a.i.s.b.l.
International not-for-profit association
Brussels, December 2007
Bolivia - CESES/EU Latin America 2 contract
by Alan W. Shave, CESES Lead Representative in Bolivia Three CESES Member Associations – SES of Germany, ECTI of France, and PUM of The Netherlands – have local representatives in Bolivia, the latter present in three different cities. Their enthusiastic promotion of the two CESES/EU Latin American contracts todate has ensured that assignment quotas have been fully committed……and there are applications in reserve should Brussels identify any further funding! of jeans and industrial clothing destined for domestic and export markets. In both these cases a key element of the assignments will involve advice on reducing related environmental contamination.
We thank you for your cooperation and support in 2007 and wish you all a happy, peaceful and fruitful New Year! The CESES Office team
From left to right: Nicola Bellieni (Principal Advisor), Richard Blow (Project Manager), Guido Bognolo (General Secretary), Christiane Mariotte (Executive Assistant) and Marc Van Hauwermeiren (Project Manager).
A further pending application calls for the skills of a blue cheese expert to give added value to the products of an established cheese maker, and help Assignments undertaken to-date have sustain subsistence dairy farmers. benefited clients in the forestry sector – planting selected trees on otherwise Experts to-date have been provided by under-utilised or abandoned agricultural CESES’ German, Dutch and French land – the high-tech plastics processing member organizations: an Italian industry, and in wine and liqueur volunteer is a strong candidate for one of production. The liqueur production advice the pending applications. Client closely supports the European satisfaction with the support of all the Delegation’s APEMIN SME programme volunteers has been high. Indeed one which promotes alternative development client from the first round of the Latin to give Bolivia’s mining communities America contract requested further help employment diversification possibilities. and was especially pleased to get the help of an SES expert on a second Applications currently in the pipeline occasion: the German adviser reviewing include support for a hide/leather the implementation of his initial 2005 processing company and an industrial recommendations and taking the laundry venture which provides finishing company on to the next stage of its services for some 250 Bolivian makers development goals.
(to be continued on page 4)
In this issue:
Bolivia – CESES/EU Latin America 2 contract COBU, the pillar of the Parliament Member Associations: ASB Note from the General Secretary PUM Delegation returns from China with 120 applications The page of CESES Member Associations
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2007 / 04
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COBU, the pillar of the Parliament
One of the main roles of the Committee on Budgets (COBU) is to validate the rights of the European Parliament (EP), i.e. the right to decide on which public European action the revenue of the European Union (EU) should be spent. COBU is thus an essential lever for shaping EU policies. It is one of the two arms of the budgetary authority, the other one being the Council of Ministers (representing the EU member states). It decides on nearly everything which is not agriculture and/or defence related. The EP sphere of action has been expanded by inter-institutional agreements which aimed at securing budgetary discipline and budget stability in a multi-annual perspective. development, smooth and gradual integration of developing countries into the world economy, campaigns against poverty), support of the EU budget is essential. Studies and actions by COBU concerning the creation and functioning of Decentralised and Executive Agencies have been of so high value that this important sector of activity of the European Commission is now practically under the control of the Committee.
Member Associations: ASB
Aktivsenioren Bayern e.V. (ASB) is a Senior Expert organisation (non profitorientated) in Germany, mainly operating in the Federal State of Bavaria. ASB has circa 350 members. The experts are all working on a voluntary basis, only their expenses are reimbursed by the clients. The clients are entrepreneurs building up new businesses, small and medium-sized companies seeking advice for improving their operations. Consultation is given for transfer of business if required. ASB is also in close touch with many governmental departments in Bavaria, e.g. Environment, Employment, Economy for which we are doing special projects, such as rating hotels according to Bavarian environmental standards. In addition we are engaged in many social activities, e.g. helping school leavers to write cv's, find jobs, etc. We are also in touch with Employment Offices to advise unemployed people on writing business plans. From January 1, 2008 ASB will have 10 regional “offices” which in 2007 organized approximately 1,600 assignments. Funding is through clients' contributions, sponsoring and regional funds. The regional “offices” are run by a regional manager who is elected by the local members. The regional managers are “reporting” to the Board of Directors who are elected every two years by all members of the association. Last election was in March 2007. The Board members are: Lothar Langer (Chairman), Dr. Albert von Spreckelsen (Deputy Chairman), Manfred Leinberger (Organisation) and KlausDieter Lucht (Supraregional Activities and Projects); the Treasurer still has to be elected. Klaus-Dieter Lucht
Two years of intensive work by COBU have made it possible for a new Financial Regulation to be created (and have influenced its detailed step-by-step Implementing Rules) which provides general principles and rules for all transactions entered into by the European The draft annual budget, which is Institutions and which will accompany a adopted in July by the Council, forms the new generation of EU programmes worth basis for the First EP Reading. In EUR 975 billion over a 7-year period. September and October, COBU adopts the amendments to the Council's draft Practical improvements for both grants budget (these amendments are the (less documentation and the work of staff representation of the political will of the replacing cash co-financing) and public EP) which are submitted to the EP contracts will be most important for Plenary. SME's (small and medium-sized enterprises) and for development The first EP reading is followed by the agencies. second reading of the Council and the procedure is concluded in December, COBU is central to the pursuit of CESES after the second reading in EP Plenary, efforts towards a systematic use by the by the signature of the EP President. European Commission of qualified volunteer seniors' expertise. COBU, which is fighting strenuously for the inclusion in the EU budget of the Since 2002 COBU has allowed the European Development Fund (which is insertion of amendments into the EU development aid for mainly Africa), has Budget which have been pivotal in shown all its ability in dealing with obtaining contracts from the European matters related to development Commission. assistance, the functioning of Agencies and the Financial Regulation. COBU's help will be needed even more when the co-decision procedure Development assistance being a powerful (European Council/European Parliament) tool to achieve the EU goals (namely will be put into action following the new of sustainable economic and social EU Treaty.
