Vienna, 18 April 2008 - The Austrian Development Agency (ADA), the organisation behind Austrian Development Cooperation, may now also implement development programmes financed by the EU. This is the result of a detailed and meticulous examination of ADA by the European Commission. The review encompassed, among other things, ADA’s control system, accounting and the procedure used for invitations to tender. "This ‘EU approval’ is a clear acknowledgement of the quality of our development cooperation programmes. It is also an opportunity to strengthen our commitment and increase our contribution to prosperity and human security in the world," stated Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik.

EU projects may now be implemented jointly with other member states or the European Commission. "This will give us more opportunities to cooperate and help us make Austrian Development Cooperation even more visible internationally," continued the Foreign Minister. This active cooperation would also increase the efficiency of EU development cooperation: "Together we will make a concrete contribution to the development of our partner countries and increased cooperation at the European level," affirmed Plassnik.

"We are very happy to receive this acknowledgement of our professionalism. So far only three national EU development agencies have been entrusted with this mandate - in future ADA will thus be among the European Commission’s selected partners," stated ADA’s Managing Director, Ambassador Brigitte Öppinger-Walchshofer.

Contact:

Austrian Development Agency (ADA)
Information & Communication
Mag. Heidi Frank
Tel: 01/ 90399-2400
heidi.frank(at)ada.gv.at