Until August 31 Latvia shall manage to retrieve 115 million lats from the EU funds
"Now there are 115 million lats or 26% of EU structural funding not paid to beneficiaries from the sum allocated to Latvia in the planning period 204-2006 and which are not retrieved from the European Union," underlined the Minister for Special Assignments for Administration of European Union Funds Normunds Broks (TB/LNNK), adding that the deadline for retrieval of the money is August 31, otherwise these resources will be lost for Latvia.
"On February 19, at the government’s meeting I updated the issue about the so called "slow" structural fund activities or those activities under the responsibility of ministries where even 50% of the total structural funding available within the scope of the activity have not been paid to beneficiaries,” indicated N.Broks, expressing his gratification about the fact that ministers have accepted liability to do all the home works to ensure retrieval of the financing.
On February 19, the Cabinet of Ministers decided and ministers of economics, transport, environment, special assignments for electronic government affairs, welfare, regional development and local governments, education and science, agriculture determined to ensure payments to the project implementers within the scope of „slow” activities at least in a amount of 50% from the financing available within the activity, as well as to ensure procurements and signing of contracts in the projects of all activities.
"The condition set by the European Commission stating that the EU structural fund resources shall be utilized within 2008, means that Latvia shall work very intensively to finish retrieval of the financing this year. Taking into account that little time has left to finish the projects, now it is not possible anymore to re-allocate resource among the ministries – each branches shall take responsibility for complete acquiring of the financing allocated," stressed N.Broks.
Already now, there are first signals have been received about the projects which will not be finished in due time – Latvia will not receive financing from the EU for these projects, for instance, on February 19, at the government’s meeting the MRDLG informed that part of structural funding will not be possible to retrieve within the structural fund activity under its responsibility supporting establishment of public internet access points.
The report on the implementation of the government’s decision of February 19 regarding acquisition of structural fund resources in the line ministries will be reviewed in one of government’s meetings in the beginning of April.
Lita Kokale
Ministry of Finance
EU Funds Department
PR Division
Phone: +371 67083880; +371 2 6469946
Lita.Kokale@fm.gov.lv
