BRUSSELS (BELGIUM) (ITALPRESS) – Frontex was created in 2004 to respond, together with the national authorities, to the problems relating to EU borders (such as terrorism, trafficking in human beings and smuggling of migrants). Since its creation, the Agency’s mandate has progressively expanded, as has its budget (from 19 million euros in 2006 to 460 million last year). Nonetheless, the European Court of Auditors found that Frontex “does not yet offer Member States satisfactory support in managing the EU’s external borders”. “The tasks entrusted to Frontex at the external borders of the EU are fundamental for the fight against cross-border crime and illegal immigration,” said Leo Brincat, the member of the Court responsible for the report. “Nonetheless, Frontex does not currently discharge them effectively. This is of particular concern when additional responsibilities are given to this Agency,” explains the Court. In 2016, Frontex received an explicit mandate to support Member States in the fight against illegal immigration and cross-border crime. However, the Court found gaps and inconsistencies in the framework governing the exchange of information, which hampers the ability of Frontex and the Member States to monitor external borders and react when necessary. Furthermore, risk analysis and vulnerability assessment activities are not always based on comprehensive and good quality data. Finally, as regards the fight against cross-border crime, joint operations are not yet sufficiently developed in the daily activities of Frontex. The Court also noted the lack of reporting on the efficiency and costs of Frontex. The latter, while carrying out an extensive work of communication on the activities carried out, rarely analyzes its performance or the impact of these activities. Moreover, it does not provide information on the real cost of the joint operations carried out. The Court found that the last external evaluation of Frontex was published in July 2015. In addition, the new regulation governing the work of Frontex, approved in 2019, has not been corroborated by any preliminary evaluation. However, it made a profound change in the Agency’s activity, making its support and coordination function evolve into an operational service role. To fulfill the new mandate, Frontex will count, in its operational staff, up to 10,000 units by 2027 (compared to 750 agents in 2019), although it is not yet clear whether they will be able to operate as expected. (ITALPRESS). sat / com 08-Jun-21 09:38
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