Specific objective

To stimulate regional and local innovations and best practices exchange through inter-regional cooperation within the European territory.

Operation rationale

The interregional cooperation aims at promoting Europe-wide networking among regions and municipalities with an aim to transfer and exchange information, knowledge, know-how and best practice. This exchange is extremely essential for municipalities in the context of the decentralization process going on in Bulgaria and the new responsibilities they acquire. Taking the advantage of the experience of the others how to apply the partnership principle will benefit the public and civil sector. Cooperation within the European territory will increase the public awareness and knowledge about European policies and values and will “bring Europe closer to citizens”.

Community Strategic Guidelines for Cohesion provides the opportunity for regions to incorporate in their Objective 1 and 2 regional operational programmes activities related to inter-regional cooperation. The inter-regional cooperation is aiming at encouraging cooperation among regions and the municipalities in all Europe in order to share and transfer information, knowledge and best practices. The regional and local stakeholders could gain significantly from acquiring knowledge and skills, particularly appropriate when finding solutions for the development through access to experience.  To this end, this operation will support projects of a cooperative nature involving Bulgarian and other EU partners mainly based on past experiences and thematic interests rather than location within a distinct geographical area. Taking account of existing forms of inter-regional co-operation and cross-border co-operation, operation 4.2 “Inter-regional Cooperation” will not be implemented with operators in the bordering regions of the neighbouring countries, eligible under the Cross-border cooperation programmes.

Interregional cooperation under this operation allows non-contiguous regions to enter into contact and to build up relationships, leading to exchange of experience and networking which will assist the balanced, harmonious and sustainable development of the European Union and of third countries. The operation will encourage regional and other public authorities and their socio-economic partners to view interregional cooperation as a means of enhancing their development through access to the experiences of others.

This operation will bring added value by enabling authorities and other actors at regional and local level to learn from each others’ experiences and to develop new and/or innovative approaches and solutions in the specific areas where the regional development process requires new and extended know-how and best practice. To this end, the themes that will be the focus for partnership relate closely to issues to be supported elsewhere under this OP, and where it is recognized there is a need to extend know how and best practice. These are:

• risk prevention,
• urban regeneration,
• ICT-networks/information society,
• housing policy,
• renewable resources and energy,
• transport/ transport organization models,
• tourism development specifically development of larger cultural and nature attractions,
• promotion and inter-municipal interaction models.

These are also policy fields of primary importance for the achievement of the European Union’s jobs and growth objectives. Interregional cooperation will lead to improved capacities and performance of the participating regions, enabling them to make a contribution to the achievement of these objectives in a sustainable way.

The programme will also encourage BG regions to participate in the new initiative Regions for Economic Change. Publication of the Commission Decision on Regions for Economic Change came too late to allow the initiative to be reflected in detail in this OP. However, the programme is open to benefit from the possibilities arising from this initiative. For that reason, in the framework of the Regions for Economic Change initiative the Managing Authority commits itself to:
  i. Make the necessary arrangements to welcome  into the mainstream programming process innovative operations related to the results of the networks in which the region is involved;
  ii. Allow in the Monitoring Committee (or programming committee) the presence of a representative (as an observer) of the network(s) where the Region is involved, to report on the progress of the network's activities; 
 iii. Foresee a point in the agenda of the Monitoring Committee (or programming committee) at least once a year to take note of the network's activities and to discuss relevant suggestions for the mainstream programme concerned;
 iv. Inform in the Annual Report on the implementation of the regional actions included in the Regions for Economic Change initiative."

List of indicative activities to be supported

• Data collection, studies and analysis  of development trends;
• Transfer of know-how and best practices and accompanying action research, related to the above mentioned areas;
• Development of portals/virtual networks for exchange of best practices, Internet-based tools and electronic data-bases for shared exchange of best practices and development trends;
• Benchmarking analyses for service provision;
• Elaboration of future strategic projects and action plans;
• Trainings, seminars, workshops, conferences, study tours, twinnings, joint meetings involving socio economic partners as well (universities, NGOs and business organizations, trade unions, etc.);
• Innovation and risk prevention strategies;
• Information dissemination and awareness raising campaigns;
• Elaboration of materials for distance learning and internet discussion forums;
• Implementation of innovative approaches (pilot projects);
• Limited consultancy and facilitation services related to particular exchanges;
• Dissemination of results.

Note: The MA will put in place clear procedures and practices to ensure that each co-operation procedure results in a clear and concrete output and set of results directly applicable to development issues. Thus all projects must provide a clear learning methodology and ensure by their end a set of appropriate tools, methodologies, or other products that inform future policy, strategy and action by local, regional and where appropriate, mainstream these more widely across Bulgaria.

Beneficiaries

Districts, associations of municipalities, municipalities, Euro regions and NGOs in partnership with municipal and district authorities.

Last modified: Wednesday, September 14, 2011 4:04 PM