EU funds to strengthen cooperation in the Mediterranean
The Mediterranean basin is the meeting point of three continents: Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the East.
However, the many countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea face many common challenges, the solutions for which are best tackled through cooperation and joint initiatives. Such cooperation has been a priority for the European Union particularly following the accession of countries such as Greece, Spain, Cyprus and Malta which strengthened the Meditarranean dimension of the EU.
In 2004, the EU launched its European Neighbourhood Policy. The Policy was set as a framework to govern the Union‘s relations with 16 of its Eastern and Southern Neighbours in order to achieve the closest possible political association and the greatest possible degree of economic integration.
Reviewed in 2011 and, subsequently in 2015, the ENP aims to develop a special relationship between the EU and each of its partner countries, contributing to the development of an area of shared security, prosperity and good neighbourliness. The EU has been working hand in hand with its Mediterranean partners to design cooperation programmes that take into account each country’s specific needs and features.
The EU’s overarching objective has always been to promote stability and prosperity within and beyond the borders of the Union. The ENP outlines the EU’s commitment to build on common interests with partner countries of the Eastern and Southern Mediterranean. The policy aims to reduce poverty and create an area of shared prosperity and values, thereby contributing towards a more stable Mediterranean neigh- bourhood politically, socially, economically as well as in terms of security. The EU provides support to partners in the Neighbourhood region mainly through the European Neighbourhood Instrument, with a budget of over €5 billion being allocated for the2014-2020 programming period.
An example of the EU’s efforts in this regard is the ENI CBC Med Programme which undertakes a strategy designed to respond to the region’s needs that can be best addressed through cross-border partnerships. The programme focuses on the following four thematic objectives: Business and SME development; Education, research, technological development and innovation; Social inclusion and the fight against poverty; and Environmental protection, climate change adaption and mitigation.
In particular, prospective projects are expected to develop solutions on 11 specific priorities, identified within the four thematic objectives. Given the similar challenges faced by many individuals and organisations around the Mediterranean basin, these solutions are expected to be transferable so that they can be replicated throughout several regions. Potential beneficiaries are being encouraged to design and implement projects through cross-border partnerships.
The programme serves 13 participating countries from around the Mediterranean region, representing 98 territories and around 19 million persons. There are currently five Mediterranean partner countries involved in this programme, namely Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Palestine and Tunisia. Other countries covered by the ENP may join the programme at a later stage.
During the previous programming period (2007-2013), the ENPI CBC Med Programme funded a total of 95 projects, involving over 730 organisations from EU Member States and partner countries. One such project, titled ’ArcheoMed’, sought to promote socio-economic development and the enhancement of territories through the support of innovation and research in the process of local development of the Mediterranean countries.
An Italian beneficiary, in cooper- ation with organisations from four other EU Member States and three partner countries, targeted universities and research institutes working in the field of cultural heritage preservation and management, as well as economic operators of the cultural and tourism sectors, in order to ensure the valorisation of cultural resources of Mediterranean heritage. The project created an interactive network for the management of underrated archaeological and artistic sites, ultimately aimed at revitalising the artistic and cultural heritage, as well as the economic-related activities of the territories. The project was completed within 24 months with a total budget of €1,350,072.
ENI CBC Med Programme – First call for standard projects
In the framework of the initiatives and policies mentioned above, the ENI CBC Med Programme has launched its first call for project proposals for Standard Cooperation Projects. Projects of between €1 and €3 million may be awarded, with co-financing rate of up to 90%. A project is to involve a minimum of three partners, of which at least one is an EU Member State and one is a partner country participating in this programme. In a bid to encourage coownership of the project, at least 50% of the project budget must be dedicated to activities implemented in participating partner countries. Such projects may last a maximum of 36 months and are open to all legal entities, be it public, private and non-governmental, established in an eligible region of the 13 participating countries. Standard projects are to address one of the 11 priorities which fall under the four thematic objectives outlined above. The deadline for this call is November 9, 2017. For more information on this call as well as on the other various EU funding programmes or assistance, you are invited to contact MEUSAC on funding.meusac@gov.mt or by calling 2200 3300.