The PHARE & TACIS Information Centre
In order to respond more effectively to the increasing requests for information on its PHARE and TACIS programmes, the European Commission, DG IA, has opened a new PHARE & TACIS Information Centre. Situated in Brussels, Belgium, the Centre aims to provide a centralized point of reference for information on these two programmes. The PHARE programme provides economic aid and technical support to the 13 partner countries of Central and Eastern Europe, while TACIS provides support to economic reform and recovery in the New Independent States and Mongolia. The new Information Centre, manned by four trained Information Officers, will provide the following services: - A personalized information service: Queries about PHARE and TACIS may be forwarded to the Information Centre by telephone, fax or e-mail. Interested parties will also have the possibility to book one-to-one or group meetings with the Centre's Information Officers for a more in-depth briefing and advice on how to identify relevant business opportunities; - Internet access: Visitors to the Centre can access the PHARE and TACIS Web pages, a valuable source of information and documentation on the programmes, on two terminals specifically provided for this purpose; - A centralized documentation centre: The Centre will centralize all the essential documentation and information relating to the PHARE and TACIS programmes. These can be consulted at the Centre itself, and many documents can be obtained by post on written request; - Exhibitions: The Centre will organize exhibitions focusing on recent PHARE and TACIS projects, highlighting work of particular interest. These will typically include the invitation of guest speakers and the use of photos, panels and videos; - Access to the PHARE and TACIS databases: Access to the PHARE and TACIS mailing database, and the Central Consultancy Register (essential for potential contractors) is provided through the Centre.