Inforegio panorama. No 24, December 2007.
Date: 2009-09-21
Institutions: Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy
Subjects: regional development, regional policy, serial publication

en

inforegio

panorama

|  No 24  |  December 2007  |

Regions as partners 
The European Territorial 
Cooperation Objective

Contents

Cohesion policy, at the heart of the Lisbon process 

4

Th  e ﬁ rst report on the negotiations of the new generation of cohesion policy strategies and 
programmes highlights a clear change of direction in favour of the renewed Lisbon agenda 
agreed in 2005. 

Regions as partners The European Territorial 
Cooperation Objective    

INTERREG, irrelevant or indispensable?  
Th  e role of INTERREG remains vitally important in overcoming the inﬂ uence of borders 
and achieving a properly functioning internal market. 

Interview 
Dirk Peters on the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation.  

From the ground:   
INTERREG IVC.

From the ground:  
URBACT.

From the ground:   
INTERACT. 

From the ground:  
ESPON. 

INTERREG in action: INTERREG IIIA  

Report: Erasing the border  
Hundreds of partnerships in health, culture, technology, the environment,  
citizenship and more. From PACTE to INTERREG IV, French-Belgian cross-border  
cooperation is doing very well indeed. 

INTERREG in action: INTERREG IIIB & IIIC  

Event:   
 “Telling the Story” conference explores innovative ways to communicate on cohesion policy.  

REGIO & Networks 

Online 

Photographs (pages): European Commission (3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 25, 26), Th  omas Dix/Stadt 
Weil-am-Rhein(1, 19), CRITT Charleville-Mézières (5), Carrefour Economie Technologie 
Enseignement (6, 21), INTERACT (11, 17), INTERREG IVC Secretariat (14), URBACT (15), 
URBAN II Dortmund-Nordstadt (15), ESPON (18), Y4I (19), Celtic Enterprises (19), 
VIDEOCOM (19), Provincie West-Vlaanderen (20, 23), Mabiolac (20), CORELOG (24), 
RegEnergy (24), REVIT (24), CopraNet (24).

Cover: the “Th  ree Countries Bridge”, a pedestrian and cyclist bridge linking Weil-am-Rhein 
(Germany) and Huningue (France) near Basle (Switzerland).

Other contributors:
Pierre Ergo, Jean-Luc Janot.
Editor: Ana-Paula Laissy, European Commission, Regional Policy DG
 Th  is magazine is printed in English, French and German on recycled paper.
Th  e thematic dossier is available in 22 languages of the European Union at: 
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm
Th  e opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not 
necessarily reﬂ ect the views of the European Commission.

7

11

14

15

17

18

19

20

.

24

25

27

28

 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Bringing regions and people together

Cohesion Policy is the key instrument in addressing the European 
Union’s ambition to promote more growth and jobs. Sharing ideas 
and cooperating across borders is one of the most important factors 
contributing to innovation, which is seen as a key contributor to 
achieving  sustainable  growth  and  jobs.  European  Territorial 
Cooperation programmes bring regions and people together and thus 
facilitate the exchange of good ideas and best practice in Regional 
Policy, irrespective of the existence of borders. 

It is in this context that European Territorial Cooperation has moved 
centre stage in the new Cohesion Policy period 2007-13. Th  e increased 
importance  of  these  co-operation  programmes,  still  commonly 
referred to as INTERREG, is demonstrated by the fact they have now 
become one of the 3 Cohesion Policy objectives. Th  is European 
Territorial  Cooperation  Objective,  ﬁ nanced  by  the  European 
Regional  Development  Fund  (ERDF),  supports  70  cross-border, 
transnational and interregional cooperation programmes. Th  e budget 
for this objective amounts to €8.7 billion for the period 2007-13.

Th  is edition of the Inforegio Panorama magazine is dedicated to cooperation and networking. Th  e main 
article demonstrates how INTERREG has had real impact on the lives of citizens in the Franco-Belgian 
border area. An expert article from the Directorate-General for Regional Policy puts cooperation into 
a wider context and explains its beneﬁ ts in simple terms, while an interview with a legal expert clariﬁ es 
why the new legal instrument, the European Grouping for Territorial Co-operation (EGTC), is of such 
importance. Moreover, authors representing each of the four cooperation networking programmes 
(INTERREG IVC, INTERACT, URBACT and ESPON) explain how they operate and what they have 
to oﬀ er to the regions. 

Finally, an article on the conference held in late November 2007 about the new ways of communicating 
Cohesion Policy together (“Telling the story”) completes this edition of Inforegio Panorama. 

I do hope you ﬁ nd this mix of articles interesting and that it encourages you to co-operate and network 
in one of the 70 European Territorial Co-operation programmes.

Danuta Hübner
Commissioner for Regional Policy  

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 3  | 

Cohesion policy, at the heart 
of the Lisbon process

The fi rst report on the negotiations of the new generation of cohesion policy strategies and programmes 

highlights a clear change of direction in favour of the renewed Lisbon agenda agreed in 2005. 

Urban renewal around Patrick Street in Cork, Ireland.

Th  e European Commission communication, “Member 
States and Regions delivering the Lisbon strategy for 
growth and jobs through EU cohesion policy, 2007-13”, 
which was jointly presented by Regional Policy Com-
missioner, Danuta Hübner, and Employment and Social 
Aﬀ airs Commissioner, Vladimir Spidla, in November 
2007, provides a ﬁ rst assessment of the results of the 
negotiations on the new cohesion policy strategies and 
programmes.

In terms of funding priorities, it shows that under the 
new Convergence objective, 65% of the funds are to 
be invested in Lisbon-related objectives. Th  is repre-
sents an increase of 11% compared to the previous pro-
gramming period. Regions falling under the Regional 
Competitiveness and Employment Objective, which 
have traditionally allocated more resources to Lisbon 
type measures, also plan to continue to invest a high 
proportion of the funds, 82% of the total, in this area, 
a small increase on the 2000-06 period.

Th  e new rules for cohesion policy encourage this “ear-
marking” of funds by Member States for investment 
in Lisbon-related measures. Under the earmarking 
provision, speciﬁ c targets were set by the European 
Council in December 2005. For the EU-15 Member 
States, for which earmarking is obligatory, 74% of fund-
ing for the Convergence Objective and 83% of funding 
for the Regional Competitiveness and Employment 
Objective have been allocated to Lisbon measures, 
well in excess of the targets set by the Council (60% 
and 75% respectively).

For the EU-12 countries (newer Member States) these 
targets are voluntary but the programming documents 

also demonstrate a high level of ambition, with 58% of 
the Convergence Objective and 59% of the Regional 
Competitiveness and Employment Objective funding 
allocated to Lisbon measures.

Level of earmarking for Convergence Regions in EU-12* and EU-15
Comparaison 2000-2006 / 2007-2013
(in % of total funds)

59

49

74

55

2000-2006

2007-2013

100

75

50

25

0

EU-12 
(* 2000-2006 figures except for
BG & RO)

EU-15

Th  e analysis per country shows a shift towards Lisbon-
type measures in all Member States. For EU-15, the 
ﬁ gures range from 60% (France) to 88% (Austria) for the 
Convergence regions, and from 67% to 92% (Denmark) 
for the Regional Competitiveness and Employment 
regions. While the commitments are more modest in 
EU-12, there is still a considerable investment in other 
sectors which are fundamental to economic progress; 
albeit not in the earmarked categories.

|  p. 4  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

a
j
i
r
a
g
a
B

l

a
j
i
r
a
g
a
B

l

Convergence

i
t
s
e
E

a
d
a

l
l

E

a
ñ
a
p
s
E

e
c
n
a
r
F

d
n
a
e
r
I

l

a

i
l

a
t
I

s
o
r
p
y
K

a
j
i
v
t
a
L

a
v
u
t
e
L

i

k
r
a
m
n
a
D

l

d
n
a
h
c
s
t
u
e
D

a
k

i
l

b
u
p
e
R
a
k
s
e
C

a
t
l
a
M

d
n
a
l
r
e
d
e
N

h
c
i
e
r
r
e
t
s
Ö

a
k
s
l
o
P

l

a
g
u
t
r
o
P

i

a
n
â
m
o
R

g
á
z
s
r
o
r
a
y
g
a
M

)
e
h
c
u
D
-
d
n
a
r
G

(
g
r
u
o
b
m
e
x
u
L

a
j
i

n
e
v
o
S

l

i

l

ë
g
e
B
-
e
u
q
g
e
B

l

i

Lisbon

Non Lisbon

Regional Competitiveness and Employment

i

l

ë
g
e
B
-
e
u
q
g
e
B

l

i

i
t
s
e
E

a
d
a

l
l

E

a
ñ
a
p
s
E

e
c
n
a
r
F

d
n
a
e
r
I

l

a

i
l

a
t
I

s
o
r
p
y
K

a
j
i
v
t
a
L

a
v
u
t
e
L

i

k
r
a
m
n
a
D

l

d
n
a
h
c
s
t
u
e
D

a
k

i
l

b
u
p
e
R
a
k
s
e
C

a
t
l
a
M

d
n
a
l
r
e
d
e
N

h
c
i
e
r
r
e
t
s
Ö

a
k
s
l
o
P

l

a
g
u
t
r
o
P

i

a
n
â
m
o
R

a
j
i

n
e
v
o
S

l

g
á
z
s
r
o
r
a
y
g
a
M

)
e
h
c
u
D
-
d
n
a
r
G

(
g
r
u
o
b
m
e
x
u
L

a
c
i
l

b
u
p
e
R
a
k
s
n
e
v
o
S

l

a
c
i
l

b
u
p
e
R
a
k
s
n
e
v
o
S

l

Th  e promotion of entrepreneurship, which is directly linked 
to the 2006 Spring Council priority action 2, “Unlocking the 
business potential, particularly of SMEs”, emerges as another 
key theme for 2007-13. Member States put a particular empha-
sis on the provision of business support services, which will 
receive some €19 billion over the next seven years, equivalent 
to 5% of the total cohesion budget. 

A related action is that of promoting new approaches to improv-
ing access to ﬁ nance for businesses from non-grant sources, 
such as loans and venture capital. In this area, Member States 
have exploited the possibilities oﬀ ered by the JEREMIE (Joint 
European Resources for Micro to Medium Enterprises) ini-
tiative, which aims to improve the availability of innovative 
ﬁ nancial engineering products in the regions. Th  e planned 
ERDF investment under JEREMIE for 2007-13 is estimated at 
over € 2.5 billion, with a projected leverage of private capital 
of around € 12.5 billion.

2
1
U
E

5
1
U
E

7
2
U
E

e
g
i
r
e
v
S

i

m
o
d
g
n
K
d
e
t
i
n
U

2
1
U
E

5
1
U
E

7
2
U
E

e
g
i
r
e
v
S

i

m
o
d
g
n
K
d
e
t
i
n
U

Th  e Regional Centre of Innovation and Technology 
Transfer (CRITT) at Charleville-Mézières, France.

l

d
n
a
n
F
/
i

i

m
o
u
S

l

d
n
a
n
F
/
i

i

m
o
u
S

Contributing to EU priorities

In contributing to the growth and jobs agenda, the new pro-
grammes will address the four priority actions agreed by the 
Member States at the Spring European Council in March 2006. 
In particular, there is a strong emphasis on priority action 1: 
“Investing more in knowledge and innovation”. Almost 
€ 83 billion is allocated for investment in this area. Over half of 
this will be invested in improving innovative capacity in busi-
ness, by supporting technological transfers and cooperation 
networks, as well as R&D and eco-innovation.

