The signatories :

The Spitzenverbände der Landwirtschaftlichen Sozialversicherung (BV-LSV), from Germany,
Represented by Mr. Leo Blum, President,

The Caisse Centrale de la Mutualité Sociale Agricole (CCMSA), from France,
Represented by Mrs. Jeannette Gros, President,

The Caisse de Maladie Agricole (CMA) and the Caisse de Pension Agricole (CPA), from Luxemburg,
Represented by Mr. Theo Weirich, President,

The Kasa Rolniczego Ubezpieczenia Społecznego (KRUS), from Poland,
Represented by Mr. Jan Kopczyk, President,

The Maatalousyrittäjien Eläkelaitos (MELA), from Finland,
Represented by Mrs. Päivi Huotari, Managing Director,

The Οργανίςμος Γεωργικων Αςφαλιςεων (OGA), from Greece,
Represented by Mr. Lefteris Papageirgopoulos, President,

The Sozialversicherungsanstalt der Bauern (SVB), from Austria,
Represented by Mr. Karl Donabauer, President,

Note that in a changing European environment, in which the Community level is of increasing importance vis-à-vis the National level, union and representation are needed in order to be heard and understood.

The Single Market, various Treaties, and the future Constitutional Treaty are making and will continue to make the European level an indispensable level for coordination with regard to social issues. These latest advances are bringing about the implementation of trans-national cooperation between the different social protection schemes.

Simultaneously, the Common Agricultural Policy and the community cohesion policy mean that specific farming and rural factors must be raised to the European level, to defend their requirements and values.

The combination of these tendencies is therefore bringing about a need for cooperation between agricultural social protection welfare funds at the EU level.

Within the EU, a significant number of countries have specific agricultural social protection schemes (Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Luxemburg, Poland). At the European level, these organisations have to make proof of the cogency of this specificity, and to defend this differentiated approach of the social protection of farming and rural populations.

Taking into account the relations of long date existing between the six parts, the signatory organisations thus begin to be invested together in order to set up a European network between all of them. Indeed it is with this network that at the EU level, the agricultural social protection schemes will affirm the bonds which link them together.

This network will be thought firstly as a forum promoting better mutual understanding among all of its members, and also as a group that represents European agricultural social protection, dealing with farming and rural cases of a specific social nature and recognised as such by the European Union.

Participation in the network activities will be based on respect of the following principles:

In order to answer this waiting, the involved parts:

• The Spitzenverbände der Landwirtschaftlichen Sozialversicherung (BV-LSV),
• The Caisse Centrale de la Mutualité Sociale Agricole (CCMSA),
• The Caisse de Maladie Agricole (CMA) et la Caisse de Pension Agricole (CPA),
• The Kasa Rolniczego Ubezpieczenia Społecznego (KRUS),
• The Maatalousyrittäjien Eläkelaitos (MELA),
• The Οργανίςμος Γεωργικων Αςφαλιςεων (OGA),
• The Sozialversicherungsanstalt der Bauern (SVB),

Are committed on the basis of this report putting their knowledge and their experiments in common. Thanks to their implication, their experience and their will to take part in the construction of a social Europe that would take the specificities and the needs of the farming and rural populations into account, the network will fulfill the following missions :

• Defence and strengthening of the values and principles of agricultural social protection based on solidarity and territorial cohesion;
• Representation of the interests of agricultural social protection to Community authorities, without however, acting in place of members and their individual activities & collaborations;
• Recognition by the Community authorities of the network as a forum for consultation;
• Creation of a forum for exchanging information and good practices among its members;
• Development of synergies and cooperation initiatives among its members to meet clearly-defined shared requirements;
• Exchange of blurbs and a support on a national level. 

In addition, and parallel to this network, the signatories of this draft treaty wish that they could launch projects within the framework of European calls to projects.

Brussels, 21 April 2004,

For the BV-LSV,

The President, Mr. Leo Blum

For the CCMSA, 
The President, Mrs Jeannette Gros

For the CMA and the CPA,

The President, Mr. Théo Weirich

For the KRUS,
The President, Mr. Jan Kopczyk

For the MELA,

The Managing Director,Mrs Päivi Huotari

For the OGA,

The President, Mr. Lefteris Papageirgopoulos

For the SVB,
The President, Mr. Karl Donabauer