“Issues such as public procurement, transparency, competition and sound financial management are cardinal principles for the implementation of structural funds,” Parliamentary Secretary within the Finance Ministry Tonio Fenech said yesterday.

He was addressing a round-table discussion on the theme “How can Maltese NGOs manage structural funds projects” for the budget period 2007-2013, organised by the Malta Resource Centre.

Mr Fenech noted with satisfaction that civil society was making an effort to access EU funding, however structural funds and other programmes and initiatives which potentially could be exploited by Maltese organisations were still largely untapped.

Mr Fenech stressed that structural funds were available to the civil society as stated by the calls for proposals launched in 2004 and in 2006. Members of civil society were benefiting from programmes such as Interreg, Equal and the EEA/Norwegian Financial Mechanisms, he said.

Another point he raised was that Malta was never in danger of losing ESF funds as it had finalised its spending target of 2006 in November 2005.

Mr Fenech referred the availability of pre-financing and said that it should not be taken for granted. He said that this facility, which is available in very few member states, helps organisations because they do not need to take a loan to pre-finance the project.

Mr Fenech also said that the government is not expecting NGOs to follow public procurement regulations used for large infrastructural projects, but it is asking them to follow the spirit of these regulations.

“Such a conduct will lead to a more transparent way of dealing with the money they receive, which after all are public funds,” he added.

Mr Fenech said the “government fully agrees with the principle of facilitating access to EU Funds – not just for civil society but for all organisations” and stressed that money granted to such organisations was “neither a blank cheque nor charity” but public funds aimed at reaching objectives of programmes embarked on.

While agreeing with a less bureaucratic approach for NGOs and the private sector, Mr Fenech said he agreed with a system that ensures that “funds are not just spent, but spent well”. To this end, he said the government was exploring ways of facilitating civil society's access to the funds, given the limitations of the relevant regulations.

The round-table was addressed also by officials from the Malta Resource Centre, Impetus Europe and the European Anti-Poverty Network.