on 20 November 2000.