Special Accession Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development

SAPARD was established in June 1999 by the Council of the European Union to help countries of Central and Eastern Europe deal with the problems of the structural adjustment in their agricultural sectors and rural areas, as well as in the implementation of the acquis communautaire concerning the Common Agricultural Policy

Common Agricultural Policy

The Common Agricultural Policy is a system of European Union agricultural subsidies and programmes. It represents 48% of the EU's budget, €49.8 billion in 2006 ....

(CAP) and related legislation.

Along with ISPA

Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession

Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession is one of the three financial instruments of the European Union to assist the candidate countries in the preparation for accession...

and Phare

Phare

The Phare programme is one of the three pre-accession instruments financed by the European Union to assist the applicant countries of Central and Eastern Europe in their preparations for joining the European Union....

it is one of the three pre-accession instruments financed by the European Union to assist the applicant countries of Central and Eastern Europe in their preparations for joining the European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

.

The programme which comes under the remit of the EU Commission

European Commission

The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....

's Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development

Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development

The Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development or DG AGRI is a Directorate-General of the European Commission. The DG AGRI is responsible for the European Union policy area of agriculture and rural development...

is part of the Agenda 2000

Agenda 2000

Agenda 2000 was an action programme of the European Union whose main objectives were to reform the Common Agricultural Policy and Regional policy, and establish a new financial framework for the years 2000–06 with a view to the then upcoming Eastern Enlargement of the European Union.Its stated...

programme for increased pre-accession assistance in the period 2000 - 2006. Until the fifth enlargement of the EU in 2004 its overall budget was 560 million euros (2003).

Currently SAPARD funding is available only to Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

, Romania

Romania

Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

, and Croatia

Croatia

Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

. After Bulgaria

Bulgaria

and Romania

Romania

Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

's entry into the EU, Croatia

Croatia

will benefit from a specially designed Pre-Accession Instrument (IPA) which will build on the programme support from Phare

Phare

, ISPA

Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession

Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession is one of the three financial instruments of the European Union to assist the candidate countries in the preparation for accession...

and SAPARD it will receive during 2005 and 2006.

This article incorporates information from http://ec.europa.eu/comm/enlargement/pas/sapard.htm on the European Union web site. According to its copyright policy, reproduction is authorised, provided the source is acknowledged.

See also