Managing the agriculture budget wisely

Summary:

This fact sheet provides an overview of the systems for the management and checking of agricultural expenditure, both at national and EU level, and describes the roles and responsibilities of the different actors.

Further information:

For more than 40 years, the common agricultural policy (CAP) has been the European Union's most important common policy. This explains why traditionally it has consumed a large part of the EU's budget, although the percentage has steadily declined over recent years to presently 50.5% (2005). The agricultural expenditure is financed by two funds, which form part of the EU's general budget: the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund finances direct payments to farmers and measures to regulate agricultural markets such as intervention and export refunds, while the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) finances the rural development programmes of the Member States.