COUNCIL OF
THE EUROPEAN UNION
Brussels, 28 April 2003
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EUROPOL 17
NOTE
From :
To :
Subject :
1.
Europol
Article 36 Committee / COREPER / Council
Europol work programme 2004
Article 28, paragraph 10 of the Europol Convention reads:
"The Management Board shall adopt unanimously each year:
(1) a general report on Europol's activities during the previous year;
(2) a report on Europol's future activities taking into account Member States'
operational requirements and budgetary and staffing implications for Europol.
These reports shall be submitted to the Council in accordance with the procedure laid
down in Title VI of the Treaty on European Union."
2.
The Europol work programme 2004 has unanimously been adopted by the Management
Board in accordance with the Europol Convention Article 28 (10) and is submitted to the
Council in accordance with the procedure laid down in title VI of the Treaty on the European
Union.
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3.
On this basis the Article 36 Committee is requested to submit the Europol work programme
2004 as contained in Annex to COREPER / Council for it to be taken note of and endorsed by
Council as soon as possible.
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OUTLINE WORK PROGRAMME 2004
1.
INTRODUCTION
The following factors will have a major impact on Europol during 2004:
 Extension of Europol’s Mandate from 1 January 2002 which allows for the definition
of new priority areas
 Revision of Europol’s Vision (Management Board - 2003)
 Enlargement of the EU from 1 May 2004 (10 new Member States)
2.
MAIN OBJECTIVES IN 2004
As a result of these changes and new challenges and from the development of international
criminality, as described in the European Union Organised Crime Report, Europol will focus
on the following main objectives:
2.1.
Europol work related to operational support and investigations
To provide in a quick, accurate and efficient manner, actionable information and intelligence,
high quality assessment, as well as valuable analytical and other expert support to national
trans-border or common international investigations and operations. This will be done in
partnership with other law enforcement agencies.
The main priority areas will be Terrorism, Drugs (heroin, cocaine, cannabis and synthetic
drugs), crimes against persons and Forgery of Money including Euro (Chapter 3).
2.2.
Technology Services
To further develop and successfully manage an effective Europol Information System, to
establish the second generation of the Europol Analytical System (Chapter 4).
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2.3.
Enlargement and other developments of the European Union
To prepare the organisation and its customers for the challenges related to the expansion and
restructuring of the European Union in order to enhance the mid- and long term performance
of Europol (Chapter 5).
2.4.
Corporate Governance, Business Excellence and Resources
To stabilise and improve the internal working processes by excellence in corporate
governance and leadership in intelligence and technology management in a professional
surrounding of high competence and accountability. Priority will be given to: Financial
Action Plan, Corporate Governance development, Professional Standards and efficient use of
Human Resources.
The main objectives will have to be linked to the Europol Balanced Scorecard (Chapter 6).
3.
EUROPOL WORK RELATED TO OPERATIONAL SUPPORT AND INVESTIGATIONS
Most of the organisation’s activities fall within the category of regular activities. These are to
be handled using the currently available human and financial resources. In addition the
organisation plans a limited number of new projects and activities.
Europol is predominately operational and the operational units are expected to dedicate
approximately 70% of available resources, particularly manpower to the operational work,
20% to strategic activities and 10% to logistics including administration.
High priority is given to improve the internal and external information flow. Resources will
be devoted to improve the functionality of information programme and system management.
3.1.
Priority activities in areas of criminality
The following sections give an overview of the priorities in the various areas of criminalities.
The priorities are established by taking into account the European Union perspective and the
regional interest which might vary from one area to another.
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However, it should be taken into account that the organisation might need to react on
unforeseeable events. This will have an effect on the prioritisation of the activities of Europol
as outlined in this Work Programme.
3.1.1.
Drugs
The main focus will be on combating the production and trafficking of heroin, cocaine,
cannabis (and related crimes) and synthetic drugs by providing operational support services
e.g analysing information and intelligence. The tracing and combating the diversion and
trafficking of precursor chemicals will be further developed. It can be expected that Europol
will run several new AWFs and participate in the work of Joint Investigation Teams. Training
on the dismantling of illicit production sites will be provided: at Europol, in Member States
and in Candidate Countries.
In the field of drugs Europol will continue to provide operational support services e.g.
analysing information and intelligence.
Strategic activities will continue via the production of various reports. Existing manuals and
bulletins will be updated. Europol will cooperate in Third Pillar work groups and give advice
to both the law enforcement community as well as to the political level.
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):

