Regulation 2014/223 - Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived - Main contents

Summary of Legislation
Legislative text

1. Summary of Legislation

Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD)

SUMMARY OF:

Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 on the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE REGULATION?

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It sets up FEAD which aims to complement national poverty eradication programmes and social inclusion policies. FEAD is the successor programme to the EU food aid programme.
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Its specific objective is to help alleviate the worst forms of poverty.
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Its main focus is to provide basic material assistance and/or food to the most deprived, together with accompanying measures, or to provide dedicated social inclusion support.
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In addressing people’s most basic needs, it complements the European Social Fund, which can take social inclusion support further with a view to labour market integration.

KEY POINTS

Approval of national programmes by the European Commission

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The management of the fund is shared between the Commission and the EU countries, as is the case of the European Structural and Investment Funds.
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National authorities submit a national programme for the 2014-2020 period for the Commission’s approval. It contains all the information concerning, for example, what action(s) that EU country is proposing to take, the type of assistance planned and how that country is going to manage the programme.
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EU countries can choose what type of assistance they will provide (food, basic goods or a combination, as well as social nclusion support – for example, activities to help the inclusion of elderly people or children ) and how to go about procurement of these goods and their distribution.

Partner organisations at national level

To implement the programme on the ground, each EU country selects partner organisations (either public bodies or non-governmental organisations (NGOs)) by means of objective and transparent criteria that are defined at national level.

Implementation

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The Commission has adopted implementing acts (see related documents below) which lay down rules for submitting, implementing and monitoring of programmes financed by the FEAD. These implementing acts mainly seek to:
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  establish the conditions of the use of the System for Fund Management in the European Union (SFC2014). The SFC2014 is an electronic-data-exchange system between the EU countries and the Commission for the implementation of EU funds;
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  create a computerised system to store data on the financial management and the evaluation of the programmes financed by FEAD;
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  set up specific models for the management and the payment of each operational programme implemented under FEAD;
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  set out the frequency and the format of the reporting of irregularities; and
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  set out models for the management declaration, the audit strategy, the audit opinion and the annual control report.

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The Commission has also adopted delegated acts, among other things, introducing specific rules on the reporting of irregularities (Regulation (EU) 2015/1972) and laying down the content of the annual and final implementation reports, including the list of common indicators (Regulation (EU) No 1255/2014).

Budget

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Over €3.8 billion is allocated for FEAD for the 2014-2020 period (in current prices).
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In addition, EU countries must contribute at least 15% in national co-financing to their national programme.

Revision of the Financial Regulation (Omnibus Regulation) – first amendment to the regulation

Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 (see summary) amends Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 to simplify the implementation of the fund, notably by:

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extending the possibility for EU countries to use simplified cost options;
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simplifying the procedures for amending certain elements of operational programmes; and
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establishing safeguards for partner organisations in the event of non-compliance with the applicable law by the body purchasing the food or other basic goods.

COVID-19 pandemic: second amendment to the regulation

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Regulation (EU) 2020/559 amends Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 to enable EU countries to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak and introduces measures to ensure that the most deprived persons can continue to receive assistance under FEAD in a safe environment.
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It gives EU countries sufficient flexibility and liquidity to adjust their support schemes to the situation based on consultations with partner-organisations, including by:
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  providing more flexibility to EU countries to purchase personal protective equipment (PPE) for partner organisations;
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  allowing alternative schemes of delivery, such as through vouchers or cards in electronic or other form;
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  allowing the countries to amend certain elements of the operational programme without the need for a Commission decision;
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  allowing expenditure in relation to operations providing a response to the COVID-19 outbreak to be eligible as from 1 February 2020 and by alleviating certain requirements on monitoring, control and audit.

FROM WHEN DOES THE REGULATION APPLY?

It has applied since 1 January 2014.

BACKGROUND

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In 2012, according to Eurostat, close to 125 million people – almost a quarter of the EU’s population – were at risk of poverty or social exclusion. Almost 50 million were suffering severe material deprivation.
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For more information, see:
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  Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) (European Commission).

MAIN DOCUMENT

Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2014 on the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (OJ L 72, 12.3.2014, pp. 1-41)

Successive amendments to Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 have been incorporated into the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.

2. Legislative text

Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2014 on the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived

Contents

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Summary of Legislation

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Legislative text