Eurofound: Coordinating the Network of EU decentralised Agencies 2015

In March 2015, Eurofound – the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions - took over the coordination of the Network of European decentralised Agencies, a role that it held for one year. Eurofound is one of 44 EU Agencies across the Member States, which play a key role in implementing EU policies in a wide range of policy areas.

The Network strengthens the voice of EU Agencies and promotes good governance. It provides a forum for the exchange of practice and experience on issues of common interest that ultimately feed in to the overall objective of facilitating the implementation of EU Agencies’ mandates.

The Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market takes over the coordination of the so-called ‘Troika’ of Agencies from Eurofound on 3 March 2016. The members of the Troika are now the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (coordinator); Eurofound (outgoing) and the European Food Safety Authority (incoming).

In 2016 the EU Agencies’ Network will carry out a series of actions endorsed by its members. These include:

• Increased use of shared services between Agencies to create synergies between them and increase efficiencies
• A study on the contribution of the Agencies to EU strategy,
• The development of an improved online platform, which will facilitate intra-Agency communication and provide more information on the Agencies and their work to EU
citizens.

Note that from 23 March 2016 the name of the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market changed to the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).

OHIM: Press Release, 03.03.16: OHIM chairs the EU Agencies’ Network in 2016 https://oami.europa.eu/tunnel-web/secure/webdav/guest/document_library/contentPdfs/about_ohim/press_releases/pr_Agencies_Network_03-03-2016_en.pdf

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