Pályáztatók
Education, Audiovisual & Culture Executive Agency
Introduction
On 14 January 2005 the Commission adopted Decision 2005/56/EC setting up the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency. This Agency will be responsible for the management of certain parts of the EU?s programmes in the education, culture and audiovisual fields.
Why an Executive Agency?
In the education, culture and audiovisual fields the Commission has a long tradition of outsourcing certain activities to Technical Assistance Offices ( TAOs ). Since 2000, measures have been adopted to phase out the private sector TAOs and create public law entities specialised in programme management in their stead. In particular, on 19 December 2002 the Council adopted Regulation (EC) No 58/2003 which empowers the Commission to set up executive agencies entrusted with certain tasks in the management of Community programmes.
Entrusting programmes to a well-resourced, specialised body should lead to better-managed and improved services to beneficiaries. Compared to the current management situation, whereby the Commission is assisted by three TAOs , the new Agency will have more staff stability (longer term contracts). Moreover, within the agency it will be possible to create and exploit synergies between programmes.
Management and programme administration tasks will be able to be concentrated within the Agency, leaving the Commission free to refocus its activities on its policy and institutional tasks.
A cost-benefit analysis has shown that using an executive agency to manage certain parts of the EU?s programmes in the education, culture and audiovisual fields is the most advantageous of the options available, both in financial and in non-financial terms.
The Agency has been set up for a 4-year period: 2005-2008. An interim evaluation of the operation of the Agency, including a cost/benefit analysis, will be carried out in 2006. This will review the management by the agency of the new programmes in the education, culture and audiovisual fields.
Which programmes will be managed by the Agency?
The Agency will be in charge of the management of certain parts of the following Community programmes:
- Socrates (Education)
- Leonardo da Vinci (Vocational training)
- Youth
- MEDIA-Plus and MEDIA-Training
- Culture 2000
- Erasmus Mundus
- eLearning
- the Community action programmes to promote bodies active at European level in the fields of, Youth, Culture, Education and Training (including the Jean Monnet Action and active European Citizenship (including Town Twinning). It will also be in charge of projects in the field of higher education financed by resources for economic cooperation with developing countries in Asia (the Erasmus Mundus Asian Windows).
Which will be the division of tasks between the Commission and the Agency?
On the basis of the reference framework established by the Commission, the Agency is responsible for the implementation of the following tasks:
- Drawing up calls for proposals
- Project selection (in some cases the Commission adopts the selection decision)
- Signing project agreements
- Financial management:
- Operational budgets of programmes
- Operating budget
- Monitoring of projects (intermediate reports, final reports)
- Communication and information with beneficiaries
- On the spot controls
- Annual work programme and activity report
The Commission will be responsible for the following tasks:
- Management of certain programme strands
- Annual work programmes in the fields of education, audiovisual and culture
- Political and budgetary priority-setting
- Programme evaluation and information
- Monitoring of the agency
- Chairing programme committees (the role of the committees remains unchanged)
In certain cases: adoption of the project selection and publication of the calls for proposals
When will the agency start its activities?
The Agency has started its preparatory works in 2005 and will be fully operational from the 3rd of January 2006. Consequently, the contracts with the Technical Assistance Offices (TAOs) will be running up to the beginning of 2006.
Agency management
The Agency Director, Gilbert Gascard, was appointed by the Commission on 13 July 2005. He will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the agency as well as its external representation.
The steering committee, of 5 persons, was appointed by the Commission on 15 February 2005 for a two-year period.
Parent DGs
The agency has two parent Directorates-General:
- DG Education and Culture (EAC): responsible for the majority of the programmes entrusted to the Agency- DG Information Society and Medias (INFSO): responsible for MEDIA Plus and MEDIA Training programmes.
On 14 January 2005 the Commission adopted Decision 2005/56/EC setting up the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency. This Agency will be responsible for the management of certain parts of the EU?s programmes in the education, culture and audiovisual fields.
Why an Executive Agency?
In the education, culture and audiovisual fields the Commission has a long tradition of outsourcing certain activities to Technical Assistance Offices ( TAOs ). Since 2000, measures have been adopted to phase out the private sector TAOs and create public law entities specialised in programme management in their stead. In particular, on 19 December 2002 the Council adopted Regulation (EC) No 58/2003 which empowers the Commission to set up executive agencies entrusted with certain tasks in the management of Community programmes.
Entrusting programmes to a well-resourced, specialised body should lead to better-managed and improved services to beneficiaries. Compared to the current management situation, whereby the Commission is assisted by three TAOs , the new Agency will have more staff stability (longer term contracts). Moreover, within the agency it will be possible to create and exploit synergies between programmes.
Management and programme administration tasks will be able to be concentrated within the Agency, leaving the Commission free to refocus its activities on its policy and institutional tasks.
A cost-benefit analysis has shown that using an executive agency to manage certain parts of the EU?s programmes in the education, culture and audiovisual fields is the most advantageous of the options available, both in financial and in non-financial terms.
The Agency has been set up for a 4-year period: 2005-2008. An interim evaluation of the operation of the Agency, including a cost/benefit analysis, will be carried out in 2006. This will review the management by the agency of the new programmes in the education, culture and audiovisual fields.
Which programmes will be managed by the Agency?
The Agency will be in charge of the management of certain parts of the following Community programmes:
- Socrates (Education)
- Leonardo da Vinci (Vocational training)
- Youth
- MEDIA-Plus and MEDIA-Training
- Culture 2000
- Erasmus Mundus
- eLearning
- the Community action programmes to promote bodies active at European level in the fields of, Youth, Culture, Education and Training (including the Jean Monnet Action and active European Citizenship (including Town Twinning). It will also be in charge of projects in the field of higher education financed by resources for economic cooperation with developing countries in Asia (the Erasmus Mundus Asian Windows).
Which will be the division of tasks between the Commission and the Agency?
On the basis of the reference framework established by the Commission, the Agency is responsible for the implementation of the following tasks:
- Drawing up calls for proposals
- Project selection (in some cases the Commission adopts the selection decision)
- Signing project agreements
- Financial management:
- Operational budgets of programmes
- Operating budget
- Monitoring of projects (intermediate reports, final reports)
- Communication and information with beneficiaries
- On the spot controls
- Annual work programme and activity report
The Commission will be responsible for the following tasks:
- Management of certain programme strands
- Annual work programmes in the fields of education, audiovisual and culture
- Political and budgetary priority-setting
- Programme evaluation and information
- Monitoring of the agency
- Chairing programme committees (the role of the committees remains unchanged)
In certain cases: adoption of the project selection and publication of the calls for proposals
When will the agency start its activities?
The Agency has started its preparatory works in 2005 and will be fully operational from the 3rd of January 2006. Consequently, the contracts with the Technical Assistance Offices (TAOs) will be running up to the beginning of 2006.
Agency management
The Agency Director, Gilbert Gascard, was appointed by the Commission on 13 July 2005. He will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the agency as well as its external representation.
The steering committee, of 5 persons, was appointed by the Commission on 15 February 2005 for a two-year period.
Parent DGs
The agency has two parent Directorates-General:
- DG Education and Culture (EAC): responsible for the majority of the programmes entrusted to the Agency- DG Information Society and Medias (INFSO): responsible for MEDIA Plus and MEDIA Training programmes.
