4th Conference of African Ministers of Integration, 4-8 May 2009

1. 4th Conference of African Ministers of Integration, 4-8 May 2009 The European integration experience .

2. Overview • A definition of integration • Historical highlights • Integration in Europe • Institutions • Competences • Compliance • Predictable and sustainablefinancing • Involvement of citizens • EU integration over time – generalobservations

3. A definition of integration • The process whereby sovereign states relinquish (surrender or pool) national sovereignty to maximize their collective power and interest

4. Historical highlights • 1951: European Coal and StealCommunity(6) • 1957: European EconomicCommunity, Free TradeArea(6) • 1968: CustomsUnion (6) • 1985: SchengenAgreement (5), now 15, includingnon-EU • 1992: InternalMarket(12) • 1993: European Union enters intoforce • 1997: CFSP/ESDP: European CommonForeign and SecurityPolicy, European Security and DefensePolicy (15) • 1998: European Central Bank launched • 1999: Economic and Monetary Union (11) • 2002: Single currency (16) • 2007: 27 membersstates

5. European Institutions and actors • EU Member States • European Commission • European Parliament • European Court of Justice • European Central Bank • Court of Auditors • Economic and SocialCouncil • Committee of the Regions and LocalAuthorities (Committee of RECsforAfrica?)

6. Competences • EU exclusivecompetences: externaltrade in goods and some services, monetarypolicy (in Eurozone) customs, and fisheries. Commission right of initiative. Not the memberstates • EU sharedcompetences(in majority of policycompetences of the EU): environmentalpolicy, consumerprotection, developmentaid, transport policy, visa, assylum, and migration, etc. • Member states competences: most foreign and securitypolicies, education, culture, employment, public health, social and urbanpolicy, etc. (principle of subsidiarity)

7. The European Pillars (1), Nice 2001 • Pillar 1: European Community • Policy responsibilities: internal market (incl competition and external trade), agriculture, economic and monetary Union, immigration, assylum, visas. • Decision-making: supranational: the EU’s common institutions (Commission, Council, Court, and Parliament) can act largely (never entirely) independently of national governments

8. European Pillars (2) • Pillar 2: Common Foreign and Security Policy • Policy responsibilities: common action to strengthen security of EU: preserve peace; promote international cooperation. • Decision-making: primarily intergovernmental (that is, between governments); neither the European Parliament nor the Court of Justice have much direct influence

9. European Pillars (3) • Pillar 3: Justics and Home Affairs: police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters. • Policy responsibilities: Cross-border crime; criminal law; police cooperation • Decision-making style: common action is loose and the unanimity of all 27 member states is required for virtually all important decisions.

10. Compliance - Legal • EuropeanCommission. Act as a guardian of treates, ensurescorrect application of the law) • European Court of Justice(27 judges + court of firstinstance). Finalarbiter in disputesbetween EU institutions, and between EU institutions and member states, citizenscanseekpreliminary ruling) • European Court of Auditors (27 auditors). Financial conscience of the EU

11. Compliance - Political • Monthly Council meetings. Not only ministers of foreign affairs, but all ministers (agriculture, health, education, finance, environment, etc.). Creates ownership • Regular scorecards: peer pressure

12. Compliance - Financial • European Central Bank • Formulating the EU’smonetarypolicy, includingensuringmonetarystability, setting interest rates, and issueing and managing the euro (onlyfor euro zone countries) • Executive board (primarilynationalcentral bank governors) appointedbymemberstates, reports to the EuropeanParliament • Strongly independent. President is chosenbymemberstatesbutcannotbeformallyremovedbythem

13. Financing the Union • EU budget revenu (customs duties, value added tax, and national contributions) • EU budget allocation • Yearly budget • Financial perspectives (covering seven-year patterns of spending: sustainability and predictability)

14. Involvement of Citizens • European Parliament (795 members, directlyelectedsince 1979) • European integration process has mostly been anelitistprocess. • Direct involvement of citizenshardlyrealized • Information and communication to citizens: mixed results • Needforvisibleresults: cohesionfunds • Citizenstake Europe oftenforgranted (welfare, no more war) butquestionnationalpoliticians’ ability to ensuretheirinterests in ‘Brussels’

15. European integration over time, somegeneralobservations • Strong regional integration requiressolid, functioning, and accountablenationalstructures • The politicalinterests of memberstatesdefinehowitengageswithin the EU. • Changeis a constant: an ‘experiment in motion’, anongoingprocess without a clear end state • A system of shared power characterizedbygrowingcomplexity and anincreasing number of players • Anorganizationwithanexpanded scope, butlimitedcapacity (tensionbetweenwidening and deepening, betweenambitions and institutional and politicalcapacity)