EAFRD CO-FINANCING ANDALUCIA

Co-financing investment schemes supported by European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) in Andalusia within the Spanish Partnership Agreement 2014-2020.

This project will enable the deployment of European Commission funding from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) in Andalucia.

By supporting the region of Andalusia's co-financing obligations under the Rural Development Programme 2014-2022 of the EAFRD (one of the European Structural and Investment Funds), the Project contributes to three of the EIB's primary policy objectives and to the horizontal policy objective Economic and Social Cohesion.

The Project supports rural development through a broad range of investments, including in basic rural infrastructure, broadband, disaster recovery and prevention measures and natural-resource protection and sustainable use. Moreover, by supporting SMEs in the agricultural sector, the Project eases well-known financial constraints for SMEs.

Among the positive externalities that make the economic rate of return (qualitative assessment) likely to exceed the financial rate of return, are more efficient water use in agriculture, stronger resilience and better protection of of forest ecosystems, network externalities from improved access to broadband in rural areas and knowledge spill-overs from the transmission of best practice in agriculture.

Finally, EIB's financing provides financial benefit, longer tenor and flexible loan conditions. It also helps Andalusia to diversify its financing sources and provides funding stability.

Andalucia, as a Spanish region, is subject to national legislation that transposed Directive 2014/52/EU amending the EIA Directive 2011/92/EU into the national environmental legislation. The Bank's appraisal will focus on the Promoter's environmental management capacity in applying the EU Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Directive 2001/42/EC and Directive 2014/52/EU amending the EIA Directive 2011/92/EU, as relevant. The Rural Development Programmes co-financed by the EAFRD are subject to an SEA. Some schemes in the Operational Programmes shall fall under Annex I or Annex II of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive. All schemes must be implemented in compliance with the EU environmental legislation. The applicability of Directive 2014/52/EU amending the EIA Directive 2011/92/EU, the Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC and the Birds Directive 2009/147/EC will be reviewed at appraisal and during the allocation phase.

The EIB will require the Promoter to ensure that contracts for the implementation of the project are tendered in accordance with the relevant applicable EU procurement legislation, Directive 2014/24/EU and 2014/25/EU, where applicable, as well as Directive 92/13/EEC or Directive 89/665/EEC, as interpreted by the Court of Justice of the EU, with the publication of tender notices in the Official Journal of the EU, as and where required.