Th  e remainder is shared between support for the diﬀ usion 
and use of ICTs by businesses and by citizens and the develop-
ment of ICT technologies; support for business start-ups and 
self-employment; the development of skills; and the promo-
tion of a more ﬂ exible and adaptive workforce. Overall, this 
represents a doubling of investment in R&D and a tripling of 
investment in innovation, compared with the period 2000-06. 
In the new Member States, the share of R&D and innovation 
expenditure in the total budget will be four times more than 
in the previous period. 

Support  for  priority  action  3,  “Improving  employability 
through ﬂ exicurity”, will be largely realised through invest-
ment in active labour market policies, new forms of work organ-
isation, implementation of lifelong learning strategies and the 
development of education and training systems better adapted 
to future skills and qualiﬁ cations requirements. Support to this 
priority also includes the promotion of partnerships to mobilise 
reform in the labour markets. Altogether it represents around 
€ 70 billion of the cohesion budget.

Th  e new programmes also reﬂ ect a strong emphasis on priority 
action 4, “Improving management of energy resources and 
move towards an eﬃ  cient and integrated EU energy policy”. 
Much of the eﬀ ort in this sector falls to the private sector and 
absolute levels of expenditure under the programmes therefore 
appear modest compared to other ﬁ elds. However, compared 
to the period 2000-06, investment in renewables and energy 
eﬃ  ciency will be ﬁ ve times higher under the Convergence 
objective and seven times higher under the Regional Com-
petitiveness and Employment objective. 

Other key Lisbon and Community priorities 

Increased investment in the Lisbon-related categories will also 
target other areas which are important for economic competi-
tiveness. Th  e new cohesion programmes aim to create win-
win situations by strengthening potential synergies between 
environmental protection and growth. Priorities in this ﬁ eld 
include the provision of environmental services such as clean 

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 5  | 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
A need for education and training systems better adapted to future skills and qualiﬁ cations requirements.

It also suggests that while approaches to partnership vary 
from one country to another, depending on their institutional 
circumstances, in many, the structures for involving partners 
in the programming have improved compared to the previous 
programming period. Th  e more decentralised management of 
the programmes for 2007-13 also oﬀ ers the prospect of a wider 
involvement of stakeholders beyond the programming phase, 
notably urban authorities and social partners.  

Strengthening administrative capacities

Eﬃ  cient public administrations and services are seen as funda-
mental to economic growth and thus are directly linked to the 
objectives of the renewed Lisbon agenda. Around € 3.6 billion 
will help the least developed countries and regions to modernise 
their public administrations and services at national, regional 
and local level. Support will be provided for actions to improve 
the quality of regulation, strengthen the capacity to develop 
eﬀ ective policies and programmes, including the training of 
staﬀ , the creation of accessible and quality services to citizens 
and the reinforcement of territorial administrations. 

Further reporting in 2008

In the spring of 2008, the Commission will provide a more 
detailed report, following the conclusions of the negotiations 
on the programmes for 2007-13.  In addition, from 2008, the 
Commission will include in its Annual Progress Report to the 
Spring European Council a summary of the Member States' 
reports on the contribution of the programmes to the imple-
mentation of the NRPs. In 2009, Member States are required 
to submit a strategic assessment of how the programmes have 
contributed to achieving their initial objectives, in particular 
those that relate to the priorities set out in the Community 
Strategic Guidelines and the Integrated Guidelines for Growth 
and Jobs of the Lisbon agenda. Th  is will be followed in 2010 by 
a report from the Commission synthesising the Member States’ 
reports and reﬂ ecting on the opportunity and the need to adjust 
programming in the light of emerging challenges.

water supplies, waste and waste-water treatment infrastructure, 
improved management of natural resources, decontamination 
of development land, and protection against environmental 
risks. Overall, some € 51 billion is expected to be invested in 
these areas.

Member States and regions eligible for funding under the Con-
vergence objective or the Cohesion Fund have also prioritised 
the development of the Trans-European Transport Networks 
(TEN-T). Around half of the entire allocation foreseen for 
transport (EUR 76 billion) will be allocated to TEN-T projects 
(€ 38 billion). Other transport priorities concern investments in 
secondary connections to improve accessibility to the TEN-Ts 
as well as the promotion of more environmentally sustainable 
transport systems. Planned expenditure on the latter represents 
almost 45% of the entire allocation for transport, equivalent 
to around € 34 billion.

Some € 32 billion will be invested in enhancing access to em-
ployment for women, older workers, young people and those on 
the margins of the labour market. An additional € 1.9 billion will 
support the modernisation of labour market institutions and a 
similar amount is allocated for actions to reduce gender-based 
segregation in the labour market and promote reconciliation 
of work and private life. A further € 13.5 billion is planned for 
investment in measures to improve the adaptability of work-
ers, enterprises and entrepreneurs to the requirements of a 
changing economy and labour market.

Recognising the important economic return on investment in 
education, € 25.3 billion is allocated to support the reform of 
education and training systems, including actions for eﬃ  cient 
lifelong learning strategies and support for groups at risk, such 
as early school leavers. Finally, certain programmes, in pursuing 
the integrated approach to development, have also organised 
actions around the problems of particular territories in order 
to promote a more balanced development pattern. Some of 
these initiatives in urban areas also make use of JESSICA (Joint 
European Support for Sustainable Investment in City Areas), 
which is supported by the European Investment Bank.

Promoting good governance and partnership

Th  e analysis conﬁ rms a high degree of cooperation between 
those responsible for coordinating the implementation of the 
National Reform Programmes (NRP), agreed in 2005 by each 
Member State under the Lisbon strategy, and those responsible 
for preparing the cohesion policy strategies and programmes. 

|  p. 6  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

INTERREG, irrelevant or indispensable?

By Colin Wolfe (1)

Drive from Brussels to Luxembourg and on to Strasbourg and one would be forgiven for thinking that borders 

no longer exist in the EU. But even here, in the heart of Europe, the role of INTERREG remains vitally important in 

overcoming the infl  uence of borders and achieving a properly functioning internal market. 

Busy truck route crossing the border of Belgium, France and Luxembourg.

Not  all  EU  borders  are  barriers.  Drive  from  Brussels  to 
Luxembourg and to Strasbourg and, apart from the dif-
ferences in fuel prices and the signposts changing colour, 
Europe looks barrier-free.

But even here, in the EU’s heartland, blockages persist. Hospi-
tals duplicate each other, police, ﬁ re and ambulance services 
often run to the border and no further. Th  e ﬂ ood threatening 
your cellar may have started as a storm way up a foreign river 
valley. Business and science parks are rarely international 
cross-border parks – they compete rather than cooperate. 
And yet these are among the most integrated European 
borders. Swing east from Strasbourg on the Rhine, and reach 
Europe’s other big river, the Danube. Here, the borders are 
rather more obvious. Fire-engines stop at the border not 
due to insurance problems, but because no bridge exists to 
allow them to cross.

European Territorial Cooperation 

It is precisely these problems that prevent the EU from wor-
king in the most optimal way. While regional diversity is 
undoubtedly a very desirable characteristic of the EU, regio-
nal disconnection is a less appealing prospect. Diﬀ erences 
in train timetables are costly if they leave you sitting on 
your cross-border platform because your connection left ﬁ ve 

minutes before you arrived. Getting lost due to diﬀ erences in 
signposting is not a good route to international goodwill.

EU INTERREG programmes aim to address these issues. 
Th  e cross-border version (strand A) targets individual bor-
ders, or (as around Luxembourg) where several borders are 
interlinked. Th  e transnational version (strand B) focuses on 
bigger zones or international regions, such as the Baltic Sea 
or the Alpine Space, and addresses correspondingly big-
ger problems (marine pollution, retreating snowlines). Th  e 
interregional version (strand C) brings together all EU-27 
Member States plus Norway and Switzerland. If Europeans 
have something to learn from each other, and if we do not 
want to continually re-invent the wheel, then strand C has 
much to oﬀ er.

European Territorial Cooperation – 
basic facts

•  One of 3 objectives of EU Cohesion Policy (alongside "Convergence" 

and "Competitiveness")
• Known as "INTERREG"
• Now in its 4th series of programmes
•  Budget 2007-2013 > € 8.7  billion (current prices) (up from € 5.5  billion 

2000-2006)

• About 70 programmes across the EU

(1) Head of Unit, Territorial Cooperation, DG Regional Policy, European Commission.

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 7  | 

 
Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

an agreed approach to issues aﬀ ecting entire river basins or 
mountain ranges. Th  e programmes add an important extra 
European dimension to regional development, built around 
analysis at a European level, leading to agreed priorities and 
a coordinated strategic response. Th  is allows meaningful 
work on matters such as communication corridors, ﬂ ood 
management, international business and research linkages, 
and the development of more viable and sustainable mar-
kets. Moreover, it provides an agreed strategic investment 
framework for other resources, from convergence objective 
funds to levered ﬁ nance instruments, with potential for 
considerable impact. Th  emes covered include:
-  Innovation, especially networks of universities, research 

institutions, SMEs;

-  Environment,  especially  water  resources,  rivers,  lakes, 

sea;

-  Accessibility, including telecommunications, and in par-

ticular the completion of networks;

-  Sustainable urban development, especially polycentric 

development.

Transnational cooperation

•  Known as INTERREG STRAND B
•  Zonal, large international regions
•  13 programmes : North Sea, Baltic Sea, Northern Periphery, 

Mediterranean, Alpine Space, South-West Europe, North-West 
Europe, Central Europe, Atlantic Area, South-East Europe, 
Madeira-Azores-Canary Islands, Reunion, Caribbean

•  >25% of budget, i.e. € 1.8 billion

Karlsruhe (Geramny) has beneﬁ ted from a cross-border tourist 
development program supported by INTERREG «PAMINA».

INTERREG C - Interregional cooperation

Interregional  cooperation  works  at  pan-European  level, 
covering  all  EU-27  Member  States,  and  more.  It  builds 
networks  to  develop  good  practice  and  facilitate  the 
dissemination  of  lessons  and  experiences  by  successful 
regions. It showcases what regions do well, to the beneﬁ t 
of those still investing. A key part of this particular stand is 

Construction of a new road between Greece and Bulgaria.

INTERREG A – Cross-border cooperation

Cross-border cooperation is essentially about "ﬁ lling the 
gaps". Whether the problems crossing the border are about 
infrastructure (building bridges), about markets and ser-
vices (linking universities to business to clients) or about 
cultural or linguistic barriers, INTERREG A is intended 
to address them. It does so through agreed cross-border 
analyses and response strategies, formalised in one of the 
52 cross-border programmes. It deals with a wide range of 
issues, which include:
-  Encouraging entrepreneurship, especially the development 

of SMEs, tourism, culture and cross-border trade;
-  Improving joint management of natural resources;
-  Supporting links between urban and rural areas;
-  Improving  access  to  transport  and  communication 

networks;

- Developing joint use of infrastructure;
-  Administrative,  employment  and  equal  opportunities 

work.

