The EU regulations on the use of structural funds (Art. 7§5 of Regulation (EC) 1260/1999) (pdf, 252 Kb) establish that 4% of the total resources of the 2000-2006 Community Support Framework shall set aside to be allocated for distribution at mid-term on the basis of the performance in terms of effectiveness, management and financial implementation of the central and regional government entities receiving funds.
Italy has "reinforced" the EU mechanism by setting aside a further 6% of resources to meet the need to increase the managerial and strategic efficiency of those government entities called to implement the CSF, thus offering incentives to modernise the administrative structures entrusted with the implementation of actions.
The entire performance reserve therefore amounts to 10% of the resources of the 2000-2006 programme (more than €2.3 billion in EU funds plus national co-financing), composed of the Community performance reserve (4%) and the national performance reserve (6%).
During 2004, in compliance with CSF requirements, an information system on the consolidation of the performance reserve objectives of the Structural Funds was set up. This system includes the six Objective 1 regions, which are in charge of ROPs, and 6 central government entities, which are responsible for NOPs. The aim of the system is to ascertain the extent to which the results already produced could be consolidated and the time it would take to do so. The activity is coordinated by a DPS working group formed by UVAL and by the Office for Administrative Modernisation of the Projects, Studies and Statistics Service.
The 4% performance reserve
The 6% performance reserve
The information system on the consolidation of the performance reserve objectives of the Structural Funds
The 4% performance reserve
Timetable for the allocation of the reserve
The 4% performance reserve was allocated in March 2004 on the basis of the situation assessed in June 2003.
Reference documentation for the allocation of performance reserve resources
The procedures and mechanisms for the allocation of the Community reserve for Objective 1 in Italy (Criteria and mechanisms for allocation of the 4% performance reserve - pdf, 198 Kb) have been defined, beginning with the guidance document of the European Commission (Implementation of the performance reserve - pdf, 80 Kb), based on a proposal from the CSF Managing Authority developed in partnership with the European Commission, approved by the CSF Monitoring Committee in November 2000 and subsequently amended in March 2002.
The allocation of the Community reserve is subject to compliance with the criteria directly concerning the implementation of Operational Programmes and in particular the effectiveness of planning, the quality of the management system (monitoring, control, evaluation, selection of projects) and financial implementation. The mechanism for the allocation of resources provides for the assignment of the total amount of the reserve to those programmes that meet at least 6 of the 8 indicators envisaged.
The Performance Reserve Technical Group
The monitoring of the criteria for the allocation of the Community reserve is carried out by a Technical Group in compliance with the provisions of Art. 10 of CIPE resolution no. 83 of 4 August 2000 (doc, 102 Kb) setting up the implementation procedures for the Objective 1 CSF. The Technical Group was formally established with a decree (pdf, 1 Mb) of the Chairman of the CSF Monitoring Committee (Head of the Department for Development and Cohesion Policies) on 1 June 2001 and is coordinated by a UVAL representative charged with technical, administrative and organisational coordination.
In addition to the coordinator, the Technical Group is made up of a UVAL representative, two representatives of the Public Investment Evaluation and Verification Network and by two experts appointed by the European Commission.
The Group is based at the government department in charge of its coordination the Ministry for the Economy (DPS-UVAL) which also provides a permanent technical secretariat to support its activities, and aims at ensuring the high quality of the manner in which the system for allocating the reserve is implemented and for guaranteeing the adequacy and accuracy of the indicators used and the periodic monitoring of the achievement of the benchmarks envisaged.
The monitoring of the performance reserve
The monitoring reports prepared by the Managing Authorities of the Operational Programmes are used by the Technical Group to prepare periodic monitoring reports of the reserves, which are transmitted to the Managing Authority of the CSF and then submitted to the CSF Monitoring Committee.
The First (August 2001) - pdf, 150 Kb,
Second (March 2002) - pdf, 1.76 Mb and
Third (April 2003) - doc, 711 Kb Annual Monitoring Reports are now available.
The allocation of performance reserves
For the allocation of resources, the Technical Group prepared a Final Report describing the indicators achieved for each Operational Programme and the evaluation method applied. The proposal for the allocation of the 4% performance reserve, based upon the
Final Report prepared by the Technical Group (pdf, 2.18 Mb) was presented by the CSF Managing Authority to the European Commission by 31 December 2003. The resources (€988 million) were allocated to each Operational Programme in compliance with the decision of the European Commission of 23 March 2004 C(2004)883 (pdf, 211 Kb), (Official Journal of the European Union no. 111 of 17 April 2004) in close agreement with the Member State.
The 6% performance reserve
Timetable for the allocation of the reserve
The 6% performance reserve was allocated during the first quarter of 2003 on the basis of the situation assessed in September 2002.
Reference documentation for the allocation of performance reserve resources
The criteria for the allocation of the 6% national performance reserve are essential requirements for the effective implementation of programmes and are already defined in the general principles of the Community Support Framework, at section 6.5 ( pdf, 289 Kb) and in the Annex D "Guidelines for the allocation of the 6% national performance reserve" ( pdf, 170 Kb). The procedures and mechanisms for the allocation of the performance reserve (Criteria and mechanisms for the allocation of the 6% performance reserve ( pdf, 265 Kb) defined on the basis of a proposal from the CSF Managing Authority were approved by the CSF Monitoring Committee in April 2001 and subsequently amended in March 2002.
