Azerbaijan, Baku / Trend corr I. Khalilova / The European Commission has proceeded to hold inter-departmental consultations on a new program regarding sector support to the public budget which was offered to Azerbaijan, the Executive Director of the European Commission's Coordinating Bureau on Technical Assistance Programs (TACIS) to Azerbaijan, Rufat Mammadov, reported on 17 August.
The energy sector was selected for budget support, namely legislative and administrative reforms will be carried out in this sector via financing of the budget. The instrument requires bringing the state finance management system up to defined standards.
According to Mammadov, the funds for this instrument can be put into the 2008 public budget in the case the action plan on ENP is approved by the end of 2007. Meanwhile, the European Commission has submitted to the Azerbaijani side, the only the description of the program, but the list of obligations has not yet been developed. The first discussion was held in Baku in July. The European Commission suggested establishment of a regulating body in the energy sector.
The preliminary amount of the budget for this instrument comprises €14mln.
