Advanced Search

International Assistance Act

Original Language Title: Starptautiskās palīdzības likums

Subscribe to a Global-Regulation Premium Membership Today!

Key Benefits:

Subscribe Now for only USD$40 per month.
The Saeima has adopted and the President promulgated the following laws: law on international assistance article 1. The terms used in the law, the law is applied in the following terms: 2) international assistance — implemented in the Republic of Latvia to development cooperation and presence in international missions;
2) development cooperation: the provision of assistance to the least developed countries, to contribute to this country and their company's long-term social and economic development;
3-beneficiary country) receiving international assistance;
4) international aid donors — direct or in direct public administration institution or international equivalent organization, which funded international assistance activities (hereinafter sponsor);
5) international assistance activity — development cooperation project, voluntary contributions or international mission;
6) action programme, several international aid package of activities with a common purpose;
7) development cooperation project — not a commercial activity or set of activities with defined results of implementation, implementers and the due date;
8) together (trilateral or multilateral) international assistance activity — development cooperation project or activity program, in which an individual project or programme activities implemented by two or more donors, one of whom will represent the Republic of Latvia;
9) international mission — an activity that participates in the implementation of civilian experts and which is implemented by the international call to participate in the mission or after steering the national bilateral or multilateral arrangements;
10) civilian expert — physical person whose participation in the international mission approved by the Cabinet of Ministers;
11) development cooperation project implementer – the person legislation established was designated for development cooperation for the implementation of the project or implement legislation in accordance with the procedure laid down by the designated development cooperation projects;
12) cooperation — two or more common funding agreement that one donor (lead sponsor) runs the rest of the donor (the responsibility of the donor) on behalf of international assistance activities or activities in the implementation of the programme;
13 voluntary contributions — contributions) for international organizations, international initiatives and funds that use the financial resources assigned to international aid or humanitarian assistance;
14) approval: the procedure whereby is approved for funding by international assistance for the implementation of the activity or that is designated for development cooperation project implementer or civilian experts;
15) grant — payment of development cooperation for the implementation of the project, to the realization of the project, which it has submitted grant proposals and what financing is approved by the National Agency for development cooperation.
2. article. The purpose of the law the law aims to ensure efficient and transparent provided the Republic of Latvia to international aid planning and implementation, pursuant to the United Nations, the European Union, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Organization for security and cooperation in Europe and the Organization for economic cooperation and development development assistance Committee principles and good practices in the implementation of international assistance, to ensure and provide high quality and effective international assistance to beneficiary countries.
3. article. The scope of the law (1) of the Act sets out procedures for the planning and implementation of international assistance.
(2) the law says international aid in the planning and implementation of the responsible institution involved competence.
(3) of the Act do not apply to military personnel of the Republic of Latvia, as well as to the system of the Ministry of the Interior officials with special ranks and their participation in international missions.
(4) of the Act do not apply to the obligations of the Republic of Latvia to take minimum annual contribution in international organisations.
(5) of the Act do not apply to the provision of humanitarian aid, except when there is a voluntary contributions for the financing of humanitarian assistance.
(6) of the Act do not apply to other forms of assistance other than development cooperation and participation in international missions.
4. article. Authorities (1) the international aid plan for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the Advisory Council for development cooperation policy and the Latvian Civil participation of experts in international organisations the international civil mission in the Advisory Board established under the laws and competence.
(2) the statutory approval of management take the Foreign Ministry or Government Agency for development cooperation in accordance with this law and other regulations specified competence.
(3) the national regulatory authorities, other than those referred to in this law, and the authorities can carry out activities in the area of international assistance is not subject to this law, the conditions for the approval of the application.
(4) article 4 of this law in the third subparagraph shall not apply where, in accordance with the public procurement law is required to make public procurement, as well as to this law, in article 5 (2) specified in the approval.
5. article. The instruments of approval of validation tools are: 1) the grant of a design contest;
2 civilian expert approval) participation in international missions;
3) public procurement;
4 voluntary contributions);
5) delegated cooperation;
6) Cabinet approved policy planning documents for international assistance activities.
6. article. The functions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for international assistance (1) the Ministry of Foreign Affairs development cooperation policy in the development plan for the next year, as well as legislation on certain medium-term policy planning documents.
(2) the Ministry of Foreign Affairs coordinated by this law, in article 5 (2) specified in the approval.
(3) the Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall cooperate with foreign funders, in order to implement the common (trilateral or multilateral) international assistance activities or delegated cooperation.
7. article. The National Agency for development cooperation (1) the State Agency for development cooperation (hereinafter referred to as the Agency) is the Minister of Foreign Affairs under the supervision of the national regulatory authority. Monitoring is implemented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
(2) the Agency shall act in accordance with its action plan for next year. The Agency's action plan drawn up on the basis of its medium-term business strategy and the Cabinet of Ministers approved the development cooperation policy plan for next year.
(3) the functions of the Agency under this Act, public law agency and Cabinet approved the Statute of the Agency.
8. article. The Agency's functions (1) the Agency shall make this law, article 5 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 set out in the approval in accordance with this law, other laws and regulations of the Agency.
(2) the Agency closed an agreement with foreign funders on the common (trilateral or multilateral) international assistance activities or delegated cooperation.
(3) the Agency shall have the right to take up to three years of commitments on international assistance activities or the financing of the programme of activities in the field of development cooperation. Each next year's total liability shall not exceed the amount in the current year the Foreign Ministry of the State budget allocated to the funds for the financing of development cooperation in line with the medium-term macroeconomic development and fiscal policy.
(4) the decision to be adopted on behalf of the Agency the Agency's Director. The Foreign Ministry's decision can be appealed in court. Draft decision of the agency or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, of the decision taken on the appeal against the contested decision, the Agency shall not suspend the execution. The draft decision or appeal shall not suspend its activity.
9. article. Grant project competition (1) grant the Agency design contest carried by developing and promulgating the relevant competitions. Competitions determine the deliverable of the project objectives and priorities, the beneficiary countries and the available funding. Each invitation to tender for the approval of Foreign Minister.
(2) the Agency may issue a temporary (one-time) grant project competition and perpetual grant project competition in the Republic of Latvia or in the beneficiary country.
(3) the term of the grant, following a design competition, the Agency shall fix the date for submission of the project application.
(4) the grant by an open-ended design contest, agency project submissions valued and funded in order of their submission. Interested parties submitted project applications, as long as the contest is available within the minimum funding for one project.
(5) the Grant may receive direct and in direct public administration institutions, local authorities, associations, foundations and entrepreneurs. Grant project competition the recipient country can apply for and receive grants natural persons who are nationals of the beneficiary country concerned or which have a permanent residence permit in the recipient country.

