Switzerland will finance projects in the new EU Member States for a total amount of one billion Swiss Francs (about €645 million) over a period of five years. The projects will start this year and cover support for public administration reforms, environment and infrastructure, promotion of the private sector, and human and social development.
Welcoming the agreement, European Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner said: ‘Switzerland is the EU’s closest neighbour and privileged partner. The new commitment is a fitting contribution to the economic and social development in the enlarged EU. This contribution further deepens and strengthens the excellent relations which already exist between the EU and Switzerland’.
Switzerland is not only geographically but also culturally and economically EU’s closest neighbour. It is the third trading partner after the US and China. Over 800.000 EU citizens live and work in Switzerland. The EU and Switzerland have concluded many agreements in a large number of sectors: free trade and free movement of persons, public procurement, land and air transport, agriculture, research etc.
Following the latest enlargement, May 1, 2004, the Commission requested that Switzerland make a financial contribution similar to the one made by the countries Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
The Swiss contribution should be seen in the context of Switzerland benefiting from access to the enlarged EU Internal Market and to a number of EU programmes and activities. The Swiss Federal Council will select the projects to be funded in agreement with the beneficiary States, taking account of their requests, needs and absorption capacity. The Federal Council and the European Commission will screen the draft projects for their compatibility with the Community’s objectives.
The financial contribution will be distributed among beneficiary countries according to the table below:
Beneficiary State Swiss Francs
Czech Republic 109.780.000
Estonia 39.920.000
Cyprus 5.988.000
Latvia 59.880.000
Lithuania 70.858.000
Hungary 130.738.000
Malta 2.994.000
Poland 489.020.000
Slovenia 21.956.000
Slovakia 66.866.000
High priority projects 2.000.000
EU-Switzerland contacts will take another step forward when the European Commission opens a delegation in Bern, in the next coming months.
