First meeting of the Board of the European Endowment for Democracy
Today was held the first meeting of the Board of the European Endowment for Democracy. It was devoted to the administrative matters relating to the structure and functioning of the Fund and adoption of Rules of Procedure of the Board, approval of the procedure and criteria for selecting the Chief Executive, choice of representatives of the civil society for members of the Board and others. The guidelines for the activity and method of operation of the Fund for the next three years, as well as financial support from member states, were also discussed. The European Commission confirmed its contribution in the form of a grant in the amount of € 6 million to cover the administrative costs.
After the meeting Kristian Vigenin, member of the Board of the European Parliament, said: "It is good that after the long process of the creating EED already have a working structure. I`m looking forward to the next Board meeting with High Representative Ashton and European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy Füle to discuss in greater detail the guidelines, priorities and methods of operation of the Fund. "
"The financial contribution of the Commission at this early stage is essential for the functioning of the Fund, but the Member States must also show commitment because there should be an adequate relationship between the political ambitions and the real possibilities," said Vigenin.
Some of the Member States have already announced their financial contribution, as one of the biggest donors is Poland with € 5 million, Denmark, between € 1 and € 2 million, Sweden with € 1.2 million. Bulgaria plans to include with approximately € 150 thousand.
The EED will aim to help actors of change and emerging players who face obstacles in access to EU funding. It will offer a rapid and flexible funding mechanism for beneficiaries who are unsupported or insufficiently so, in particular for legal or administrative reasons. Such actors may include: journalists, bloggers, non-registered NGOs, political movements (including those in exile or from the diaspora), in particular when all of these actors operate in a very uncertain political context. This will be precisely the added value of the EED.
The EED takes the form of a private law Foundation established in Belgium, which is autonomous from the European Union, governed by its own Statute and governing bodies. As such it is not a European instrument but complements existing EU cooperation instruments. In particular, it will ensure coherence, synergies and value-added with the activities carried out by the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR), the Instrument for Stability or the Civil Society Facility.