Brussels, 15/07/2003 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, the European Commission adopted a framework for action in order to finance studies and projects this year, worth EUR 13 million, for cooperation with third countries in the field of immigration. The EU Commission mainly foresees the funding of projects that relate to enhanced protection of refugees in their regions of origin. This controversial subject was studied by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees but also by the United Kingdom which had made very radical proposals, evoked at the European Council of Thessaloniki (EUROPE of 21 June, p.5, and 3 June, p.12). The text does not provide for the financing of a pilot project for a centre to process requests outside the EU but rather projects for the analysis of legal, financial and practical issues that are raised by these centres and regional protection areas. It also provides for the formulation of proposals of projects and programmes.
The allocation of EUR 13 million could also serve to finance projects relating to the administration of migrants (study and proposals to make it more reliable and less expensive for emigrants to send funds back to their countries, measures intended to deal with the brain drain phenomenon, the diffusion of information on legal ways to immigrate into the European Union), and the fight against illegal immigration (improved management of border controls, assistance for the management of transit immigration). The Commission mainly plans to support projects in about ten countries (Morocco, Albania,Yugoslavia, Russia, Tunisia, etc.), which appear on the list of countries with which the EU hopes to strengthen its cooperation in the field of immigration. Projects will be selected upon a call for tender. Subsidies will amount to 500,000 to 2,500,000 per project, with financing that covers up to 80% of the cost of the project.
This decision completes that taken on 8 May to finance with EUR 7 million the return of Afghan refugees into their country. These two decisions are financed by the Community budget line B7-667, the only budget line specifically devoted at this time to cooperation with the third countries in the field of immigration. One month ago, the Commission submitted a proposal to the Council for a programme worth EUR 250 million for the years 2004 to 2008 (EUROPE of 12 June, p.11).