The European Commission have published their official report, on the 24th April 2008, to the European Parliment, the Council and the European Court of Auditors concerning the Financial Management of the 7th-9th European Development Funds (EDFs) in 2007.

Financial highlights for 2007

• The Commission met almost all of its financial objectives, exceeding its targets for global commitments and contracts. For the first time ever, an EDF has been entirely committed before the entry into force of the next EDF.
• EDF payments reached a record level (€ 2.92 billion) but were constrained by cash flow shortages. The increase in the pace of EDF payments in recent years is putting pressure on Member States to accelerate their contributions.
• Internal controls and processes – the EDF has still to be integrated into the Common Relex Information System (CRIS). In addition, the introduction of ABAC-FED has been further delayed until beginning 2009.
• Staffing – Following the EuropeAid workload assessment, 11 additional contract agents could be recruited in 2007 in AIDCO/C Headquarters. Whilst this mitigated our staff constraints, the workload per staff in the ACP Directorate in EuropeAid remains high compared to other geographical areas. Delegations in the ACP states continued to work within tight staffing constraints.

EuropeAid's objectives, insofar as EDF is concerned, are defined in:

• The ACP section of EuropeAid’s Annual Management Plan, and
• The relevant central performance indicators agreed by EuropeAid Management.

According to the report, these objectives were met or exceeded.

The major challenge for the EDF in 2007 when providing aid more quickly, was to commit all available resources (9th EDF and transfers from previous EDFs) by the end of 2007. This ambitious objective was achieved, being the first time in history of the EDF that all available funds have been committed before the entry into force of the next EDF. The 2007 commitments amounted to €3,636 M exceeding the target of €3,450 M, including amounts that were de-committed and re-committed by the end of 2007.

What is EuropeAid?

EuropeAid is the Directorate-General of the European Commission that is responsible for implementing external aid programmes and projects across the world. It works closely with EU neighbouring countries, Russia, the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) regions, Latin America and Asia. EuropeAid aims to deliver development aid in an efficient and effective way. The focus is on maximising the value and impact of aid funding by making sure support is provided in a speedy and accountable fashion.