An interactive Practical Guide to access to the structural funds for the European sugar industry has been produced with the help of the Observatoire Social EuropÈen and the financial support of the European Commission.

This Guide will be officially presented to the Commission in the framework of the committee of sectoral social dialogue for sugar, planned 28th February 2006.

It allows a quick selection of the useful and necessary information on the possibilities of access to the structural funds according to :

• the location of each sugar factory (Objectives 1, 2, 3).
• the industrial project (company closure, reduction in personnel, industrial conversion, revitalisation of the local labour market).

This tool indicates the existing possibilities within the current budgetary perspectives (2000-2006) and anticipates possible actions within the future budgetary perspectives (2007-2013). It also lists, case by case, the different administrations which should be contacted. Additionally it refers to Community "initiatives" of the "Leader+" or "Interreg" type which can make it possible to complete the financing of a project.

The Guide thus makes it possible - without getting lost in the maze of overabundant information - to compile a dossier factory by factory comprising:

• the structural funds that can be used
• the argument to be developed
• the competent administrative bodies.

On the basis of this relevant information, the next step is to discuss the situation with the national authorities and demonstrate the justification for each request and, if appropriate, to convince the administration to modify the current priorities.

The access to the Guide is reserved for the social partners of the sugar industry.