The allocation of resources linked to the national performance reserve is subject to the satisfaction of a number progress indicators, including
- the implementation of employment services and one-stop shops;
- progress in water planning, waste disposal and landscape preservation;
- the setting up of units for the evaluation and verification of public investments;
- the completion of activities concerning the appointment of managers and the operations of internal management control systems.
Other considerations regard the principles of integration and concentration of actions, which are deemed essential in order to maximise the impact of investments for any given level of resources.
The Performance Reserve Technical Group
The monitoring of the criteria for the allocation of the performance reserve is carried out by a Technical Group in compliance with the provisions of Art. 10 of
CIPE resolution no. 83 of 4 August 2000 (pdf, 102 Kb) csetting up the implementation procedures for the Objective 1 CSF.
The Technical Group was formally established with a decree (pdf, 1 Mb)of the Chairman of the CSF Monitoring Committee (Head of the Department for Development and Cohesion Policies) on 13 June 2001 and is coordinated by a UVAL representative charged with technical, administrative and organisational coordination.
In addition to the coordinator, the Technical Group is made up of a UVAL representative and two representatives of the Public Investment Evaluation and Verification Network.
The Group is based at the government department in charge of its coordination the Ministry for the Economy (DPS-UVAL) which also provides a permanent technical secretariat to support its activities, and aims at ensuring the high quality of the manner in which the system for allocating the reserve is implemented and for guaranteeing the adequacy and accuracy of the indicators used and the periodic monitoring of the achievement of the benchmarks envisaged.
The monitoring of the performance reserve
The monitoring reports prepared by the Managing Authorities of the Operational Programmes are used by the Technical Group to prepare periodic monitoring reports of the reserves, which are transmitted to the Managing Authority of the CSF and then submitted to the CSF Monitoring Committee.
The First - August 2001 (pdf, 180 Kb), Second - March 2002 (pdf, 1,81 Mb) and Third (April 2003)(pdf, 711 Kb) Annual Monitoring Reports are now available.
The allocation of performance reserves
For the allocation of resources, the Technical Group prepared a Final Report describing the indicators achieved for each Operative Programme and the evaluation method applied. The mechanism for the allocation of the 6% national performance reserve is modular in structure and enables the partial allocation of the reserve depending on the indicators achieved.
The resources concerning indicators that have not been achieved ("surpluses") are allocated as follows:
- 50% to government entities in proportion to demonstrated performance;
- 25% on the basis of the 4% results, and
- the final 25% remains available to the CSF Managing Authority.
On the basis of the information contained in the Final Report, the CSF Managing Authority presents the CSF Monitoring Committee with a proposed allocation of the reserve for each programme.
At the Monitoring Committee’s meeting of 12 March 2003, the proposed allocation of the 6% reserve - pdf 3.55 Mb, (1,027.24 million) was approved on the basis of the Final Report of the Technical Group - pdf 187 Kb.
Owing to the special structure of the programme, the portion of the 6% reserve (about €24.5 million) allotted to the Technical Assistance NOP is distributed on the basis of the 4% results. (see Proposed allocation of the 6% reserve of 17 February 2004).
Further allocations of the 6% performance reserve.
6% second tranche
The Monitoring Committee meeting of 12 and 13 March 2003, acknowledging the significant efforts made by all the government entities and seeking to provide a further incentive for the completion of reform processes that had been initiated but not concluded by the deadline, also established that 25% of the surplus available to the Managing Authority should be offered again and allotted on the basis of the results achieved as of 30 September 2003 for indicators that had not been achieved by the original deadline of 30 September 2002.
To this end, in January 2004 the Technical Group prepared a Final Report for the allocation of the second tranche of the 6% performance reserve at 30 September 2003 (pdf 566 Kb), on the basis of which €98.44 million have been allocated in compliance with the provisions of the Proposed allocation of the second tranche of the 6% reserve of 17 February 2004 (pdf, 100 Kb).
6% reserve to be allocated on the basis of the 4% results
An amount equal to 25% of the "surplus" (unallocated resources) of the 6% reserve (€136.47 million) was allocated on the basis of the results of the 4% mechanism. This allocation became possible after the decision of the Commission concerning that mechanism. The proposed allocation (pdf, 219 Kb) è was approved by the Monitoring Committee in March 2004.
A Summary Table (pdf, 22 Kb) illustrating the total allocation of resources to each programme under the performance reserve system (6% and 4%) is available.
Allocation of residual resources in accordance with the Lisbon and Gothenburg objectives
At the Monitoring Committee's meeting of March 2004, the resources remaining after all the allocations of the 6% performance reserve (€25.934 million) were allocated to Regional Operational Programmes through the ATAS NOP and to the other NOPs in accordance with the Lisbon and Gothenburg strategies.
Performance Riserve