Cross-border cooperation

•  Known as INTERREG STRAND A
•  52 programmes
•  >70% of budget, i.e. € 5.4 billion

INTERREG B – Transnational cooperation

Transnational cooperation works on a wider scale. It deve-
lops cooperation at a zonal level, in regions involving several 
countries. As well as the Baltic Sea and Alpine Space, men-
tioned above, other programmes cover maritime zones such 
as the North Sea, the Mediterranean, or the Atlantic Area, or 
big land regions such as North-West Europe or South-East 
Europe. Th  is wider cooperation allows for the developed of 

|  p. 8  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

 
 
Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

the "Regions for Economic Change" initiative, which goes 
one step further than sharing good ideas by bringing all the 
policy makers on board. Th  e European Commission also 
supports this initiative by providing specialist and policy 
expertise in order to "fast-track" work in ﬁ elds such as the 
information society or managing marine resources. Th  e idea 
is to harness know-how, especially new ideas, to be exploited 
as widely as possible. Emphasis is put on links to convergence 
and competitiveness programmes, in order to translate the 
ideas into investment. Th  emes include:
- Innovation and the knowledge economy;
- Environment and risk protection.
To  conclude,  these  territorial  cooperation  programmes 
underline the European dimension:

Interregional cooperation

•  Known as INTERREG STRAND C, INTERACT, URBACT, ESPON
•  Covers all of the EU, Norway and Switzerland
•  Budget of > € 445 million

-  INTERREG A Cross-border "ﬁ lls the gaps" and contributes 

to removing border obstacles;

-  INTERREG B Transnational "develops trans-European 

zones";

-  INTERREG C Interregional "harnesses regional development 

knowledge” at European level.

Th  e period 2000-2006 demonstrated the need for these 
approaches. While over 13 000 projects received support, 
this satisﬁ ed only part of the demand. Th  e expectations for 
2007-2013 are higher, numerically, strategically and in terms 
of impact. Th  is new programming period provides us with 
the opportunity to take another step forward in replicating 
the “Brussels-Luxembourg-Strasbourg” driving experience 
in other areas of territorial cooperation.    

Two decades of INTERREG

Th  e European Commission granted support for territorial 
cooperation for the ﬁ rst time in 1989, when 14 groups of 
pilot projects were allocated some ECU 21 million under 
Article 10 of the ERDF. Th  ese projects were designed to tac-
kle the structural development diﬃ  culties of border areas.

In 1990, based on the experience of these pilot projects, 
the Commission created the INTERREG Community Ini-
tiative.  INTERREG I (1990-1994), which was intended to 
prepare border areas for a Community without internal 
frontiers, was implemented through 31 operational pro-
grammes and involved an amount of ECU 1 082 million. 
Launched in the same year as a supplement to the INTER-
REG programme, the REGEN Initiative aimed to com-
plete some missing links in the trans-European network for 
transport and energy distribution in Objective 1 regions.

INTERREG  II  (1994-1999)  combined  the  objectives 
of  INTERREG  I  and  REGEN  and  was  implemented 
through 59 diﬀ erent operational programmes. It had a 
total budget allocation of ECU 3 519 million (1996 prices), 
allocated between three distinct strands:  INTERREG IIA 
(1994-1999) - cross-border co-operation; INTERREG IIB 
(1994-1999) - completion of energy networks; INTERREG 
IIC (1997-1999) - co-operation in the area of regional plan-
ning, in particular the management of water resources. 

INTERREG III (2000-2006) had a total budget of more 
than EUR 5 billion and was also made up of 3 strands: 
cross-border  cooperation  (strand  A,  53  programmes), 
transnational  cooperation  (strand  B,  13  programmes) 
interregional  cooperation  (strand  C,  4  programmes).

For the 2007-2013 period, INTERREG IV has now become 
the third Objective of EU Cohesion Policy: the "European 
Territorial Cooperation" objective. € 8.7 billion is available for 
this objective, which is again divided between three strands: 
€ 6.44 billion for cross-border, € 1.83 billion for transna-
tional and € 445 million for inter-regional cooperation.

Th  e «Verein Frau und Arbeit» centre supports women starting 
their own businesses in Salzburg, Austria.

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 9  | 

 
)
S
E
(

s
a
i
r
a
n
a
C

n
o
i
n
u
é
R

e
u
q
i
n

i
t
r
a

M

e
p
u
o

l
e
d
a
u
G

)
R
F
(

)
R
F
(

e
n
a
y
u
G

)
R
F
(

)
R
F
(

)
T
P
(

s
e
r
o
ç
A

)
T
P
(
a
r
i
e
d
a
M

|  p. 10  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

S
S
I
I
G
G
o
o
i
i
g
g
e
e
R
R

i

s
n
o
g
e
r
n
o
i
t
a
r
e
p
o
o
c

r
e
d
r
o
b
s
s
o
r
C

3
1
0
2
-
7
0
0
2
e
v
i
t
c
e
j
b
o
n
o
i
t
a
r
e
p
o
o
C

n
o
i
t
a
r
e
p
o
o
C
r
e
d
r
o
b
s
s
o
r
C

s
e
i
r
a
d
n
u
o
b
e
v

i

i
t
a
r
t
s
i
n
m
d
a
e
h
t

r
o
f
n
o
i
t
a
i
c
o
s
s
A
s
c
i
h
p
a
r
g
o
e
G
o
r
u
E
©

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

The European Grouping of Territorial 
Cooperation 

Group discussion at an INTERACT seminar. 

Th  e "European Group-
ing of Territorial Co-
operation (EGTC)" is 
a new legal instrument 
that aims to facilitate 
and  promote  cross-
border, transnational 
and regional coopera-
tion. Unlike the struc-
tures which governed 
this kind of cooperation until 2007, EGTC 
is a legal entity, with all the associated 
powers and obligations. It can therefore 
buy and sell goods, as well as employ per-
sonnel. Dirk Peters, Legal Oﬃ  cer in the 
legal unit of  DG REGIO, tells us more.

Q.: Mr Peters, you participated in the negotiations 
on the Regulation on the European Grouping of 
Territorial Cooperation (EGTC)1. Why has the 
Commission proposed this Regulation?

A.: Th  e Commission’s experience of cooperation 
programmes and projects goes back to the start of 
the  INTERREG  Community  Initiative  in  1990. 
During this time, diﬀ erent legal and administrative 
systems  presented  a  real  obstacle  to  the  smooth 
implementation of these programmes and projects. 
In certain border areas, it was possible to jointly 
establish legal entities on the basis of bilateral or 
trilateral  treaties  under  the  “European  Outline 
Convention on Transfrontier Co-operation” of the 
Council of Europe, which dates from 1980 when it 
was signed in Madrid. However, even in this context 
it was not possible to solve all the problems, especially 
those related to cross-border co-operation. In many 
other border areas, especially in the new Member 

(1) Regulation (EC) No 1082/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 July 2006 on a European grouping of territorial 
cooperation (EGTC), OJ L 210, 31.7.2006, p. 19.

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 11  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

Cooperation for organ donation between Denmark and Sweden.

States, such treaties do not exist. Th  at is why Commissioner 
Barnier, who comes from a border region himself (Savoie in 
France), proposed in the 3rd Report on economic and social 
cohesion of 2004 a new legal instrument in the form of a 
European cooperation structure. Th  e draft Regulation then 
formed part of the legislative package for the 2007-2013 
programming period for the renewed Cohesion Policy.

Q.: What is the European Grouping of Territorial 
Cooperation?

A.: Th  e EGTC is a new legal instrument under Community 
law, not under international law like the Madrid Framework 
Convention. As with any other Regulation it does not need 
ratiﬁ cation or negotiation in bi-/multilateral treaties, but is 
binding and directly applicable in all Member States. Th  us, 
the Regulation itself enables regional and local authorities 
from  diﬀ erent  Member  States,  as  well  as  certain  bodies 
governed by public law or associations of all these authorities, 
to set up joint groupings with a legal personality to implement 
cooperation programmes and projects.

Q.: The EGTC is a better management tool than other 
existing instruments under international or national law, 
however it was diffi  cult for the Member States to accept the 
proposal. Why was this the case?

A.: Th  is is indeed diﬃ  cult to understand when you accept 
the basic principle of Community law: If a municipality in 
a Member State can set up a joint body with a neighbouring 
municipality inside the same Member State to run a bus line 
or a water sewage treatment plant or if a region can manage 
a nature park or a regional development agency together 
with its neighbour region inside the same Member State, the 
Community Regulation allows them to do the same thing 
across the border, inside the Community. Th  ere is an aspect 
of non-discrimination in it. Unfortunately some central 
authorities still consider cooperation across the border as 
external cooperation whereas it is really about internal co-
operation inside the Community or, if you prefer, within the 
Single Market.

(1) www.cor.europa.eu/en/activities/egtc_studies.htm

|  p. 12  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

Q.: Does the Regulation as fi nally adopted unanimously 
refl ect that somewhat cautious attitude of the Member 
States?

an EGTC just because these national rules have not yet been 
adopted. Th  is is quite diﬀ erent from a Directive.

A.: Yes, it does. Just to explain the two most controversial 
points: the Commission’s original proposal did not foresee 
that the Member States themselves could become a member 
of an EGTC; neither was there to be any ex-ante control 
procedure by the central authorities. On the ﬁ rst point, we 
discovered that it was necessary to take the central authorities 
on board, as competencies are very asymmetric between 
Member States. In order to match some Länder competences 
in Germany, you need the central level in France, the regional 
authorities in France not having the same competencies. 
Th  is factor is even more valid for smaller Member States 
without a regional level, where these competences have to 
be assumed by the national level. On the other controversial 
point, it became obvious that the whole Regulation could 
only be adopted when the Member States got the power to 
exercise ex-ante control. However, it should be borne in 
mind, that the right to establish an EGTC, granted directly 
by the Regulation to the regional and local authorities, means 
that the Member States must allow the participation in an 
EGTC, unless certain conditions are not fulﬁ lled. Article 4 
of the Regulation does not say that the Member States may 
allow participation if certain conditions are fulﬁ lled. Here 
the Commission will pay close attention to ensure that the 
Regulation is implemented correctly and eﬀ ectively.

Q.: On this latter aspect of the implementation of the 
Regulation: people talk about national transposition rules 
before the Regulation really applies. Is the Regulation not 
really a Directive?

A.: During the OPEN DAYS in October 2007 several seminars 
were  speciﬁ cally  dedicated  to  the  EGTC.  In  fact,  it  so 
happened that many more people from regional and national 
authorities inside and outside the Community wanted to 
participate than the space available allowed. Many of these 
are waiting to establish joint EGTCs! Yes, some national 
representatives tried to explain why they had not informed 
the Commission about the national provisions (by the 1 
August 2007 deadline) to ensure the eﬀ ectiveness of the 
Regulation by arguing that the Regulation was a “disguised” 
Directive. In actual fact, the EGTC Regulation is in line with 
other Regulations setting up a legal entity under Community 
law,  explicitly  asking  Member  States  to  adopt  national 
implementation rules such as the European Grouping of 
Economic Interest, the European Society and the European 
Corporation. Even “normal” Regulations such as the general 
Regulation  on  the  Structural  Funds2  require,  in  some 
Member  States,  a  parliamentary  act  in  order  to  ﬁ x  the 
respective tasks of the central and regional levels. It is clear 
that the Commission will ensure that all Member States 
adopt these national rules. However, without such rules and 
since 1 August 2007, Member States cannot deny the right 
granted directly by the Regulation to their regions to set up 

(2) www.interact-eu.net
(3) www.cor.europa.eu/en/activities/egtc_studies.htm
4) www.interact-eu.net

Q.: Looking at this on a more practical level - what kinds of 
cooperation can an EGTC be used for?