A total of 13 FTEs

Combating the production and trafficking of heroin (20%) cocaine (20%) and synthetic
drugs (40%)

3.1.2.
Strategic activities (20%)
Crimes against persons
Operational priority areas will be to initiate and support investigations in Illegal Immigration
smuggling, in Trafficking in Human Beings (sexual exploitation and illicit use of labour), in
Child Abuse (Child Pornography and illicit trade in abandoned children)
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In relation to the Police Chiefs Task Force (PCTF) Action Plan, Europol will provide target
oriented and operational support via analytical work files (AWFs) and by seconding experts
into investigation teams after careful prioritisation of the threat and importance for the EU and
its Member States. Europol will implement a Child Abuse/Child Pornography database within
the Europol Information System (EIS)1. Subject to a business case study, short term specific
operations in the fields of illegal Immigration and Trafficking in Human Beings.
In addition to the work done in the area of homicides linked to organised criminality will
continue by developing common investigation tools.
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):

A total of 14 FTEs

Initiate and support investigations in illegal immigration smuggling (40%) and THB
(40%).

3.1.3.
Homicides linked to organised criminality and other strategic matters (20%)
Counter Terrorism and related activities
Terrorism will remain a priority for Europol in 2004. The threat of Islamic terrorism will
dictate a significant part of the activities of Counter terrorism work at Europol. The work will
however also cover a wider spectrum of terrorism including other groups and organisations
active in and posing a threat to the European Union (e.g. to events such as the Olympic
Games 2004 in Athens).
The Counter Terrorism work at Europol will be divided into two main programmes and three
supportive programmes:
1
This issue will be subject for consultation with the Heads of Europol National Units and prior
approval by the Management Board
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Main Programmes:
Counter Terrorism Programme
Counter Proliferation Programme
Supportive Programmes:
Networking Programme
 Preparedness programme
 Training Programme
The main focus will be on:
1. Continuation of operational analysis of Islamic Extremist Terrorism
2. Operational projects on other virulent terrorist groups and possible participation in
Joint Investigation Teams
3. Regular and incident related threat assessments
4. Financing of terrorism
5. Use of weapons of mass destruction
6. Bio-terrorism
7. Support tools at EU-level
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):

A total of 18 FTEs

Counter Terrorism Programme (70%), Counter Proliferation Programme (20%)

Strategic activities (10%)
3.1.4.
Organised Crime (OC)
The main focus will be on the most active criminal organisations in the European Union and
to produce intelligence on those: criminal groups and organisations from East and South East
Europe, Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs and regional organised crime groups.
A priority will be to provide support to live investigations by initiating investigations and
investigative measures, by organising common operations and investigations, by coordination and analytical support; another major objective will be participation in a support
function in joint investigative teams set up by the Member States.
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Europol will continue to coordinate and maintain principal support functions such as witness
protection and handling of informants.
As information technology and other forms of modern high-tech equipment are increasingly
employed by OC groups, efforts are also directed towards building-up and maintaining
expertise in this area, creating a network of specialised units in the Member States and further
developing expertise in Cyber Crime1 (E.g. supporting internet related investigations
providing specific threat assessments, organising training in close cooperation with CEPOL).
New Project and Activities:
 Projects on South-East and Eastern European Organised Crime in specific crime
forms and modus operandi
 Feasibility study for a project related to illicit trafficking of firearms
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):

A total of 14 FTEs

Providing support in combating organised crime groups (60%)

Cyber crime (30%)

