Bridging the divide
The SEUPB assesses the progress of EU funding under PEACE lll and INTERREG IVA.
The European Union’s PEACE III and INTERREG IVA programmes (2007-2013) have provided support to hundreds of worthwhile projects across Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland. Managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), both programmes have made a significant contribution towards reinforcing peace and stability as well as enhancing cross-border co-operation across the region.
To date the PEACE III Programme (which has a value of €333 million) is fully subscribed and has allocated assistance to over 190 projects and initiatives that are promoting greater levels of social cohesion and reconciliation. These include major capital build projects like the Peace Bridge in Derry-Londonderry and a newly created cross-community urban village, called the Skainos project, in East Belfast.
Under the programme, approximately €100 million is also being allocated to hundreds of locally focused initiatives designed to build positive relations at a local level. These are managed by 14 ‘peace partnerships’ made up of local authorities across Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland.
The SEUPB is planning a major conference to highlight the work of the ‘peace partnerships’ in November. The event will allow the partnerships to showcase their collective experiences of peace building. It will also help increase awareness of the participative ‘bottom-up’ approach, which is an integral part of the PEACE III Programme.
Running in parallel to PEACE III, the INTERREG IVA Programme has made a real contribution to creating a more prosperous cross-border region. Over 70 different projects with a combined value of over €214 million have been offered assistance to date. This includes approximately £24 million for a series of cross-border healthcare initiatives delivered by CAWT. Other successful INTERREG IVA projects include business support programme Tradelinks II and tourism initiatives such as Sail West/Malin Waters and Gobbins and Sliab Liag; as well as several environmentally focused initiatives.
In order to expedite the processing of applications to the programme, the SEUPB launched a new two-stage funding call at the start of the year. This approach generated a large number of applications. Thirteen of these, requesting over €57 million of support, are now being assessed under stage II of the call. Only €30 million remains available under the programme so each application is involved in a highly competitive assessment process, which will be completed by the end of the year.
To highlight the excellent work that has been accomplished under the INTERREG IVA programme, the SEUPB will be hosting a major conference on 21 September to coincide with European Territorial Co-operation Day. The event will be organised in partnership with the Southern and Eastern Regional Assembly as well as the BMW Regional Assembly in Ireland. It will showcase the work that has been achieved to date under the programme and highlight other potential funding opportunities available.
Later this year, the SEUPB will also be carrying out a detailed and comprehensive consultation exercise for the new programming period (2014-2020). This information will be used to help shape the size and scope of any potential new funding under the European Regional Development Fund for this period. To maximise participation in this exercise, it will be co-ordinating a number of consultation workshops across the region and will publish all relevant consultation documents on its website.
For more information on the SEUPB’s consultation exercise or upcoming conferences, please visit www.seupb.eu