A.: We can distinguish four types of cooperation listed in 
the  Regulation:  (1)  to  implement  territorial  cooperation 
programmes or (2) projects co-ﬁ nanced by the Structural 
Funds and the Cohesion Fund; (3) to carry out other speciﬁ c 
actions  of  territorial  co-operation  with  or  (4)  without 
Community co-ﬁ nancing. “Territorial” covers all kinds of 
cooperation: cross-border, transnational or interregional. 
To  carry  out  these  tasks,  an  EGTC  may  set  up  its  own 
structure, have assets and hire staﬀ .

Q.: Can you give some examples?

For the ﬁ rst type, some programmes under the new European 
Territorial Cooperation objective will be managed by an 
EGTC, acting as managing authority of the programme (e.g. 
“Grande Région” around Luxembourg, with partner regions 
in Belgium, France and Germany). A key advantage here will 
be that the EGTC, with its own legal personality, will sign 
the contracts with the lead beneﬁ ciary, regardless of where 
this lead partner is established. Cooperation projects (type 
2) could cover the running of a cross-border transport or 
health service under a Cooperation objective programme or 
under  two  “national”  Convergence  programmes.  Other 
Community  programmes  such  as  the  7th  Framework 
Programme for Research and Technological Development 
or  the  CIP  (Competiveness  and  Innovation  Framework 
Programme) may co-ﬁ nance cooperation projects presented 
by entities from two Member States (type 3). Finally the 
fourth type could cover concrete projects without (or after) 
Community funding or more “governance”-like platforms 
to give a permanent and legal structure to a Euroregion 
covering a certain cross-border or transnational area.

Q.: And fi nally, could you say something about how to set 
up an EGTC?

A.: Th  e future members of the EGTC must draft a convention 
and statutes, which must be notiﬁ ed to the relevant national 
authorities. Th  e latter have three months to approve the 
participation of prospective members and must substantiate 
any  refusals  they  make.  On  the  day  of  registration  or 
publication of the statutes, the EGTC will acquire a legal 
personality. Th  e Commission cooperates closely with the 
Committee of the Regions3 and with the new INTERACT 
programme4 in order to support and give advice to those 
regions wishing (to quote Commissioner Hübner) to take 
the “radical step forward in the implementation possibilities 
for cross-border cooperation” set by the EGTC Regulation. 
I would like to end by paraphrasing this year’s motto of the 
OPEN DAYS: Th  e EGTC: “Making it happen!”

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 13  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

“From INTERREG IIIC to INTERREG IVC – the next step 
towards the Lisbon and Gothenburg objectives”

Michel Lamblin, Director of the INTERREG IVC Programme 

Adopted by the European Com-
mission in September 2007, the 
new interregional cooperation 
programme (abbreviated to “In-
terreg IVC”) will receive fund-
ing  of  € 321  million  from  the 
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for 
the period 2007-13 and covers all 27 Member States 
as well as Norway and Switzerland, who provide their 
own funding.  Th  e aim of the programme is to pro-
vide a framework for the exchange of experiences 
between regional and local institutions from the dif-
ferent countries on common challenges in areas such 
as globalisation, demographic change, energy supply 
and climate change.

As this new programme gets’ underway, INTERREG 
IIIC projects are also coming to a close. Th  ese projects 
involve over 2 600 partners in 263 diﬀ erent operations, 
with the participation of regions from all EU Member 
States. Almost half of these operations concern issues 
of economic development, job creation, entrepreneur-
ship, information society and technological innova-
tion. Signiﬁ cant results have been achieved in terms 
of identifying good practices and, more importantly, 
transferring these practices between regions.

What future is there then for the next budget period 
2007-2013? Interregional cooperation will continue 
to develop under the INTERREG IVC programme. 
It will build on the success of the IIIC programme, 
certain aspects of which have been retained, while also 
introducing new priorities and approaches.

Th  e “ChangeLAB” INTERREG project aims to 
encourage environmentally friendly patterns of 
consumption without lowering quality of life and 
prosperity.

I welcome this continuation in interregional coopera-
tion. It is important that regional and local authorities 
will be able to carry on working together and beneﬁ t 
from each others experience. Th  is shows that the Eu-
ropean Commission and Member States recognise 
that interregional cooperation really helps to improve 
regional policies. Th  is is particularly important as 

|  p. 14  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

regions – with the right help – can do so much to con-
tribute to the Lisbon and Gothenburg objectives.

Lisbon and Gothenburg objectives: 
central pillars of INTERREG IVC 

So-called after the European Councils held in those 
cities  in  2000  and  2001  respectively,  Lisbon  and 
Gothenburg comprise a broad strategy to increase 
the competitiveness of the EU and achieve sustainable 
growth. Focusing on economic (Lisbon) and envi-
ronmental (Gothenburg) axes, the regions have been 
identiﬁ ed as key partners in helping to achieve these 
objectives.

Future operations will therefore focus on two pri-
orities: the Innovation and Knowledge Economy, and 
Environment and Risk Prevention. Nine sub-themes 
have been identiﬁ ed under these two priorities, with 
around 55% of the € 321 million budget allocated to 
priority 1 (economic) themes, and 39% to priority 2 
(environmental) themes, while 6% of the budget has 
been allocated to technical assistance for the pro-
grammes. Currently, about 75% of INTERREG IIIC 
operations address these priorities. 

Unlike the INTERREG IIIC programme, which was 
divided into four administrative regions, INTERREG 
IVC has one Managing Authority (Région Nord–Pas 
de Calais) and a Joint Secretariat based in Lille, France. 
Four Information Points are located across Europe – 
in Rostock (Germany), Katowice (Poland), Valencia 
(Spain) and within the Secretariat in Lille – as points 
of contact for projects and regions.

Two types of interventions are possible under IN-
TERREG IVC: ‘Regional Initiative’ projects, which 
focus  on  exchanging  experience  and  transferring 
good practices, and ‘Capitalisation’ projects, which 
include Fast Track projects seeking to optimise the 
transfer of results and good practices into mainstream 
programmes.

Interest in the INTERREG IVC programme is already 
very high, and the Joint Technical Secretariat can as-
sist applicants in several diﬀ erent ways – Frequently 
Asked Questions, Lead Applicant Seminars and Indi-
vidual Consultations. All information is available for 
download on the INTERREG IVC website.

INTERREG IVC
Main activity: Interregional cooperation
EU contribution (ERDF): € 321 000 000 
Countries concerned: EU-27 Member States, 
Norway and Switzerland

Nord–Pas de Calais Region (France)

Contact: info@interreg4c.net (http://www.interreg4c.net)

Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

“From URBACT I to URBACT II: a new era in 
urban cooperation and exchange”

Anne-Laure Guignard, URBACT Communication Manager 

URBACT was created by the European Commission 
and 14 Member States to develop transnational ex-
changes of experience between the cities participat-
ing in the URBAN I and II programmes. Since 1 May 
2004, all cities of the new Member States can also 
participate in this initiative, which aims to identify 
the lessons learnt and disseminate the knowledge to 
all European cities.  

URBACT I 2002-2006: a laboratory for 
challenging territories

URBACT I included the participation of 230 cities, 
with a third of these from the new Member States. 
Th  e programme focused on creating and facilitating 
thematic networks and working groups to tackle 
issues related to urban regeneration, local develop-
ment, citizenship, and also youth issues.   

• 

20 Th  ematic networks:
 created around speciﬁ c 
themes of urban policy, respecting an integrated 
approach, with each establishing its own approach, 
key questions and practical projects.

• 

for  18  months, 
8  Th  ematic  working  groups: 
these working groups brought together practitio-
ners on the ground, experts and researchers in order 
to address a precise topic of particular relevance 
to European cities and to Community priorities.

• 

Knowledge Transfer (e.g. the Support for cities 
initiative): intended principally for the new Mem-
ber States, to provide participating cities with sup-
port in terms of skills and knowledge provided by 
experts with experience in integrated urban policy 
on deﬁ ning and developing integrated urban strate-
gies (involved 43 cities from 8 diﬀ erent countries).

• 

Capitalisation relies on cer-
Capitalisation tools: 
tain tools and resources that are made available to 
local actors: thematic ﬁ les on the website, cross-
cutting thematic working groups, thematic confe-
rences.

URBAN II fair in Dortmund-Nordstadt, Germany.

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 15  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

URBACT II
Main activity: transnational exchanges on 
integrated urban development
EU contribution (ERDF): € 53 319 170 

Countries concerned: 27 EU Member States, 
Norway and Switzerland

Managing Authority: French Ministry for 
Urban Policy 

Contact: www.urbact.eu

URBAN renovation in Vienna, Austria.

URBACT II 2007-2013: 
the new challenge

Th  e new Operational Programme was approved on
2  October  2007  and  URBACT  II  was  oﬃ  cially 
launched at the Berlin conference in November. Th  e 
priorities of the new programme are in line with the 
Lisbon and Gothenburg objectives in the ﬁ eld of 
sustainable urban development and the Commission’s 
new Regions for Economic Change initiative. 
Two thematic priorities are deﬁ ned:

Priority 1: Cities, engines of growth and jobs
 -
 -

Promoting entrepreneurship;
Improving  innovation  and  the  knowledge 
economy;
Employment and human capital.

 -

Priority 2: Attractive and cohesive cities
 -

Integrated development of deprived areas and areas 
at risk of deprivation;
Social integration;
Urban environment.

 -
 -

Th  e URBACT II programme has a broader approach 
than URBACT I. It is open to all cities from the EU, 
Norway  and  Switzerland,  as  well  as  to  regional 
authorities and universities. 

To  increase  the  impact  and  exemplary  nature  of 
exchanges, each partner city will commit itself  to 
drawing up a local action plan, based on a Local 
Support Group. Th  ematic networks and working 
groups will also involve as many of the Managing 
Authorities  of  the  Operational  Programmes  as 
possible.  A  call  for  proposals  for  the  creation  of 
thematic networks and working groups is currently 
open.

Th  ematic poles will also be created to ensure that 
the programme truly capitalises on the information 
available.  National  dissemination  points  will  be 
established and regional conferences will be held in 
various Member States to relay information between 
the URBACT II programme and local actors. 

|  p. 16  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

“INTERACT: promoting good governance 
in cooperation programmes” 

Sarah Hayes, Communications Manager of the INTERACT Managing Authority 

Th  e INTERACT (INTER-
REG  Animation,  Coop-
eration  and  Transfer) 
programme targets the in-
stitutions and stakeholders 
responsible for the man-
agement and delivery of the European Territorial 
Cooperation Programmes. INTERACT provides sup-
port and advice throughout the programme life-cycle 
with the aim of promoting good governance.

INTERACT focuses on management techniques but 
also on issues related to strategic orientation, and 
to institutional and thematic networks. Constantly 
seeking out the users’ point of view, and involving 
them as much as possible in the delivery of the pro-
gramme, INTERACT creates and strengthens a cycle 
of exchange – learning from each other and together 
to strengthen territorial cooperation.