Strategic activities (10%)
EURO currency – Forgery of Money
3.1.5.
Europol, as the European Union contact point for the Suppression of Euro Counterfeiting in
terms of the Geneva Convention 1929, is and will be a co-ordination and central point for the
Member States to inform on investigations and operations relating to counterfeited currencies
in general and all countries concerning the Euro. The close co-operation with European
Central Bank and other important partners such as the General Secretariat of Interpol will
continue.
1
This issue will be subject for consultation with the Heads of Europol National Units and prior
approval by the Management Board
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The majority of the activities will be related to operational support by analysis, expertise and
co-ordination of investigations and operations by Law Enforcement Agencies of the MS but
also Non EU Countries.
The use of the existing and further to be developed products, services and procedures agreed
with Europol’s partners will be encouraged and strengthened in order to have a standardised
approach aiming to better combat the trans-national criminal organisation dealing with
currency counterfeiting. Such products and services are:
 Europol Information System
 Early Warning Message
 Situation reports with statistical data, trends and impact
 Technical investigations
 Training
 Information Reward
 Operational Support and Joint Teams.
Emphasis will be put on training initiatives for EU Member States as well as for non EU
countries in co-operation with external partners (CEPOL, etc). Financing will be sought from
European Commission programmes.
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):

A total of 13 FTEs

Support of investigations (80%)

Strategic activities (20%)
3.1.6.
Financial Crimes & Crimes against property
Europol priority areas in combating financial crimes are money laundering and specific forms
of international fraud such as credit card fraud. The possibility of using methods to support
Member States in cut-off financing crime and to freeze the profits arriving from criminal
activities will also be promoted.
For crimes against property, Europol will concentrate on combating motor vehicle crimes.
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New Project and Activities:

Feasibility study with regard of trafficking in cultural property and the possibilities
of developing a co-ordination system to help the investigations in Member States
concerning major armed robberies in the European Union
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):
3.1.7.

A total of 11 FTEs

Financial crimes (70%)

Crimes against property (30%)
Analysis work
Analysis work carried out at Europol on internal or external requests will be carefully
prioritised in consultation with the Member States especially the HENUs.
About 90% of all manpower within the analytical work of Europol will be concentrated on
supporting operational projects in order to satisfy the increasing demand from the Member
States. Operational analysis includes support to short term specific operations and Joint
Teams. Concerning the analytical support it is presumed that with the current resources the
number of files is to stay at the level of 2003 (ca. 20) as it is likely that the trend of an
increase of quantity of data flowing into the files will continue
10% of total manpower will be devoted to the development of projects in the field of Strategic
Analysis, particularly to the EU Organised Crime Situation Report used increasingly by the
Law Enforcement Agencies in the EU as a basis for prioritisation of resources, policy
developments in the area of JHA and planning of operational projects. Strategic analysis will
include ad-hoc assessments for new areas of the Europol mandate, threat and risk assessments
prior to short term specific operations and monthly intelligence bulletins.
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Training will refer to both external and internal initiatives. External training on Operational
and Strategic Analysis will continue on request after careful consideration of the available
resources and in coordination with CEPOL. The training in 2004 will also focus on Financial
Analysis and Handling of high volumes of data.
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):

A total of 66 FTEs

Analytical support (90%)

