FAQ on INTERREG and CADSES

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1.�� What is INTERREG about?

The overall aim of the INTERREG Initiatives has been, and remains, that national borders should not be a barrier to the balanced development and integration of the European territory. The isolation of border areas has been of a double nature: on the one hand, the presence of borders cuts off border communities from each other economically, socially and culturally and hinders the coherent management of ecosystems; on the other, border areas have often been neglected under national policy, with the result that their economies have tended to become peripheral within national boundaries.
The scope for strengthening cooperation to the mutual advantage of border areas throughout the Community remains enormous. The challenge is all the greater considering the enlargement of the Community, as this has increased the number of its internal borders and, progressively, has shifted the Community�s external borders eastwards.
The CADSES programme has fully taken in charge these challenges and has been included among the Neighbourhood programmes.

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�2.�� What is the difference between INTERREG III A, B, C?�

The objective of the third phase of INTERREG is to strengthen economic and social cohesion in the Community by promoting crossborder, transnational and interregional cooperation and balanced development of the Community territory. Action in relation to the borders and border areas between Member States and between the Community and third countries is, therefore, at the heart of the Initiative. Due attention will be given to:

The external borders of the Community, in particular in the perspective of enlargement;
Cooperation concerning the outermost regions of the Community;
Cooperation to further the peace process begun in the Balkans;
Cooperation concerning insular regions.

Building on the experience of the previous INTERREG Initiatives, this new phase of the Initiative will be implemented under three strands:
(a) Promoting integrated regional development between neighbouring border regions, including external borders and certain maritime borders (strand A); the bulk of the financial resources is devoted to this strand;
(b) Contributing to harmonious territorial integration across the Community (strand B);
(c) Improving regional development and cohesion policies and techniques through transnational/interregional cooperation (strand C).
The main challenge for the new phase of INTERREG is, therefore, to build on the positive experiences of genuine cooperation within current programmes and progressively develop structures for such cooperation across the Community and with neighbouring countries.

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�3.�� What is the INTERREG III B CADSES Neighbourhood Programme?

The INTERREG III B CADSES Neighbourhood Programme belongs to strand B of the European Community Initiative INTERREG, which is now in its third funding period.
CADSES is the acronym for the �Central Adriatic Danubian and Southeastern European Space�. The INTERREG III B CADSES is the successor of the INTERREG II C CADSES programme. It is supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), as part of the Structural Funds, and co-financed by the partner countries of the programme. Funding period is 2000 till 2006, the programme implementation runs until 2008.
If you want to know more about CADSES as Neighbourhood Programme, please move on to the next FAQ.

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�4.�� What is a Neighbourhood Programme? �

The Commission Communication �Wider Europe � Neighbourhood: A New Framework for relations with our Eastern and Southern Neighbours�� proposed that �the European Union should aim to develop a zone of prosperity and a friendly neighbourhood� with whom the EU enjoys close, peaceful and co-operative relations�.
In this framework, the concept of Neighbourhood programmes has been subsequently introduced with the communication �Paving the Way for a New Neighbourhood Instrument�� of 1July 2003, follow-up to the �Wider Europe Communication�.
The establishment of Neighbourhood Programmes has made it possible to harmonise the provisions of the EC support on both sides of the border, and to develop a single approach of co-operation across the external borders of the EU.
The aim is to overcome the different systems applied to the financial management of EC funds (PHARE, CARDS, CBC TACIS, etc.) by bringing together as far as possible the project preparation, submission and selection procedures.
The Implementing Guidelines for the Neighbourhood Programmes 2004 � 2006 (from June 11, 2004) stipulate that the joint structures are to be established and joint procedures to be implemented for support of joint projects, combining the internal and external elements.
This has set out a particular challenge to the CADSES programme, and the fourth call for proposals has required the adaptation of the programme�s structure. CADSES now consists of 9 Member States (eligible for ERDF), 2 accession countries (eligible for PHARE), 1 candidate country (Croatia � eligible for CARDS in 2004 and PHARE from 2005), 4 Western Balkan countries (eligible for CARDS) and 2 Western CIS countries (eligible for Tacis).
The co-ordination of this funding package offers significant opportunities for genuine transnational co-operation across the CADSES programme area. The presence of diversified funding instruments implies a new global approach concerning the management of the programme and of the projects: all the involved countries are included as equal partners, there is one common selection of projects and the projects cover both regional development and foreign policy objectives.

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5.�� What are the topics addressed by INTERREG III B CADSES?