In the new programming period 2007-2013, all Euro-
pean Territorial Cooperation programmes will have 
to face new challenges and adapt to the increased role 
of national legislation. Th  e programmes will also have 
to be more focused on the Lisbon and Gothenburg 
agendas. Some cooperation areas face the additional 
challenges of working with Candidate and potential 
Candidate Countries, as well as with new Member 
States.

INTERACT seminar in Budapest, Hungary.

Both new and experienced institutions will have 
to seek innovative ways to improve their perform-
ance and deliver programmes that better meet these 
new challenges. INTERACT will continue to oﬀ er 
products and services to assist the institutions and 

stakeholders involved in this process. Th  e three main 
objectives of INTERACT are:
•  to contribute to greater eﬃ  ciency of programme 

management;

•  to increase the eﬀ ectiveness of programme de-

livery;

•  to facilitate the transfer of know-how and the ex-
change of knowledge between programmes and 
strands.

In order to achieve this, INTERACT will have a new 
regionally focused approach, addressing programmes 
via the INTERACT Secretariat in Vienna, and four 
INTERACT Points located in Valencia (Spain), Viborg 
(Denmark), Vienna (Austria) and Turku (Finland), 
which will serve regional groups of cross-border and 
transnational programmes.

Th  e core themes addressed by INTERACT include: 
programme and ﬁ nancial management; project man-
agement and support; capitalisation of INTERREG; 
strategic programme planning; audit and control; 
monitoring and evaluation; communications; and 
external cooperation.

A wide range of products and services were devel-
oped under the ﬁ rst INTERACT programme and 
the new programme will also adapt these for the 
new programme period. Th  rough seminars, con-
ferences, advisory services, handbooks and online 
tools, INTERACT will work to ease and simplify 
the day-to-day management of European Territorial 
Cooperation programmes.

More information and upcoming events: 
www.interact-eu.net

INTERACT II
Main activity: Information on European 
Territorial Cooperation.
EU contribution (ERDF): € 34 033 512 

Countries concerned: 27 EU Member States, 
Norway, Switzerland and neighbouring countries

Managing Authority: Federal Chancellery of 
Austria 

Contact: 
interact@interact-eu.net (www.interact-eu.net)

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 17  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

“ESPON: understanding spatial development 
in Europe” 

Peter Mehlbye, Director of the ESPON coordination unit 

development of the European territory. Several socio-
economic, environmental and cultural themes will be 
analysed. Th  ese themes will be decided on by policy 
makers and comparable information, evidence, analyses 
and scenarios will become available during the next 
7 years, stimulating a more integrated analysis of the 
development of regions, cities and larger territories. 
Th  is will facilitate the mobilisation of territorial capital 
and under-used potentials, thereby contributing to 
improving  European  competitiveness,  European 
territorial cohesion and cooperation. 

Targeted analysis in partnership with 
regions and cities

One novelty of the ESPON 2013 Programme is the 
introduction  of  targeted  analyses  based  on  user 
demand. Th  is approach supports a more intensive 
use of existing results in partnership with diﬀ erent 
groups of stakeholders. Th  e aim is to enhance the 
understanding of the larger spatial context, make 
comparisons to other territories, regions and cities, 
and to create new development dynamics by adding 
a European dimension and understanding to the 
deliberations.

ESPON 2013 Programme
Main activity: European spatial planning observation 
EU contribution (ERDF): € 47 000 000

Countries concerned: 27 EU Member States, Iceland, 
Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland

Managing  Authority:  Luxembourg  Ministry  of  the 
Interior and Spatial Development

More information and upcoming events: 
www.http://www.espon.eu/

Launched 
in  2002, 
the  “European  Spatial 
Planning  Observation 
Network” (ESPON) is a 
programme  under  the 
Structural  Funds  with 
the  special  task  of  stu-
dying dynamics within 
the European territory. Th  e focus is on territorial 
structures,  trends,  perspectives  and  EU  policy 
impacts within the European Union. Comparable 
information about regions and cities of Europe is 
provided in order to support policy development, 
growth and job creation. 

In order to deliver evidence and knowledge about 
diversity within Europe, the ﬁ rst ESPON program-
me undertook a number of applied research projects 
and studies. It carried out 34 applied research pro-
jects by contracting transnational project groups. 
More than 130 diﬀ erent European institutions and 
600 researchers were involved, constituting a Euro-
pean scientiﬁ c community in the ﬁ eld of European 
spatial development. 

Within  a  short  period  of  time,  the  ESPON  pro-
gramme had produced substantial new knowledge 
on  spatial  development  trends,  the  impact  of  EU 
policies, as well as development opportunities and 
prospective  development  paths  within  the  Euro-
pean  territory.  ESPON  results  have  been  made 
available to policymakers, stakeholders and others 
with an interest in European spatial development. 
Data, indicators, and maps are also accessible via the 
ESPON website and in various ESPON publications. 

ESPON ﬁ ndings have been used in policy docu-
ments, particularly at the European level, and are 
increasingly being applied in national and regional 
development strategies. Th  ey have also proved use-
ful for transnational and cross-border cooperation 
activities. Increasingly, it is becoming recognised 
that development considerations for regions, cities 
and larger territories need to include a European 
perspective. 

Th  e new ESPON 2013 Programme 

Th  e ESPON 2013 Programme, due to start in January 
2008, will ensure continuity as well as new innovative 
approaches in consolidating a European observation 
network on spatial development and cohesion. 

Its  mission  is  to  support  policy  development 
related to territorial cohesion and a harmonious 

Substantial new knowledge on spatial 
development trends.

|  p. 18  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

INTERREG IVA EMS-DOLLART-REGION

INTERREG IIIA WALES/IRELAND

Y4I – Fostering young innovators

Celtic Enterprises: entrepreneurship 
in education

Total cost: € 679 490 
EU contribution: € 412 665

"Youth for Innovation (Y4I)” is a pilot project to train young 
people in all aspects of innovation. Th  e objectives are to 
increase the innovative capacity of the regions concerned, 
provide  SMEs  with  skilled  workers  and  increase  their 
awareness of research rules at the EU level. During the pilot 
phase (October 2005 – June 2007) Y41 was implemented by 
the region of Weser-Ems (D) in cooperation with Andalusia 
(E), Lubelskie (PL), North Karelia (FIN), the South Aegean 
Region (GR) and Upper Austria (A). Th  e project was funded 
under the INTERREG IIIC Operation “Change on Borders”. 
Project activities included the introduction of innovation 
curricula in 23 pilot schools and universities within the six 
regions. As a result, “young scientists” developed 52 mini 
research projects on practical issues common to cross-
border areas. Y4I will be continued as a cross-border project 
between the Netherlands and Germany and will be funded 
by Ems Dollart Region (INTERREG IVA)."

Daniel Kipp, Project Manager, Europe Direct 
Oldenburg c/o Dieter Meyer Consulting GmbH
kipp@eurooﬃ  ce.de 
www.y4i.net 

Total cost: € 1 305 549 
EU contribution: € 962 765 

"Celtic Enterprises promoted entrepreneurship in schools 
in West Wales and South East Ireland by providing ‘real 
business experiences’. Teams of up to 5 students participated 
in setting up and runing a ‘real business’ for up to 6 months, 
gaining experience of the skills required to run a company. 
Successful businesses competed in an annual joint Wales/
Ireland competition and also undertook business exchange 
visits. Students in all of the schools interacted with each other 
by various means, including video-conferencing. Teachers 
also gained skills in teaching entrepreneurship through a 
tailor-made development programme. Careers advisers have 
now integrated enterprise into their guidance programmes 
and the project has laid the foundation for a co-ordinated, all-
age enterprise education programme in schools and colleges. 
Th  e partners now plan to take this highly successful cross-
border project to other countries of the EU through Interreg 
IVA and Interreg IVC."

Philip Drakeford, Director of the Education Division, 
Careers Wales West
philipdrakeford@cwwest.co.uk 

INTERREG IIIA OBERHEIN-MITTE-SÜD

INTERREG IIIA LITHUANIA/POLAND

“Th  ree countries bridge” 
for pedestrians and cyclists 

VIDEOCOM: cross-border ﬁ lm school

Total cost: € 8 259 863 
ERDF contribution: € 1 680 000

"Th  e  construction  of  the  'Th  ree  Countries  Bridge'  has 
connected the communities of Weil am Rhein in Germany 
and Huningue in France, which lie on either side of the 
Rhine, not far from Basel in Switzerland, hence the name 
of the bridge. Spanning 248 m, it is the longest pedestrian 
and cyclist self-supporting bridge in the world. It oﬃ  cially 
opened on 30 March 2007. Local people from both sides of 
the Rhine celebrated the opening with a two-day across-
the-bridge party at the end of June. For these cross-border 
communities, the bridge has now become a symbol of Franco-
German friendship, a tourist attraction and, thanks to its 
shape, which resembles a rainbow, a symbol of peace.”

Wolfgang Dietz, Mayor of the City of Weil am Rhein.
Roland Igersheim, Chairman of the Communauté de 
Communes des Trois Frontières
stadt@weil-am-rhein.de 

Total cost: € 69 160  
EU contribution: € 51 870  

"Th  e  VIDEOCOM  project  provides  training  and  video 
equipment for students and employees at the Universities 
in Gdansk, Klaipeda and Olsztyn. In total, 36 participants 
will acquire the skills they need to make ﬁ lms. Th  ey will 
learn how to write a ﬁ lm script and how to shoot the ﬁ lm and 
edit the material. As a result of this training, they will have 
a better understanding of how ﬁ lms are made, which should 
encourage them to make use of this media in promoting 
their universities, cities and regions. Four ﬁ lms will be 
produced during the project: 'People of science'; 'Problems 
and development prospects of small businesses'; 'Ecological 
sources of energy'; and 'Agritourist farms'.”

Jerzy Olak, Project coordinator, University of Warmia 
and Mazury in Olsztyn 
jerzy.olak@uwm.edu.pl

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 19  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

French-Belgian territorial cooperation

Erasing the border

Hundreds of partnerships in health, culture, technology, the environment, citizenship and more. From 

PACTE to INTERREG IV, French-Belgian cross-border cooperation is doing very well indeed. 

Cultural tourism accessible to everybody is a priority for the «Network of Fortiﬁ ed Towns». 

"It sure was hard work!" exclaims Henri Lewalle, the 
man in charge of European aﬀ airs and cross-border 
cooperation at the Alliance nationale des Mutualités 
chrétiennes (National Alliance of Christian Mutual 
Societies) Belgium’s largest health insurance organisa-
tion. "Healthcare is a very complex and highly politi-
cised domain," he explains. "It’s also a very advanced 
sector, employing highly skilled people. Reaching a con-
sensus in this area can be an uphill struggle at times, 
but it’s worth the trouble." 

Henri Lewalle could talk forever about French-Belgian 
cross-border healthcare cooperation, a project he has 
coordinated for about 15 years. "I don’t want to boast, 
but we are among the most advanced in Europe. It all 
started in 1990 with the PACTE project between Hain-
aut, Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardie and the ﬁ rst stage 
of INTERREG. We and our French friends got together 
and asked ourselves and each other: ‘What could we do 
together?’ Initially, we didn’t think of healthcare as an 
eligible sector since it’s the responsibility of individual 
Member States. But then we looked at the issue from the 
perspective of a cross-border project and set ourselves 
the goal of ensuring that cross-border populations enjoy 
the same health beneﬁ ts as frontier workers."  

|  p. 20  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

Th  e «Mabiolac» project aims to produce new biodegradable 
materials from lactic acid.