Training and other activities (10%)
3.2.
Liaison Bureaux Activities
The Europol National Units together with the correspondent Liaison Bureaux and the Non EU
States Liaison Bureaux with which Europol has an operational agreement are essential parts
of the Europol framework.
It is estimated that in 2004 that there will be approximately 80-90 Liaison Officers1 working
at the Europol Headquarters providing enormous potential to the successful outcome of our
common efforts.
It is the responsibility of the organisation to ensure the integration of the new bureaux, at the
same time promoting an effective interaction between the different elements working
together.
The organisation will have its own liaison officers posted to the General Secretariat of
Interpol and in the USA. In 2004 more can be expected from these liaison officers as during
2003 the foundation work is expected to have been done.
1
In the Financing Plan 2004-2008, File no: 2210-150, Annexr1 where a number for ELOs, LOs,
experts, security etc. is given 160.
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3.3.
Cooperation with other bodies and organs
It is expected that Eurojust is fully operative in 2004 and therefore cooperation between
Europol and Eurojust will be routine. The two organisations will operate as partners;
supporting each other as outlined in the Tampere conclusions of the European Council.
Cooperation between the General Secretariat of Interpol and Europol should increase with
joint projects.
Training activities will be organised more and more via external partners and resources, such
as CEPOL and through the use of EU funding.
It is expected that Europol and OLAF will participate together in some Joint Actions with
Member States in 2004.
Europol may expect further requests for support from the PCTF.
The work of establishing operational agreements with Thirds States and of developing
strategic relationships with key partners will progress further.1 The possibility of cooperating
with Southeast European Cooperative Initiative (SECI), the EU-Intervention Police and the
different forms of EU Law Enforcement in the Balkans will either be in the implementation
phase or must be investigated further.
Europol will start together with the Member States concerned to implement the Council
decision making possible the common use of their existing Liaison Officer network.
Within the field of Public Relations Europol will make efforts to increase the knowledge
about the organisation in a transparent way and thereby gaining accountability particularly
within the law enforcement community.
1
In line with the MB vision for Europol (2003-2006)
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Together with its Member States (particularly the Europol National Units), Europol will
continue to develop its common strategy with and implementation of awareness activities.
Support will be provided in the field of crime prevention, in close cooperation with the
European Union Crime Prevention Network (EUCPN) and the Commission’s Forum on the
Prevention of Organised Crime depending on the available resources.
4.
TECHNOLOGY SERVICES
THE STRATEGIC AIM OF THE TECHNOLOGY SERVICES DEPARTMENT IS TO SUPPORT EUROPOL IN
ITS TASK TO FULFIL THE RESPONSIBILITIES AS STATED IN THE EUROPOL CONVENTION. SUPPORT
WILL BE GIVEN IN THE FOLLOWING FIELDS:
a. MAINTENANCE ON INFRASTRUCTURE, HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE
b. Project and application support
c. Operational support
4.1.
Europol Information System (EIS)
During 2003 the EIS will be developed from a database to collect information on the forgery
of money – version 0.2 - to a database for all information related to the responsibility of
Europol – version 1.1. As the EIS design includes the translation of free text so that all
national units can easily obtain the information which is of relevance for them, this function
will be developed and implemented during 2004.
4.2.
Analytical System (OASIS)
The development of the second generation of the Analysis system and successor of Eurint –
OASIS will be completed during 2003. During 2004 it is planned that Europol plays a
coordinating role in the application support to the Member States that are interested in
obtaining the system for their own national purposes. As far as possible, further needs of the
national units will be developed and integrated in the OASIS system during 2004.
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4.3.
Document Management System (DMS)
The new DMS will have to be implemented for all the Europol units and all Europol staff
will be trained to use the DMS, the ultimate tool to store and retrieve documents.
5.
ENLARGEMENT AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
5.1.
The Enlargement and its consequences
The enlargement of the EU will have a fundamental effect on the work of Europol during this
planning period. The crime situation and threat assessments for the extended geographical
area of the EU will be affected. Europol’s working methods have to be compatible to the law
enforcement structures. Europol has to adapt to the new languages and the overall
composition of staff.
Planned resource allocations (excluding administration):