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Note from the General Secretary
First, let me express to all CESES Member organisations my thanks for the support to CESES Operations in 2007, and my best wishes for a prosperous and successful 2008. 2008 promises to be a year of challenges, in which we should harness the results of the hard work done in Latin America and pursue new opportunities for enlarging CESES participation to the European Union programmes of assistance to emerging countries. The Latin America programme is progressing and we look forward to its Contacts are being established with the EU competent authorities to discuss and The excellent cooperation with The Latin gain feedback on the work done and America desk allows to direct efforts reinforce CESES profile with the EU towards countries of major need, which institutions. however are sometimes less familiar with the opportunities offered by the assistance programmes. There is little doubt 2008 will be a year of learning and changes! In concert with the Member Associations CESES head office has developed strategic priorities to be pursued in parallel with the traditional approach that resulted in the Guido Bognolo, General Secretary Latin America contracts and has developed the first tactical tools to start implementing the new strategy. completion in the time foreseen.
PUM delegation returns from China with 120 applications
PUM’s China team paid a visit to China during the first week of December. The trip made by the country coordinator, Wim Haandrikman, and project officer, Murielle van der Pol, comprised a threeday workshop, a two-day conference and a visit to PUM’s contacts in Beijing. The three-day workshop was held on the Hainan island and the conference took place in Shenzhen.
Attendants from other CESES Member Associations: - Mr Daniel Isidor (AGIR) - Mr John Burlison (VSO/BESO) - Mr Robert Faveur, Mr Maurice Mathieu (ECTI) - Mr Arduion Podesta, Mr Enrico Gennaro (ISES) - Ms Hilse Heidegret, Ms Anja Tenamberge (SES) - Mr Eberhard Lell (ASEP) - Mr George Luff (BSC) These participants also received several applications and many fruitful contacts were established with Chinese officials. for PUM to cooperate more closely with the agriculture and economics division. Particularly in view of the fact that, following consultancy by its experts, PUM attempts to link the Chinese companies to a Dutch partner who can assist in the implementation of the advice proffered. (from an article by Remko Ebbers, Bureauredacteur/Editor PUM)
Apart from PUM, representatives of other including several CESES Member European organisations were given an Associations (see box). explanation of the Chinese application PUM received some 120 applications, system. around 70 of which it should be able to In addition, delegates were offered the execute in the course of 2008. The opportunity to exchange thoughts with possibilities of combining applications of representatives of the Foreign Expert similar nature, however, are being Bureaus. examined in close consultation with the sector coordinators, with a view to Applications for 2008 were discussed executing as many as possible. during the conference in Shenzhen. This event was also attended by other Consultations also took place at the Dutch European Senior Expert Embassy in Beijing on the opportunities organisations,
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The page of CESES Member Associations
Pictures (°) from mission in Bolivia BO02 - Bosques Tropicales
Bolivia - CESES/EU Latin America 2 contract
(continued from cover page)
Representatives of CESES’ organizations in Bolivia have particularly valued the close personal cooperation of Ivo Hoefkens, Chargé d’Affaires a.i. in the EU Delegation La Paz. No complaints about the CESES/EU programme......except of course that the in-country representatives of CESES Member Associations would welcome even more assignments for Bolivia under any future extension of the present programme! Alan W. Shave, CESES Lead representative in Bolivia 11yrs old Schizolobium amazonicum in a Serebó plantation in the Chapare region (height: 20m, diameter: 46cm) Ketchua worker in the Chapare region (°) courtesy of Dr Dietrich Heiseke, SES expert
The Forest Team in a plantation of Balsa in the Chapare region (1 yr old trees, height: 7m, diameter 6,9cm)
Tree nursery with teak plants (Tectona grandis) in the Chapare region
CESES is an international not-for-profit association of 25 organisations from the member states of the European Union.The first such legal entity of its kind in Europe, it encompasses the skills of over 24,000 volunteers. It combines the vast resources of its Member Associations to offer professional, voluntary, short-term assistance and advice to SME's, cooperatives and institutions. CESES aisbl Rue du Commerce 31 BE-1000 Brussel Tel: +32 2 219 73 18 Fax: +32 2 219 70 78 ceses@skynet.be www.ceses.net Editor: André Knott (BSC) Rue Potagère 13 BE-1210 Brussels
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