Th  e French-Belgian Health Observatory

Th  e French-Belgian Health Observatory was the ﬁ rst 
cooperation project in the ﬁ eld of healthcare, and its 
initial remit was to conduct studies on healthcare 
provision in France and Belgium. However, in 1992, 
under the impetus of Professor Mouton, an interna-
tional specialist in infectious diseases such as AIDS and 

Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

SARS, a cooperation project was launched between Tourcoing 
and Mouscron hospitals; they  are only a few hundred metres 
apart but are ‘separated’ by the border. Th  e project involved 
allowing people living near the border to beneﬁ t from each 
establishment’s expertise in its particular specialist area: AIDS 
at Tourcoing and chronic renal failure at Mouscron. In 1992, 
the ﬁ rst INTERREG agreement was signed between the two 
establishments, and it is still running today: Mouscron provides 
haemodialysis for 300 Belgian and French patients a year, while 
Tourcoing treats 800 AIDS patients. Other agreements will 
deal with other pathologies in other parts of the cross-border 
region. "Any agreement we draw up means signiﬁ cant economies 
of scale thanks to the complementary nature of our work. At 
the same time, costly equipment remains proﬁ table and there 
is close cooperation between healthcare suppliers," points out 
Henri Lewalle. "We wanted to build on this partnership with 
INTERREG II. In 1999, we created the French-Belgian Health 
Observatory, which is a federation of all the regional stakehold-
ers in the sector (such as French health insurance funds, Belgian 
mutual societies and doctors’ associations) in the cross-border 
area – there are 55 member institutions in total." 

Th  e  Observatory  became  a  ‘European  Economic  Interest 
Grouping’ (EEIG) under INTERREG III in 2002. Th  is legal 
basis facilitated the conclusion of the French-Belgian Frame-
work Agreement on cross-border cooperation in healthcare, 
one of the ﬁ rst of its kind in Europe, on 30 September 2005. 
"It’s fantastic that an INTERREG project led to an agreement 
between states. What’s more, that was just the beginning…"

Th  e Observatory opened the door to other major coopera-
tion projects like TRANSCARDS, which enables the 50,000 
inhabitants of Th  iérache, a rural region straddling the French-
Belgian border, to receive treatment in seven French and Bel-
gian hospitals regardless of their nationality. Th  is project was 
the inspiration for implementing ‘organised access zones for 
cross-border healthcare’ (ZOASTs), which allow the population 
in border areas to receive outpatient and hospital care on either 
side of the border. Patients do not need prior medical authori-
sation to do this, and they can receive treatment by simply 
showing their health insurance card, as software guarantees 
the interoperability of SIS (Belgium) and Vitale (France) card 
readers. Th  ere are currently two ZOAST programmes in opera-
tion. Th  e ZOAST for the border region between Wallonia and 
the edge of the French Ardennes covers some enclaves where 
it is easier for residents to access foreign healthcare than their 
own country’s healthcare - for instance, patients in the French 
districts of Givet and Fumay can be treated in Dinant, Belgium, 
under the same conditions as in France. Some 180,000 people 
beneﬁ t from this scheme.  Another ZOAST covers the urban 
areas of Mouscron, Tourcoing, Roubaix and Wattrelos. Th  is 
involves four hospitals and some 300,000 people. 

"Over time and with the various stages of INTERREG, we have 
moved from making agreements on speciﬁ c pathologies (AIDS, 
renal failure, etc.) to developing a structure for access to or-
ganised healthcare (e.g. TRANSCARDS, ZOASTs, emergency 
health services). Our ambition now is to develop a full range of 
cross-border healthcare for everyone living in the region. Th  anks 
to INTERREG and European law, which does a lot to promote 
such agreements, this is a wholly realistic aim."  

«Mini-Usines», a crossborder training programme. 

Healing the wounds of history

Erasing the border also means focusing on the best legacy of 
what has often been a turbulent history, as the many remains 
of fortresses and other strongholds show. In this connection, 
the ‘Network of Fortiﬁ ed Towns’ – with considerable support 
from INTERREG – has transformed former conﬂ ict zones 
into meeting places. 

"Originally," says Solange Leclercq, coordinator for the Nord-
Pas-de-Calais coastline (France), "local stakeholders in Grave-
lines wanted to capitalise on a rich heritage of fortiﬁ cations by 
forging links with other fortiﬁ ed towns in neighbouring regions 
of Belgium and the United Kingdom, speciﬁ cally West Flanders 
and Kent." Th  is desire led to the creation of an INTERREG II 
project in 1996, which was extended between 2000 and 2006 
by INTERREG III and is managed by three partners: the Prov-
ince of West Flanders (project leader), the Syndicat mixte de la 
Côte d’Opale in France and Kent County Council. Th  ere were 
17 member sites to begin with. By 2007, there were 25. Activi-
ties carried out under this project combine joint cross-border 
ventures and speciﬁ c initiatives by member sites, all of which 
aim to meet the scheme’s objectives. "INTERREG loans and 
the people involved were both decisive factors in this project: 
without the loans, the project could still have existed, but it 
couldn’t have done as much." Cooperation between countries 
was not the only challenge: "One beneﬁ t of INTERREG for us 
here in France is that it has helped towns and even diﬀ erent 
departments within the same government organisation to 
work better together." 

One  main  aim  of  the  INTERREG  III  project  (approx. 
€11,218,000, of which €3,404,000 came from the ERDF) was 
to promote the use of new technologies. Various systems of 
audio guides were tested in pilot towns across the three re-
gions, and ﬁ nally a system operating based on mobile phones 
- ﬁ rst piloted in Menen, Flanders - was chosen.  Audio-guided 
visits and a website (www.fortiﬁ cations.org) were also set up 
to support the guidebooks for each language, the trilingual 
leaﬂ et and the range of printed material. Another priority 
is to provide access to as broad a range of people as possible, 
notably disabled people: "Th  at was the hidden part of the ice-
berg, an immense task with barely any visible results. Th  ere 
were no European standards in this area and we needed to 
establish joint criteria. To do this, we audited each member 

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 21  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

3 questions 
for Jean-Pierre Robbeets 

Inspector-General, 
International Relations Department 
of the Walloon Region

• 

  How would you rate almost two decades of cross-
border cooperation between Belgium and France? 
I’m very pleased with it because it has been very exci-
ting and the diﬀ erent stages of INTERREG in which 
we’ve taken part since 1990 have always worked very 
well. From an administrative point of view, we have 
never had to apply the automatic decommitment rule(1), 
for instance. Most importantly, a huge number of pro-
jects have been implemented in all areas. Many of these 
emerged from sustainable activities and partnerships. 
Of course, within the cross-border region, some areas 
are more open to cooperation than others. 

• 

  Is cooperation a source of innovation?
Innovation is essential for progress: bringing down 
borders is an innovation in itself! Cross-border ini-
tiatives such as technology exchanges, joint tourist 
oﬃ  ces, access to healthcare and cross-border public 
transport are also innovative ideas. 

• 

   What do you think is the recipe for successful 
cooperation? 
First of all, you need a certain state of mind: you must 
want to succeed together. Politicians have to be com-
mitted to the project. You must also be very familiar 
with your partners’ administrative setup. Finally, you 
must be transparent and involve the citizens. Not be-
cause it’s a nice gesture, but to ensure that they take 
ownership of the projects while showing them that 
Europe is also active at local level. 

(1) Obligation to return to the Commission any loan money that has not 
been used two years after being granted.  

town from an accessibility point of view, forged links between 
diﬀ erent departments and cooperated with organisations that 
deal speciﬁ cally with disabilities."

In the ﬁ nal stage, the focus was on developing educational 
initiatives – the Flemish association ‘Horizon Educatief’ was 
the driving force in this area. Th  is stage was not without its 
challenges, which mainly arose from the highly centralised 
nature of education in France and the fact that it is not the 
Province but the Region that is responsible for education in 
Flanders. Neither was it without great successes, such as the 
Young People’s European Heritage Day in France, which was 
linked into the European Heritage Days programme. Th  e ﬁ fth 
Young People’s European Heritage Day took place in 2007, and 
32,550 children have beneﬁ ted from the programme in the 5 
years since its inception. Th  is initiative also exists in Ostend, 
Flanders, where it actually predates the network.

From an employment perspective, the role of ‘integration 
workshops’ in France is worthy of mention. Th  is scheme means 

|  p. 22  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

young people will be employed and awarded certiﬁ cates in 
restoring the fortiﬁ cations, an area in which staﬀ  costs are 
normally very high. Th  e high level of scientiﬁ c cooperation 
between the three regions should also be discussed – it has 
applications in restoration work as well as in popularisation. 
However, Solange Leclercq insists that the most important 
factor to consider is "the sheer amount of time and resources 
required for coordination." Th  is is conﬁ rmed by her Flemish 
counterpart, Sophie Muyllaert, who emphasises the quality 
of this partnership: "We had an eﬃ  cient team at cross-border 
level. We met every two months and had no real language 
problems or issues with how to divide up funds. We’ve always 
got on very well in that respect."  

Everything is changing for 2007-2013: the long-standing Forti-
ﬁ ed Towns Network project has borne fruit and the partners 
involved do not intend to renew it formally. Rather, they are 
planning to move away from fortiﬁ cations and expand into 
diﬀ erent areas. Th  e member towns may be interested in how 
other projects have developed, whether they are linked to 
transnational cooperation (INTERREG III B) like ‘Septentrion: 
from fortiﬁ ed town to sustainable town’ and ‘Crossing the 
Lines’ or to interregional cooperation (INTERREG III C).

Th  e MAC’s and the MAM

Hornu, in the Belgian province of Hainaut, is not a fortiﬁ ed 
town, but it is home to an extremely important structure built 
between 1810 and 1830: Grand-Hornu, a unique example of 
functional urbanism from the beginning of the industrial 
age. Th  e site, built in neoclassical style, comprises workshops, 
oﬃ  ces and residences for both workers and directors. With 
their many arches, pediments and half-moon windows, the 
old colliery buildings are a magniﬁ cent setting for the MAC’s, 
the Museum of Contemporary Art of the French Community 
of Belgium, which has been there since 2002. Th  e MAC’s, 
which aims to contribute to bringing a devastated sub-region 
up to speed culturally and economically, has a staﬀ  of 50 and 
is visited by 75,000 people each year. 

Ever since it was founded, the museum has focused on coopera-
tion. "INTERREG, which was launched at the same time as the 
museum opened, has been a boon for us," says Julien Foucart, 
who works on the INTERREG project at MAC’s. "INTERREG 
gave us the chance to conclude a formal partnership agreement 
with the MAM, the Greater Lille Museum of Modern Art, which 
was founded in 1983. We have a lot of things in common: the 
same regional culture, the same operational structure and the 
same type of location - we are located on remarkable sites that 
are relatively close to one another. Th  anks to INTERREG, we 
immediately beneﬁ ted from an inﬂ ux of French visitors and, 
most importantly, the MAM’s valuable experience."  