(6) in order to increase the effective implementation of development cooperation, the Agency may issue a grant project contests, narrowing down in the fifth subparagraph of this article said the possible grant recipients.
(7) procedures for announcing grant design contests, contest management implemented, assess the project submissions and decide on the contest winners, determined by the Cabinet of Ministers.
10. article. Voluntary contributions (1) the financial resources of the voluntary contributions made for development cooperation policy plan next year.
(2) the Agency shall deposit funds in the voluntary contribution funds to the recipient.
11. article. Delegated cooperation (1) Delegated cooperation shall be implemented: 1) you receive from foreign financiers of the project for development cooperation for the implementation of the programme or activity designated by using this law, article 5 1, 3 or 6 specific validation tools;
2) giving the foreign donor co-financing of certain of the Agency's budget for development cooperation project or programme of activities or a specific development objective. Foreign donors use the financial resources allocated in accordance with their own laws and procedures.
(2) the Cabinet of Ministers shall lay down the procedures for the implementation of delegated cooperation.
12. article. Civilian expert approval for participation in the International Civilian Mission (1) experts participating in international missions by the international organization, Union or community resolution, recommendation or request, with which the Republic of Latvia has concluded international treaties, as well as the European Union or the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) called on the Member State.
(2) the decision on civil participation in international expert mission in the Cabinet of Ministers adopted.
(3) the order in which civilian experts sent to the membership of the international mission, civilian expert membership conditions, as well as the financing of the participation shall be determined by the Cabinet of Ministers.
13. article. Development cooperation project implementing funding arrangements and civilian experts on social guarantees (1) development cooperation project implementing the financing arrangements laid down by the Cabinet of Ministers.
(2) If an expert of the international civilian mission, making injury or ill health, Cabinet of Ministers, based on the health and integrity of the State medical examiner's Commission decision, decide on a one-off compensation amounting to: 1) if civil expert lost up to 20% uptime — 10 civilian expert monthly salary;
2) if civil expert lost from 21% to 40% capacity-20 civil expert monthly salary;
3) if civil expert lost from 41% to 60% capacity — 30 civilian experts the monthly salary;
4) if civil expert lost from 61% to 80% capacity, civilian expert, 40 monthly salary;
5) if civil expert lost 81% to 100% of capacity, 50 civilian experts the monthly salary.
(3) If an expert of the international civilian mission died, his heirs still not based on the Cabinet decision, the cost of the lump-sum compensation in the amount of 50 000 lats.
(4) the civilian employer experts after his return from the international mission to ensure civil rights experts return to previous or an equivalent post.
Transitional provisions 1 the Cabinet six months after the entry into force of this law this law is issued article 9 in the seventh paragraph, the second subparagraph of article 11 and article 12, third paragraph of those provisions.
2. Development cooperation for the establishment of the Agency in this country, the statutory functions of the agency conducting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is empowered to delegate part of the Agency's functions to another person, public contract discouraged the delegation.
The Parliament adopted the law of 24 April.
The President of the Parliament instead of the President g. Many Riga 14 May 2008 in editorial Note: the law shall enter into force on 28 May 2008.