THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid, and in particular Article 4 and Article 15(2) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) In the provision of humanitarian aid it is necessary to be able to call on efficient, appropriate and effective technical assistance in the theatre of operations and crisis situations in order to monitor humanitarian projects and plans and to maximise the benefits of aid for the victims.
(2) Such technical assistance is provided through the Sector Support Team (SST), Regional Support Offices and the traditional country offices, all with the human and logistic resources needed to carry out their humanitarian work. Requirements for such assistance include the remuneration of local staff, office rent and equipment and transport and communication equipment.
(3) Since 2009 the financing for all offices has been brought under a single decision, with a view to facilitating their management and obtaining an overview of their budgets.
(4) Now that humanitarian aid and civil protection have been grouped together, the logistical arrangements for the deployment of civil protection teams in non-member countries should be incorporated in this Decision.
(5) It is estimated that EUR 18 000 000 from the 2011 general budget of the European Union, of which EUR 17 500 000 under Article 23 02 01 and EUR 500 000 under Article 23 03 06, is needed to achieve the objectives of this Decision.
(6) The Commission should implement the budget for these offices by direct centralised management in its departments.
(7) In line with the Commission communication on ‘Streamlining financial rules and accelerating budget implementation to help economic recovery’, cumulated changes to specific objectives and an increase in allocations not exceeding 20 % of the maximum contribution authorised by this Decision are not considered to be substantial, provided that they do not significantly affect the nature and objective of the Decision, and may be adopted by the authorising officer responsible.
(8) This Decision constitutes a financing decision within the meaning of Article 75 of the Financial Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002, Article 90 of the detailed rules for the implementation of the Financial Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002 and Article 15 of the internal rules for the implementation of the general budget of the European Union .
(9) In accordance with Article 17(3) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid, the Humanitarian Aid Committee gave a favourable opinion on […],
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:
Article 1 1. The Commission hereby approves total financing of EUR 18 000 000 under Articles 23 02 01 (EUR 17 500 000) and 23 03 06 (EUR 500 000) of the 2011 general budget of the European Union for field offices to support humanitarian aid operations and deployments of civil protection experts in the field.