Th  e ‘Borderline’ project linking the two museums has two 
main aims: raising disadvantaged young people’s awareness 
of modern and contemporary art and increasing the mobility 
of museum-goers between the two regions. Th  eir cooperation 
project has included joint promotional campaigns and around 
twenty educational projects. Th  ey have also exchanged col-
lections and set up a network ("REZI") of the main cultural 
stakeholders in the INTERREG area. However, the high point 
of this partnership came in 2005 when the MAM, which had 
to close until 2009 for extension work, sent its collections and 

 
Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

some of its reserve collection to the MAC’s. "In just a few years, 
we have made quite a bit of progress together," says Dominique 
Cominotto, deputy manager of the MAC’s. "Now, we have much 
more than just a partnership, we have real integration between 
our teams. We’ve really matured." 

Th  ere is no shortage of projects with INTERREG IV - the two 
museums are ready to work with new partners, and pretty 
major ones at that: they are forming links with the Louvre, 
which will have a branch in Lens starting in 2008, and the 
Dr Guislain Museum in Ghent, which specialises in art brut. 
Ideas in the pipeline include the Navettes de l’Art project 
(transport by coach between Ghent, Lille, Hornu, Lens, etc), 
the Musées jardins project (summer activities geared towards 
families), pooling documents held by the four museums and 
even an exhibition - in a former customs house.  

«GoGIS» project: generating a cross-border Geographic 
Information System.

Neighbours 

"INTERREG cooperation between France and Belgium works 
just as well as tobacco smuggling did in the old days," jokes 
Didier Tellier, Head of Information at the Directorate-General 
for External Relations of the Walloon Region, the managing 
authority of the INTERREG III A France-Wallonia-Flanders 
programme (see text in box). "Of course, all this is made easier 
by our culture and geographical proximity. But there is an-
other factor that is especially important: the involvement of 
the people impacted by the project. In this respect, we should 
probably improve our communication. With INTERREG IV, we 
aim to build on the strategies from previous stages – Lisbon, 
Gothenburg, research, sustainable development, culture, and 
so on – and to ensure that we communicate more consistently 
with the citizens and the project promoters." 

Th  e last word quite rightly goes to one of these project pro-
moters - Jean-Marc Popot, the director of the Regional Centre 
of Innovation and Technology Transfer (CRITT) at Char-
leville-Mézières, which specialises in surface treatment and 
is involved in two INTERREG projects: "Th  e added value of 
INTERREG is, quite simply, that it allows us to work with our 
neighbours. Before INTERREG, we didn’t have a cross-border 
mentality. We would go and look for talent in France, 800 km 
from Charleville, when we could have found it in Belgium, right 
on our doorstep."

INTERREG IV France-Wallonia-Flanders 
(2007-2013)

With a total budget of around €248.5 million, of which 
just over €138 million comes from the European Regional 
Development Fund (ERDF), the INTERREG IV “France-
Wallonie-Vlaanderen” programme has four priorities:

1)  boosting economic development in the area through a 

coherent and integrated cross-border approach; 

2)  developing and promoting the cross-border region’s iden-

tity through cultural activities and tourism; 

3)  increasing the feeling of belonging to a common area by 
improving the range of cross-border services and people’s 
access to them; 

4)  making joint management of the area more dynamic with 
development that is sustainable, coordinated and in step 
with living conditions. 

Technical support for purposes of instruction and project 
implementation is also provided.

With 10.5 million people living across an area covering 
61,604 km², the region covered by the cooperation project 
represents 1.84% and 2.6% of the European Union’s surface 
area and population respectively.  

Th  e INTERREG IV France-Wallonia-Flanders programme 
was approved on 15 November 2007 and is managed by the 
Walloon Region (Belgium).

Contact: http://www.interreg-fwvl.org/

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 23  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

INTERREG IIIB CADSES

INTERREG IIIC EAST

CORELOG - COordinated REgional 
LOGistics

RegEnergy: meeting the rising demand 
for energy

Total cost: € 1 486 600 
EU contribution: € 957 450 

Total cost: € 1 466 234 
EU contribution: € 989 443

"Th  e CORELOG project, which involves six Member States, 
focuses on the development of public policies in the areas of 
logistics and freight transport. Th  e aim of the project is to 
boost the competitiveness of manufacturing companies and 
logistics and transport operators. CORELOG has developed 
8  laboratories  to  study  and  test  logistics  management 
cooperation schemes among companies and between public 
and private stakeholders. Th  ese laboratories demonstrate 
the savings which can be achieved by both the companies 
and the regional public authorities through the promotion 
and adoption of new logistics solutions. Th  ey target both the 
demand and supply of transport and logistics services with 
the direct involvement of manufacturing companies and 
logistics operators, as a basis for future policy making."

"RegEnergy created a Europe-wide network of 18 partners 
from ten EU countries and Russia. Th  ese partners have joined 
their eﬀ orts in order to share knowledge and information 
about the reform and management of the energy sector. Th  e 
members of the network include national, regional and local 
stakeholders. Th  e project aims to promote environmentally 
friendly  and  aﬀ ordable  energy  provision  in  Europe,  to 
improve and restructure the energy sector, and to promote 
energy eﬃ  ciency. It provides information about the ﬁ nancial 
instruments and local policies to support the rational use 
of energy and assists European regions and communities 
to meet the challenges of the rising demand for energy by 
sharing knowledge about innovative good-practice examples 
in renewable energy."

Paolo Ferrecchi, Lead Partner, 
Regione Emilia-Romagna
cosmo@regione.emilia-romagna.it
www.corelog.eu

INTERREG IIIB NORTH WEST EUROPE 

REVIT: fostering brownﬁ eld 
redevelopment

Julia Jesson, project coordinator
julia.jesson@gtz.de
www.reg-energy.de

INTERREG IIIC SOUTH & WEST

CoPraNet: integrated coastal zone 
management

Total cost: € 11 005 616  
EU contribution: € 22 597 609  

"In  almost  every  city  of  North-West  Europe  there  are 
brownﬁ eld  areas  which  could  be  redeveloped  in  order 
to  improve  the  quality  of  the  urban  environment.  Th  e 
redevelopment of brownﬁ eld sites can also contribute to 
the creation of new employment opportunities and stimulate 
the local economy, as well as preserving greenﬁ eld sites and 
preventing the consumption of virgin land. Six partners from 
four diﬀ erent countries were involved in the REVIT project. 
Th  ey examined common problems with the development of 
brownﬁ eld sites that needed to be tackled more eﬀ ectively. 
Th  e teams looked at the following aspects in particular: 
brownﬁ eld regeneration instruments and methods that 
stimulate community involvement; new ﬁ nancing options; 
public private partnership models and marketing concepts in 
the context of brownﬁ eld redevelopment; multi-functional 
development, preservation and intelligent re-use of industrial 
heritage; and putting an end to environmental damages and 
protection of natural assets."

Th  omas Zügel, Lead Partner, Stadt Stuttgart, Amt für 
Stadtplanung und Stadterneuerung  
thomas.zuegel@stuttgart.de

Total cost: € 1 855 740
ERDF contribution: € 1 151 205

"The  objectives  of  'CoPraNet'  were  to  help  establish 
a  coastal  practitioners’  network  and  bridge  the  gap 
between planners, managers and the research community 
throughout Europe. Th  is was to be achieved by supporting 
the interregional exchange of best practice information on 
coastal management issues and improving implementation 
of integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) in Europe. 
Th  e 21 European partners in the project produced an easily 
accessible and multi lingual beach management guide and 
a web-based ICZM database consisting of more than 158 
study cases and 167 projects throughout Europe was built. 
A considerable number of information products, in several 
languages, were also produced and disseminated. Another 
important deliverable of the project was 'QualityCoast', a 
programme for coastal tourism destinations which aims to 
inform tourists and visitors and to involve local authorities 
in the development of sustainable tourism in their areas. 
'QualityCoast' was tested in Portugal in cooperation with 
local authorities."  

Margarida Nunes, Regional Commission of the 
Ministry of Environment, Spatial Planning and Regional 
Development of Portugal (CCDRC/MAOTDR)
margarida.nunes@ccdrc.pt

|  p. 24  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

Regions as partners      The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

“Telling the Story” conference explores 
innovative ways to communicate on cohesion 
policy 

On the 26 and 27 November 2007, more than 450 people from all over Europe came together in Brussels 

for a conference entitled, "Telling the story: Communicating Cohesion Policy together". 

Th  e participants primarily included those re-
sponsible for information and publicity about the 
Structural Funds at regional or national level, and 
this was the ﬁ rst oﬃ  cial meeting of the INFORM 
co-ordinating group of oﬃ  cials, which is called 
for in the new regulations. Th  e event, opened by 
Commissioners Danuta Hübner (Regional Policy), 
Vladimir Špidla (Employment and Social Aﬀ airs) 
and Dirk Ahner (Director-General for Regional 
Policy), was organised by the Directorate-Gen-
eral for Regional Policy, in cooperation with the 
Directorate-General  for  Employment,  Social 
Aﬀ airs and Equal Opportunities as well as the 
Directorate-General for Communication. 

Th  e objective of the conference was to take stock 
of the implementation of the new information and 
communication requirements for the programming 
period 2007-2013. In particular it focused on the ex-
change of experiences and best practice on practical 
issues, such as the preparation of communication 
plans, the design of user-friendly websites, better 
cooperation with the media and the Commission’s 
representations in the Member States, and - last 
but not least – how to measure the success of these 
activities (see also Panorama Magazine No. 21 of 
December 2006).

Visible beneﬁ t

Commissioner Hübner opened the conference by 
saying: “Th  is conference marks the starting point 
of a new era in communicating together the good 
story Cohesion Policy can tell. Th  ere are thou-
sands of engaging stories to tell about the practical 
impact of Cohesion Policy all over the regions of 
Europe. Involving people at local level increases 
ownership of the policy by generating debate and 
providing a channel for their concerns. Cohesion 
Policy is the most visible beneﬁ t of EU membership 
in many regions, and oﬀ ers tailor-made opportuni-
ties for better communication on Europe.”

Commissioner Špidla added: “Th  e funds help people 
to cope with the changes we see and the challenges we 
face. Investing in people’s future has a real impact on 
their daily lives. Th  e funds represent not only good 
economic policy but also the social face of Europe.”

Th  e plenary session was followed by six thematic 
workshops. Th  e ﬁ rst workshop was devoted to the 
organisation of communication activities, which be-
gins with the preparation of a communication plan. 
Ondrej Stefek from the Czech Republic explained 
how the authorities there were creating a commu-
nication plan based on the evaluation results. Judit 

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 25  | 

Regions as partners     The European Territorial Cooperation Objective 

Szucs from the National Development Agency in Hungary 
spoke about their communication strategy for the next seven 
years. Vasilije Kujacic from DIACT in France presented the 
renewed and strengthened French approach to communica-
tion on Cohesion Policy. 

Several experts advised on how to help beneﬁ ciaries with 
their communication activities. An interesting idea came 
from Richard Holmes, from the Government Oﬃ  ce for York-
shire and the Humber in the UK, who spoke about media 
training courses for voluntary and community sector beneﬁ -
ciaries, which have proved to be low-cost but high-impact.

Informing the public about the outcomes of Cohesion Policy 
is also crucial. Speakers from Estonia, Andalusia, Poland and 
France explained what actions they were undertaking in this 
regard, which often involve the use of short and humorous 
video clips. 

Networking

A key objective of the conference was to promote network-
ing among the participants. Th  is was encouraged at several 
points during the programme, at a number of purpose-built 
networking corners – a new feature, organised for the ﬁ rst 
time by DG REGIO. Participants had the opportunity to 
informally meet experts and their counterparts from other 
countries around a number of speciﬁ c topics.

