2022 discharge: European Training Foundation (ETF)
The European Parliament decided to grant discharge to the Director of the European Training Foundation (ETF) for the financial year 2022 and to approve the closure of the accounts for that year.
Noting that the Court of Auditors had stated that it had obtained reasonable assurance that the Agency's annual accounts for the financial year 2022 were reliable and that the underlying transactions were legal and regular, Parliament adopted, by 533 votes to 45 with 26 abstentions, a resolution containing a series of recommendations which form an integral part of the discharge decision and which complement the general recommendations set out in the resolution on the performance, financial management and control of EU agencies.
Foundation's financial statements
The Foundation's final budget for the year 2022 was EUR 25 051 848, representing an increase of 17.05 % compared to 2021.
Budgetary and financial management
Budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2022 resulted in a high budget implementation rate of 99.98 %, representing a slight increase of 0.07 % compared to 2021. The payment appropriations execution rate was 97.70 %, representing an increase of 11.48 % compared to 2021.
Parliament welcomed the fact that despite the budget crisis caused by inflation and utilities prices in 2022, the Foundation has been able to effectively manage its expenses, introduce cost-saving measures and reprioritise without major disruptions to its work programme.
Other observations
Parliament also made a series of observations concerning performance, staff policy and conflict of interest.
In particular, it noted that:
- the Foundation achieved a 93 % activity completion rate, a slight decrease compared to 2021, with a timely completion of 89 %. It achieved all the key performance indicators above or well above targets set;
- new initiatives were launched by the Foundation in 2022, such as the new Team Europe Initiative in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean and the network gathering Governance Learning Action and Dialogue (GLAD);
- the Foundation´s commitment to adopting all the Commission’s e-procurement tools was welcomed and the Foundation’s procurement process is fully digitalised;
- on 31 December 2022, the establishment plan was 98.8 % implemented, with 85 officials and temporary agents appointed out of 86 officials and temporary agents authorised under the Union budget (the same number of authorised posts as in 2021);
- fair and balanced geographical representation is needed as well as a balanced gender policy;
- the Foundation has an internal anti-fraud strategy, which is regularly updated, and it is now developing a policy on conflicts of interest issues.