The topics are divided according to four priorities as follows: Promoting spatial development approaches and actions for social and economic cohesion

Supporting joint strategies for spatial development and actions for implementation
Shaping urban development, promoting urban networks and co-operation
Shaping rural development
Spatial impact of immigration
Efficient and sustainable transport systems and access to the information society
Developing efficient transport systems with regard to sustainable development
Improving access to knowledge and the information society

Promotion and management of landscape, natural and cultural heritage:

Protecting and developing cultural heritage
Protecting and developing natural heritage
Protecting and developing landscape
Environment protection, resource management and risk prevention
Promoting environmental protection and resource management
Promoting risk management and prevention of disasters
Promoting integrated water management and prevention of flood

Many of these topics have recently been revised and enriched by taking account of the new priorities and issues stated in the New Neighbourhood approach. The corresponding programme documents� have been recently revised.
Please download in our website The Community Initiative Programme (CIP), approved by the European Commission on December 27th, 2001, as modified by the Decision of the European Commission c(2004) 5411 of 17 December 2004, and the Programme Complement,�� adopted by the Monitoring Committee on June 10th, 2005.

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6.�� What is the amount of funds (still) available?

The approval of the projects in the framework of the 4th call took place in March 2006. After that most of the available funds were granted to projects and today 99,6% of the 143 m� available for projects are committed. This means that slightly more than 500.000 � are still free. As this amount is scattered among the four priorities it is not possible to use such small figures for the co-financing of additional projects.
At any rate, the Managing bodies of the programme monitor constantly the performance of the ongoing projects. In case some drop out because of managerial difficulties, and relevant ERDF amounts are released, these funds can be committed to new projects. At the Steering Committee held in March 2006 also a reserve list of potential projects was agreed upon. Should new ERDF funds become available, these will be granted to the projects of the reserve list.
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7.�� In addition to ERDF, what are the financing instruments available in the CADSES neighbourhood programme?

The 4th call�was unique: it combined four different financing sources in one application form, thus allowing for the first time the unified project selection process.
In the CADSES cooperation area Romania and Bulgaria have the status of acceding countries and benefit therefore from the financial provisions offered by the Phare programme. The Phare amount foreseen for the fourth call for applicants from Romania equaled 600.000 �, whereas Bulgarian project applicants could rely on a Phare budget totalling 1.334.000 �.
CARDS contributed to the fourth call of the CADSES Neighbourhood call with an amount of 1,6 million � available for project partners located in Croatia, Albania, State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. An additional 1,25 million � may be available, depending on whether the necessary financing agreements were signed prior to the projects being selected.
The TACIS CBC programme covers the regions of Ukraine and of Moldova that border the EU (namely Poland, Slovakia and Hungary) and the Candidate countries (namely Romania).
The amount foreseen for the TACIS CBC funds under the fourth neighbourhood call for the CADSES programme totaled some 1,5 m�; an additional 3,5 million � may be available, depending on whether the necessary financing agreements are signed prior to the projects being selected.
The practical instructions on the funding from these instruments can be found in the applicants�manual� prepared for the 4th call.

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8.�� What are the Management Structures of the programme?

The joint Steering Committee (SC) comprising representatives of all participating countries selects projects and makes respective funding decisions. A joint Monitoring Committee (MC) supervises the programme in order to ensure the quality and effectiveness of the implementation.
The Italian Ministry for Infrastructure and Transports is acting as Managing and Paying Authority for the programme and manages the ERDF funds in these functions. The Managing Authority also is in charge of signing Subsidy Contracts with Lead Partners.
The Joint Technical Secretariat is located in Dresden, Germany, and is responsible for supporting the SC and MC as well as the Managing Authority (MA) and the Paying Authority (PA) in the programme management, in the projects� assessment and in the general implementation of the programme.
CADSES Contact Points (CCPs)� in the partner countries act as the main desk service for project applicants for consulting and project development as well as for supporting the National Committees and for contributing to the information and publicity within the respective countries.
The CADSES Transnational Contact Points (TCCP) in Vienna and in Athens provide special assistance to third countries who wish to participate in CADSES calls for projects and are supported by the EC funds TACIS, CARDS and PHARE.
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9.�� What is the general rate of ERDF co-financing?

In general, the share of INTERREG III B CADSES funding out of ERDF funds�is the following:
50% for the participating regions of Italy, for Austria, for Greece and for the districts of Prague and Bratislava and for the German regions of Berlin (see point 1.10), Baden-W�rttenberg and Bavaria;
75% for the Czech Republic (except Prague), Greece, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia (except Bratislava), Slovenia and for the five German regions located in the East (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Sachsen-Anhalt, Brandenburg, Th�ringen, Sachsen).

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10. �What is meant by Phasing out?

According to article 3 of Council Regulation (EC) 1260/99, the Structural funds pursue three priority objectives. Objective 1 addresses the development of the regions of the EU whose development is lagging behind and whose per capita GDP is less than 75% of the Community average.
Some regions are in the Objective 1 phasing out regime, this means that the provisions foreseen for the objective 1 regions are only transitional.
In the CADSES area East Berlin is a objective 1 phasing out region. It benefits from the support foreseen for objective 1 regions, i.e. a co-financing rate from ERDF funds of 75%, but only transitionally, i.e. until 31 December 2005. All the partners located in the city of Berlin and participating in projects approved from 1 January 2006 on the co-financing rate will be reduced to 50%. The date in this case is the date of approval of the project.

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