A total of 141 FTEs (Analytical work 4, Information Management 2, Supportive and
Strategic tasks 3, TECS 5).
In particular the following developments have to be reflected:
5.1.1.
Information Management
The EU enlargement will lead to an increase of data sent by the Member States to Europol. In
the first period the new Member States will not have the possibility to input directly data into
the Europol Information System. Therefore Europol will be requested to do that on their
behalf. Consequently the workload in terms of input and checking data in the EIS and of
handling administrative matters will increase accordingly. In order to handle this task Europol
will recruit additional Administrative Assistants.
1
It should be noted that these FTE is also indicated in respective area of interest.
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5.1.2.
Analysis
As a result of the enlargement the new members of the EU will participate fully in operational
projects such as Analytical Work Files with an increasing data input. Furthermore the new
member states may initiate new analytical projects and AWFs.
In addition the large increase in the geographic and demographic responsibilities of Europol
will have a direct impact on strategic reports and threat assessments like the European Union
Organised Crime Threat Assessment due to the fact that Europol will receive ten more
contributions in different languages to be analysed. For these reasons additional analysts and
administrative staff will be recruited in 2004 to process the growth in intelligence and any
additional projects.
5.1.3.
Information Technology
The extension of the EU requires that Europol support the new Member States with
connections to the Europol Virtual Private Network, with increased back office hardware and
storage capacity. The roll-out schedule for the EIS implementation will be extended and the
necessary changes in the EIS will be implemented. The existing Info-Ex system has to be
amended for the new liaison offices needs. Particularly the extended ICT roll-out and the
technical changes will have a major impact on the enlargement budget requested by Europol.
5.1.4.
Training
Europol will have to offer for all areas mentioned under 5.1.1 – 5.1.3 new training courses to
the new member states. This includes for example all EIS training tasks, training in the
complex methodology for threat assessments and in-house training for the new liaison
officers situated at Europol.
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Europol’s bodies and organs
5.1.5.
The Management Board, JSB and HENU structures will need to absorb and accommodate a
vastly increased membership. The up to ten languages will lead to significantly higher costs
for translations and interpretation; more participants in the meetings leads to higher travel
costs to be reimbursed and finally new meeting facilities have to be found as Europol meeting
rooms capacity is not always sufficient for the new requirements. Consequently this will have
an effect on the balance between the resources allocated to operational work and
administration and support.
5.1.6.
Language Management
The language management will not only affect Europol’s bodies and organs but all
competence areas of Europol. Products and materials intended for the use of local law
enforcement (such as the Organised Crime Situation Report or the operating manuals for the
EIS) will be translated into the relevant official language which will cause additional budget
implications.
The described changes will be cumulative with full Europol membership for the candidate
countries likely by 2005.
5.2.
Legal issues
The foreseen ratification of the EU Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters will
introduce new working methods.
The possible amendment of the Europol Convention can furthermore be expected to affect the
long-term business planning in providing new opportunities.
5.3.
The European Convention
The outcome of the European Convention and the subsequent Intergovernmental Conference
may affect Europol activities in case that preparation for transformation and implementation
is foreseen in 2004.
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6.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BUSINESS EXCELLENCE
6.1.
Corporate Governance
The organisational structure has changed. The implementation of the Change Plan will
improve the organisations’ internal processes and infrastructure.
The implementation of a new document management system during 2003 and shall be
finalised in 2004 in order to improve the management of internal preparation process for
decision taking.
6.2.
Reporting the results
The aim is for Europol results to be easily produced and presented in a practical, simple and
understandable form. During 2004 the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) in effective combination
with the EFQM Excellence Model will show specific qualitative results. These management
tools will thus provide comprehensive information about the organisation’s performance. The
process to introduce quality control within the organisation initiated in 2003 is expected to
continue in 2004.
Measurement – methodologies and practice
6.3.
Clear and understandable objectives and targets will be agreed; the evaluation methodology
and criteria will be chosen in advance, resulting in practical and resource effective
measurements being in operation in 2004.
In the 2004 Europol BSC, the objectives are defined showing performance and how well the
organisation is fulfilling its goals. During 2004 the final objectives for the first full Europol
BSC application will be finalised, thereafter all the reporting mechanisms to measure the 22
objectives will be in place for 2005. New political or strategic developments, such as the
Management Board’s revised Vision of Europol could change some of the objectives.
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It is anticipated that in 2004 the measurement mechanisms developed in 2003 can be used to
show the results for total 17 objectives for the Corporate Scorecard.
The results will be given, as far as possible in the form of a comparison. The first 2003
Europol BSC allows for a comparison for first 11 objectives. Meanwhile Europol is also
starting benchmarking with similar kinds of Public Administration organisations and Member
States Law Enforcement authorities.
7.
RESOURCES
An important challenge is the planning of the new headquarters for Europol. The detailed
planning of the new location has begun in 2003. The planning process however, is long and
will require the involvement of all levels of staff; to guarantee the best possible
accommodation for Europol.
The enlargement of the EU signifies an additional challenge for recruitment and training. The
expertise from the new Member States has to be integrated as soon as possible in order to
fulfil the new challenges of the enlarged geographical area of Europol.
Other important issues for 2004 will be to finalise the improvements made to the financial and
human resource administration; to simplify, streamline and optimise efficiency in order to
serve Europol, its customers and staff better.
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