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Europe Direct
Europe Direct is a European information network designated by the European Commission.

Network
Europe Direct includes Europe Direct Information Centre (short: edi or edic), European Documentation Centre (EDC) and the EU expert speakers Team Europe. The network was created in 2005 and restructured in February 2009.

Target groups
The target group are all EU-citizens. The European Documentation Centres shall help finding detailed information on European law, integration, policies and institutions. Team Europe is a service for organizers of events with European theme such as public lectures and simulation games. All European-Direct offers are free-of-charge; only Team Europe may require travel costs and a fee.

Tasks
Main tasks of Europe Direct are providing the European citizens with general information on the European Union, answering questions on political activities of the EU and promoting the European integration. Furthermore, advices and practical tipps on rights entitled to Union citizens are provided. These information are free-of-charge;, however without guarantee.

Inquiries, in any of the current 24 official languages, are processed in a central contact point and answered in the same language. To ensure quality the staff of the contact point has to be fluent in at least 3 languages and have a college degree.

Europe Direct is available via telephone (free of charge within the EU and a uniform number, e-mail or web-chat. There is a network of EU-wide 500 information centres (16 in the UK,10 in Ireland, 3 in Malta )that can be visited by anyone interested. These centres are run by national or private organisations with public contract. They are co-funded by the European Commission.