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Transnational answers to regional
problems? Opportunities of INTERREG III B
IIIC (for Objective-1-regions)
Karl Schmude, Department for Spatial
Planning Ministry for Labour, Building and
Regional Development Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
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Table of Contents
II Project types
I Demand vs. supply
IV Conclusion
III Key concepts
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Introduction EU objectives
Areas in red Objective 1 2000 - 2006
EU treaty 2 Economic and social progress, high
level of employment, balanced and sustainable
development...
Manchester
Blue Banana Growth region
gt Structural / cohesion policy Objective
1 Supporting development in the less prosperous
regions GDP lt75
Milano
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INTERREG Demand vs. supply
Demand side (what applicants need)
Its the economy, stupid! (William J.
Clinton) Objective 1 Poor regions
Unemployment, brain drain, few entrepreneurs, bad
image...
gt Huge local / regional problems gt Local
solutions needed!
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INTERREG Demand vs. supply
Supply side (what INTERREG offers)
75 co-financing rate gt Quite attractive
Funded by ERDF gt Regional Development
Activities in more than one country required gt
Transnational solutions wanted!
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INTERREG Demand vs. supply
Preliminary conclusion Local demand ltgt
Transnational solutions
INTERREG does not serve local needs. If you are
interested in local solutions, look for other
programmes.
E.g. mainstream structural funding, managed by
the member states
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INTERREG Project types
What does it need to turn a bundle of local
problems into a transnational challenge?
Common idea area
Common idea, local spots of action
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INTERREG Project types
(1) The partner-oriented approach Good friends
are looking for money
Positive Good partnership Lasting
networks (Maybe) durable impacts Project may be
easy to handle
Negative Scattered umbrella project Isolated,
local activities No clear focus Common interest
EUR Low transnationality
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INTERREG Project types
(2) The content-oriented approach Good idea is
looking for partners
Describe your project idea in 3 clear and simple
sentences. gt Focus will be clear
The need to focus the application (and the Lead
Partner principle) will give the Lead Partner a
dominant role.
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Key concepts Background
Spatial planning / regional development
background ESDP / CEMAT, VASAB 2010, Northern
Dimension, INTERREG CIP, ...
Sectoral background Matter-of-fact strategies
of EU and international organisations (UN,
HELCOM, UBC, B21, ...) and state of art
If you want to erect a high tower, start with a
solid base. (Josef Anton Bruckner 1824 -
1896) Personal feeling Quality of projects
may be quite low
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Key concepts Durable results
Project will have to deliver lasting
results Output e.g. brochureImpact e.g.
land use plan Result e.g. concrete investment
Durable results are what rests after the project
has ended. Mid-term evaluation IR3B 1/3 of
projects may not reach even their outputs but
any EU intervention should come to durable
results!
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Key concepts Large-scale investment
Projects promise to lay ground for future
large-scale investments E.g. most
transport-related projects argue that the project
will help eliminating bottlenecks
Follow-up investment can be secured by including
private sector higher levels of
administration Mid-term evaluation IR3B 1/2 of
projects will not lead to the large-scale
investment promised
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Key concepts Transnationaladded value
Key question Why should we cooperate, knowing
about our local problems ourselves?
gt INTERREG algebra 11 gt 2 Local content
cooperation with relevant partners
Transnational added value
Personal feeling Real transnational added value
is quite rare, projects tend to serve local
interests
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Key concepts Balanced budget
Project assessment Budgets are often too high or
not balanced. (Figures in the table are
indicative examples and no official
recommendation.)
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ConclusionProject setup
(1) Project idea
Lead partner
Background
(2) Competent relevant partners
Durable impacts, trans-nationaladded value
Activities
(3) Implementation schedule
(4) Reasonable financing
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Conclusion What can INTERREGexpect from you?
Streamline your project gt Clear focus
Explore the background gt Project quality
innovation
Go beyond your local problem gt Transnationality
Strive for durable results gt Follow-up
investments
Be modest gt Balanced budget
And last but not least Try to speak better
English...
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Conclusion What can you expect from INTERREG?
No big investments!
Instead Paperwork preparing large-scale
investments. Fresh ideas (experience) from
other regions. New concepts for economic
activities. Common visions and political allies
gt Influence Lasting cooperations beyond spatial
planning.