The countries of the western Balkan region are to become eligible to apply for SAPARD and EU pre-accession structural aid.

The countries of the western Balkan region are to become eligible to apply for SAPARD and EU pre-accession structural aid, as the focus of EU enlargement starts to shift towards the south-east of Europe

Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Serbia-Montenegro will all be able to bid for EU aid programmes in a less degree than a proposal tabled by the European Commission