In the afternoon session, special attention was given to the 
issue of transparency. In response to growing public demand 
for increased transparency in the use of EU Funds, there is 
now a regulatory requirement that a complete list of ben-
eﬁ ciaries must be published by the Member States. Th  is is 
considered to be one of the most important information 
and publicity tasks in the new period. During one of the 
workshops several excellent examples were presented and 
explained. Latvia has been publishing all project beneﬁ ciar-
ies since 2004, in while some regions in Sweden there are 
internet-based applications which give access to project and 
beneﬁ ciaries’ data. For INTERREG programmes involving 
cross-border communication, transparency and full access 
to information have been a feature since the previous pro-
gramming period.  

Another workshop looked at diﬀ erent ways of telling a sto-
ry to make it interesting for the diﬀ erent media. A third 
workshop looked at the lessons that can be learned from 
web-based communication, which is becoming an increas-
ingly important communication tool in the Cohesion Policy 
ﬁ eld. 

Networking continued more informally during a conference 
reception, organised in “Les Salons de l’Atalaide” - a beauti-
ful “maison de maitre” dating back to 1888. Claus Sørensen, 
Director-General for Communication, welcomed everybody 
and shared his view on the work in the communication ﬁ eld.  

Tuesday’s workshops were devoted to the issue of networking 
at various levels. Th  is included the regional level, presented 
by Anna Maria Linsalata from Emilia-Romagna in Italy, 
the national level, where James Ritchie spoke about his ex-
perience of networking on the ESF in the UK, and also the 

|  p. 26  |  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |

From left to right:  Vladimír Špidla, Commissioner for 
Employment, Social Aﬀ airs and Equal Opportunities, 
Danuta Hübner, Commissioner for Regional Policy, and 
Dirk Ahner, Director-General, DG Regional Policy.

Community level. Sonja Seiser from Burgenland in Austria 
presented her experience of networking within the informal 
Structural Funds Information Team, which resulted for her, 
among other experiences, in transferring an idea for a game 
for children from Andalusia to the Burgenland region. 

Other workshops stressed the role the Commission Repre-
sentations can play in information activities about Cohesion 
Policy, particularly in linking knowledge about regional 
media with the communication plans and the work of of-
ﬁ cials of the managing authorities. Europe Direct points 
can also play a major role in informing the public about 
Cohesion Policy, which was explained by Niels Christian 
Andersen from Bornholm in Denmark, Barbara Kerner from 
Baranya County/Pecs in Hungary and Claire Sarda Verges 
from Languedoc Roussillon in France. 

Commissioner Hübner closed the conference by saying that 
the global outcome of operational programmes must also be 
communicated. “At all the stages it is essential to stress the 
role of the European Union in the process – in the development 
of ideas, and in the funding.” She also assured participants 
that she, together with her colleagues in the Regional Policy 
Directorate, were available to support the communication 
oﬃ  cials in their eﬀ orts. 

All speeches and presentations can be downloaded from 
the website below. Th  e proceedings of the conference will 
be published early in 2008. 

Conference website:  
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/country/commu/
conferences/november07/index_en.cfm

 
REGIO & networks

European Commission priorities for 2008
Th  e European Commission recently adopted its work programme for 2008. Over the next 
year, the Commission will maintain its focus on delivering results within the overall strategic 
objectives set out at the start of its mandate: prosperity; solidarity; security and freedom, and 
a stronger Europe in the world. Within this, speciﬁ c priorities for 2008 include: growth and 
jobs, a sustainable Europe, an integrated approach to immigration, putting the citizen ﬁ rst, and 
Europe as a world partner. 
http://ec.europa.eu/atwork/programmes/index_en.htm

Looking back to OPEN DAYS 2007 
Th  e ﬁ nal evaluation report of the OPEN DAYS 2007 was published in November. It sum-
marises the results of ﬁ ve online surveys completed by participants, event partners, speakers/
chairpersons, journalists and local event organisers. A total of 1 161 questionnaires were 
assessed, representing 19.4% of the total number of participants. Th  e four most signiﬁ cant 
ﬁ ndings were: (1) the quality of the event varied between “excellent” and “good” for 90.3% of 
the participants, 97.5% of speakers/chairs, 98% of journalists and 100% of the local organisers; 
(2) 92% (participants) and 95% (speakers/chairs) said that they would return in 2008; (3) the 
most frequent recommendation was to organise “fewer but more targeted seminars”; (4) as 
regards themes for 2008, the ones which were mentioned most often by both partners and 
speakers were: R+D/innovation; cooperation; sustainable development/climate change; new 
provisions of the treaty/territorial cohesion. Th  e next OPEN DAYS will take place between 
6 and 9 October 2008. 
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/conferences/od2007/index.cfm

2006 Annual Reports for Regional Policy 
The  European  Commission  recently  published  three  annual  reports  for  2006,  re-
spectively  on  the  Structural  Funds,  the  Cohesion  Fund  and  the  pre-accession  in-
strument  ISPA.  The  reports  review  budgetary  implementation,  the  way  in  which 
programmes  were  carried  out  and  the  major  projects  adopted  during  the  year. 
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/docoﬃ  c/oﬃ  cial/repor_en.htm#coh

European initiative for micro-credit
In November 2007, the European Commission adopted a Communication with a view to 
encouraging the use of micro-credit in Europe. Th  is method of ﬁ nancing is intended for 
small enterprises, the unemployed and those who generally do not have access to bank 
loans. Micro-credit could facilitate such target groups in creating their own businesses 
and working independently. It could also mean that an extra investment of EUR 6.1 billion 
in Europe. Th  e Commission proposes creating a European service to support the develop-
ment of institutions for micro-ﬁ nancing.
http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/07/1713&format=HTML&ag
ed=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

REGIO agenda
Event 
 Dates 

25-26 February 2008 

Regions for Economic Change conference  
"Regions learning from one another"  
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/cooperation/
interregional/ecochange/index_en.cfm 

11-14 March 2008  

EASY-ECO Vienna Conference 2008  
"Governance by Evaluation: Institutional 
Capacities and Learning for Sustainable Development" 
http://www.easy-eco.eu

6 - 9 October 2008 

OPEN DAYS 2008 - European Week of Regions and Cities 
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/conferences/od2007/
index.cfm

Place

Brussels (B)

Vienna (A) 

Brussels (B)

Latest 
publications

Growing regions, Growing Europe

http://ec.europa.eu/
regional_policy/sources/
docoﬃ  c/oﬃ  cial/reports/
cohesion4/index_en.htm
Fourth Report on 
Economic and Social 
Cohesion
Available in 22 languages

Regions for economic change – 
strengthening competitiveness through 
innovative products and technologies 
and prosperous communities

http://ec.europa.eu/
regional_policy/
cooperation/interregional/
ecochange/documents_
en.cfm?nmenu=2
Available in 19 languages

Regions for 
economic change

EN

Fostering competitiveness 
through innovative technologies, 
products and healthy communities

March 2007

Regions for economic change – 
innovating through European 
Regional Policy

Regions for 
economic change

EN

Innovating through 
EU regional Policy

2006

Th  e challenge of research 
and innovation for 
2007-2013, illustrated 
through 15 ongoing 
projects. 
http://ec.europa.eu/
regional_policy/
cooperation/interregional/
ecochange/documents_
en.cfm?nmenu=2
Available in 19 languages 

Th  e urban dimension in Community 
policies

European Commission

EN

The Urban Dimension 
in Community Policies

2007-2013

Guide published by the Interservice Group on Urban Development  

May 2007 

Community policies for 
cities in the 2007-2013 
programming.
http://ec.europa.eu/
regional_policy/sources/
docgener/guides/urban/
pdf/urbanguide1_en.pdf
Available in DE, EN 
and FR 

Cohesion policy 2007–13 
Commentaries and oﬃ  cial texts

http://ec.europa.eu/
regional_policy/sources/
docoﬃ  c/oﬃ  cial/
regulation/pdf/2007/
publications/guide2007_
en.pdf
Available in 21 languages

EN

Cohesion Policy  
2007-2013

Commentaries and Official Texts

• European Regional Development Fund
• European Social Fund
• Cohesion Fund
• European Grouping of Territorial Co-operation
• Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance

Guide  

January 2007

|  inforegio  |  panorama  |  No 24  |  p. 27  | 

   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
 
K
N

-
L
R
-
0
7
-
0
2
4
-
E
N

-
C

http://talesfromtheborderlands.blogspot.com/

Th  e "Tales from the Borderlands" blog is dedicated to cross-border 
cooperation programmes. It is a virtual platform to exchange infor-
mation, ideas, experiences and documents on border regions and co-
operation programmes. Such programmes include those implemented 
in the framework of INTERREG and the new European Territorial 
Cooperation Objective which is funded by the Structural Funds. 

http://www.aebr.net/

Th  e Association of European Border Regions (AEBR) is the only Eu-
ropean regional organisation that speciﬁ cally deals with cross-border 
issues. AEBR association represents the interests of 90 border and 
cross-border regions at European and national levels. Its activities 
include submitting proposals, networking with the European in-
stitutions, organisations and networks, and cooperating with other 
European regional associations. A trilingual website (in English, 
French and German) provides an overview of AEBR’s activities and 
information about events of interest for cross-border cooperation 
and regional development.

http://errin.eu/en/

Th  e European Regions Research and Innovation Network (ERRIN) 
was established to help regional actors to participate fully and eﬀ ec-
tively in the European Research Area. From April 2004 to March 2006, 
ERRIN was supported by the European Commission’s Directorate-
General for Research in the framework of the Regions of Knowledge 
Pilot Action Programme. ERRIN became a self-supported network 
as of January 2007. Th  e network is constantly growing and currently 
has 53 members, which are all regional actors. Its website is designed 
to advance ERRIN’s ﬁ ve principal goals: knowledge sharing at the EU 
level; inter-regional exchanges; practitioner development; policy; and 
thematic developments.

http://www.eucc.net

"EUCC - Th  e Coastal Union" association has a membership of about 
2 700 organisations in 40 countries. Founded in 1989 with the aim of 
promoting coastal conservation by bridging the gap between scien-
tists, environmentalists, site managers, planners and policy makers, 
it has grown into the largest network of coastal practitioners and 
experts in Europe. EUCC’s mission is to promote coastal and marine 
management that takes account of biodiversity conservation. It calls 
for sustainable development that maintains the integrity of lands-
capes, cultural heritage and the social fabric of coastal areas, while 
also taking into account the eﬀ ects of climate change.

Inforegio website: the key pages available in 22 languages
“Th  e Policy” and “Th  e Means” are the ﬁ rst two sections of our new website (with their respective sub-sections) 
to be made available in 22 languages. Visitors can read in the languages of 27 Member States detailed 
information on the history, main aims and key elements of regional policy for 2007-2013. 
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm

European Commission, Directorate-General for Regional Policy
Unit 01 — Information and Communication
Ana-Paula Laissy
Avenue de Tervuren 41, B-1040 Brussels
Fax (32-2) 29-66003
E-mail: regio-info@ec.europa.eu 
Internet: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm

ISSN 1608-389X

© European Communities, 2007
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

Printed in Belgium

OFFICE OF THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS
OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
L-2985 Luxembourg