The Management Board (MB) of the European Agency for the operational management of large-scale IT systems in the area of freedom, security and justice (eu-LISA) will hold its 9th working meeting on 18-19 November at the headquarters of the Agency in Tallinn. The board convenes at a time when eu-LISA is coming to an end of its second year of operation.

"By the end of the second year of eu-LISA we can be proud of our progress as an organisation and our achievements. The eu-LISA Strategy for 2014-2020 is in place, implementation of several strategic projects such as Eurodac recast, VIS/BMS evolutions, migration into s-TESTA NG and preparations for the Smart Borders proof of concept are in progress. We have successfully carried out our very first large-scale conference on Smart Borders with experts from 25 European countries and the Agency’s first roundtable with industry convened representatives from 25 businesses. All this comes to prove the ability of the Agency to deliver results at and beyond expectations,” said Mr Krum GARKOV, Executive Director of eu-LISA. 

“However, the two-day meeting of the Management Board will focus not only on the 2014 achievements but also on the future. We will discuss the Multi-Annual Work Programme 2015-2020 and the implementation of the Agency’s long term strategy 2014-2020, to prepare the development of the new systems, assist Member States in their preparation for integration into existing systems and continue to develop robust internal operational and governance models,” noted Mr Garkov. 

Management Board elected a new Chairperson Filip Pynckels from the Belgian Ministry of the Interior following resignation of the previous Chairperson Matthias Taube who was appointed to other tasks within the German Federal Ministry of Interior.  

“The Belgian Ministry of the Interior attaches enormous importance to the high level of security in Europe and emphasises the key role that the Agency has in managing the three large-scale IT systems that support the implementa¬tion of the EU’s asylum, migration and border management policies and contribute to a high level of security in Europe. I am honoured to be elected as the new Chair for the Management Board of the Agency," said Mr Pynckels.

“Terrorism is a phenomenon that is constantly evolving and the threat of foreign fighters remains severe. Cooperation at the European level complements the efforts of the Member States. Therefore it is of utmost importance that all Schengen states use effectively the Schengen Information System that enables information exchange between Member States and identification of suspects,” emphasised Belina Pyke, Director for Schengen of the European Commission Directorate General for Home Affairs.  

eu-LISA   Management  Board  includes  representatives  of  EU  countries  and  the  European Commission. Associated Countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein) as well as European agencies, such as Europol and Eurojust, are also represented in the board. The role of the MB is to ensure that the Agency delivers the objectives and tasks, as set out in eu-LISA’s establishing regulation, in the most cost-effective way and in line with its strategic goals and objectives.

Background on eu-LISA

The European Agency, eu-LISA, has been established to manage large-scale information systems in the area of freedom, security and justice. It fulfils the operational management tasks for the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II), Visa Information System (VIS) and Eurodac. The Agency thereby supports the implementation of the EU's border management, asylum and migration policies. The Agency is responsible for keeping all the IT systems under its control permanently functional in order to allow continuous and uninterrupted exchange of data between national authorities. eu-LISA ensures that it applies the highest levels of information security and data protection to the information entrusted to it. The seat of the Agency is in Tallinn (Estonia), the operational management is carried out in Strasbourg (France) with the business continuity technical site in Sankt Johann im Pongau (Austria). The Agency was formally established in November 2012 and started its operations on 1 December 2012. The Agency is managed and represented by the Executive Director Mr Krum Garkov, who came to office on 1 November 2012. 

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