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2013 discharge: European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE)

2014/2119(DEC)

The European Parliament adopted by 552 votes to 134, with 6 abstentions, a decision to grant discharge to the Director of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) for the financial year 2013.

The vote on the discharge decision approved the closure of the accounts (in accordance with Annex VI, Article 5(1) of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament).

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it has obtained reasonable assurances that the annual accounts of the Institute for the financial year 2013 are reliable, and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Parliament adopted by 578 votes to 102, with 6 abstentions, a resolution containing a number of recommendations that form an integral part of the discharge decision and as well as the general recommendations that appear in the resolution on performance, financial management and control of EU agencies:

  • Institute’s financial statements: Parliament noted that the final budget of the Institute for the financial year 2013 was EUR 10 024 535 representing an increase of 29.49% compared to 2012.
  • Commitments and carry-overs: It also noted that budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2013 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 98.01% and that the payment appropriations execution rate was 76.93 %. Members stated that the overall level of committed appropriations in 2013 was 99%, indicating that commitments were made in a timely manner. It welcomed the further reduction of the overall level of carry-overs from EUR 2.5 million (32%) in 2012 to EUR 2.2 (29%) in 2013. Those carry-overs mainly concern procurement procedures that were concluded late in 2013 due to reasons mostly beyond the Institute’s control.

Parliament made a series of observations on procurement procedures, the prevention and management of conflicts of interests, recruitment and internal control. It noted that in order to improve procurement, planning and monitoring, the Institute has put in place a monitoring tool which follows the expected dates of each step of the annual procurement proceedings.

Lastly, Parliament called on the Institute to include the joint annual meetings between Parliament's Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality and the Institute in its annual work programme. It called on the Institute to regularly present the results and findings of its research before the relevant Parliament's committees and called on the Institute to facilitate access in a more proactive way to gender-related information, focused on the work carried out by its members, to Parliament's Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality.