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Timeline – Thematic Forum 1

Thematic Forum 1 meeting - Lublin, 21-22 June 2007

Administrative and programme structures along internal and external borders of the EU

The Thematic Forum 1 meeting was officially opened by Mr Krzysztof Grabczuk, board member of the Marshall's Office of Lubelskie (PL), the host of the Thematic Forum. He reminded that since Poland's accession to the European Union, Polish borders have changed a lot: Poland now has borders to old and new member states but also external borders. Even though the external borders of the EU with the Ukraine and Belarus have to be protected in accordance with the high Community standards, they should, however, not be barriers as regards the contact between citizens on both sides.

At the beginning of the working session, Mr Tomasz Dylag, Implementing Authority for European Programmes in Warsaw, gave a detailed overview on the development of cross-border co-operation in Poland from the early 90ies until now and explained how it evolved from the PHARE cross-border cooperation programme (CBC) to INTERREG and the Neighbourhood Programme.
The Implementing Authority for European Programmes was created in 1994 and its aim is to provide support and expertise to all programmes implemented by the national Ministry of Interior e.g. the certification of costs in INTERREG programmes and projects as well as the running of Technical Secretariats for two programmes (Poland - Belarus - Ukraine and Interreg Programme Poland - Slovakia).
He highlighted the challenges of the first PHARE CBC system e.g. the difficulty to realise real cross-border projects under the PHARE/INTERREG programme due to different rules and structures which were improved in the programming period 1999-2003 as e.g. some joint programming documents and structures were implemented. He also briefly described the first experience with INTERREG and the preparation of the New Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI) which is the first instrument enabling the implementation of real cross-border projects at external borders of the EU.

Mrs Monika Przenioslo, Marshall's Office of Lower Silesia reported on her experiences in cross-border co-operation at an internal border with Saxony (Germany) and the Czech Republic.
The first PHARE CBC programme 1994-1998 focused on cross-border infrastructure development and micro-projects promoting people-to-people activities in particular cooperation in culture, tourism and education. In the second programming period PHARE CBC / INTERREG (1999-2006), the administrative and financial management of the programme were improved, partnerships with German and Czech partners strengthened, co-operation at political level intensified and remaining infrastructural gaps closed. The key experiences gained in this phase encouraged the Polish side to take over the management of the cross-border programme "Brandenburg- Lubuskie" for the programming period 2007-2013.

Mr Bert Kilijan, Province of Gelderland, briefly presented the experiences of Gelderland with international cooperation structures. The Province has already been co-operating for 14 years in various programmes in order to share experiences with other European regions. In this context, he also gave examples for the bilateral partnership with the Lubelskie region e.g. in the field of rural development strategies.

Closing the working session Mrs Malgorzata Langiewicz, European Centre for Integration and Self-Government "House of Europe" presented some examples for successful projects implemented with partners from Belarus and Ukraine. The most important project "Polish-Transfrontier Agency" that had the aim to create an expert network, provide training to potential applicants as well as to support the implementation of the Neighbourhood Programme PL-BY-UA which resulted in the elaboration of a joint Polish-Ukrainian Strategy defining the key priorities and activities for the cross-border development in that region. While referring to the rather difficult political relations with Belarus, Mrs Langiewicz stressed that on local/ regional level there is a strong will to cooperate and contacts are not restricted by such means as refusal of issuing visa.

The second part of the day continued at the town hall of Lublin were Mrs Wróbel, city of Lublin, briefly presented Lublin and its major role in scientific research and higher education in the Eastern part of Poland co-operating on various topics (culture, innovations, training, tourism) with partners from the Ukraine and Belarus. More information is available under: www.eurotrojkat.pl, www.koziolek.pl, www.um.lublin.pl.
The following day a study visit was organised to the border crossing point in Dorohusk, which has been modernised and extended in accordance with the standards of the Schengen Treaty. More information is available under: www.nadbuzanski.strazgraniczna.pl.
Mr Woloch explained and illustrated the work related to illegal immigration, detection of smuggling and other daily problems and challenges of the border guard units at the external border to the Ukraine and Belarus, which is mainly a natural border formed by the river "Bug". Thus, one important task of the border guards is also to monitor the Bug river (also with regard to possible pollution).
As the density of border crossing points is comparatively low, efforts are made in order to build new facilities and to expand and modernise already existing crossings. Along with financial difficulties, the necessity to build bridges for the reason of the long water border and the obligation to protect the unique birdlife of this area are major challenges while planning and building new border crossing points. Mr Woloch assured that the border crossing points at the external border in Poland are very well prepared for the enlargement of the Schengen area. All standards were met in 2004 already.
After a short guided walk also on the Ukrainian side of the border the participants went to the town of Chelm where the Euroregion Bug is based. Mrs Galina Grabarczuk, the director of the Polish Secretariat of the Euroregion, presented the Euroregion Bug which is a cross-border structure that was created in 1998 by Polish, Ukrainian and Belarusian regional and local authorities. It is one of the largest Euroregions in Eastern Europe with a population of 4.975.200 inhabitants. The Euroregion Bug promotes cross-border co-operation between the three states and provides a platform for cross-border exchanges of ideas, approaches and know-how.

Moreover, the cross-border organisation is responsible for the management of the Small Project Funds within the Neighbourhood Programme PL-UA-BY. In previous years many different micro-projects in culture, tourism, education etc. were implemented.
Further information is available under: www.euroregionbug.pl.

Thematic Forum 1 meeting – Xanthi, 14-15 May 2007

Threats of the past, assets for the future: the development of the heritage of border regions

The Border Region Delta Rhodopi organised an additional Thematic Forum 1 meeting from 14-15 May 2007 in Xanthi (Region of East Macedonia and Thrace). It focused on strategies for maintaining cultural heritage of past centuries and transforming military heritage of recent times in border areas. The meeting was opened by Mr Alexandros Horinos, Secretary General of the Prefectural Authority of Drama-Kavala-Xanthi, who welcomed the participants from the RFO Main Partner regions and the Border Region Delta Rhodopi on behalf of the president of the region, Mr Konstantinos Tatsis, and briefly introduced the organisational and working structure of the prefecture. He underlined the importance of cross-border co-operation for the region while reminding of the excellent collaboration with the Association of Rhodope Municipalities on the Bulgarian side and the manifold projects that were implemented together with the partners from Bulgaria.

Due to the vivid participation of representatives of local municipalities from the Border Region Delta Rhodopi in the meeting Mr Menelaos Hatziapostolidis briefly presented the key issues, objectives and activities of the RFO "Change on Borders" as well as the main outputs and results achieved so far. He gave a short introduction into the subject and thanked all speakers for the willingness to bring their expertise and experiences into the RFO network.

As first keynote speaker Mr Stratos Manos took the floor whose work as architect strongly focuses on the transformation of military camps into civil facilities. He outlined the general legal framework regulating the decommitment process in Greece, explained major problems related to the decommitment of military camps in the area of Thessaloniki and presented some good and bad examples of transformation strategies. On the following day, the participants of the forum had the opportunity to learn more about the difficulties and challenges which border regions with abandoned military camps have to face while visiting the facilities of the former American radio station "Voice of America" in the surroundings of Kavala.

In the second part of the Thematic Forum meeting, the focus was put on the preservation of cultural heritage in border regions. Taking the strategy elaborated for the city and surroundings of Kavala as example, Mr Markos Dembas demonstrated that an integrated approach ensuring the complementarity of urban development and cultural heritage policy is of crucial importance for such historical places. Thus, the cultural heritage of the past can be maintained in a sustainable way and become an asset for the future. For the city of Kavala such an asset is the Imaret, a unique Islamic monument hosting a luxury hotel that was restored with respect to the history and the religious character of the building.

The last two presentations held by Mr Kyriakos Tirologou (see annex) and Mrs Zlatka Nikolova gave an overview on different INTERREG-projects (INTERREG IIIC and IIIA) implemented in the city of Xanthi and in the Euroregion Rhodopi. The Euroregion has been established in 2001 by the Border Region Delta Rhodopi on the Greek side and the Association of Rhodope Municipalities on the Bulgarian side with the aim to jointly promote this area and enhance cross-border co-operation in tourism, culture, education and business. Since then, many different projects have been implemented which range from the publication of joint tourism information to the organisation of language courses, joint events and study visits. In the future, more attention should be paid to the promotion of cross-border business activities which are still very limited due to the lack of well-developed infrastructure and border crossing points in this area.

Thematic Forum 1 meeting – Linz, 21st March 2007

“Biotechnology and life science clusters in border regions

The region Upper Austria organised a Thematic Forum 1 meeting held on 21st March 2007 in Linz. This meeting was focused on biotechnology and life science clusters in border regions. Mr Robert Schrötter, Provincial Government of Upper Austria, opened the meeting and pointed out that the support of innovation and the development of a research facility network are two prime objectives of the Upper Austrian technology policy.

An introduction into this topic was given by Mr Patrick Pammer (Upper Austrian Research GmbH) presenting biotechnology as part of our daily life, e.g. as regards food or textiles. He emphasized the importance for successful science to interlink public research and industry in order to be able to create cutting-edge technologies.

A concrete example of a co-operation between business and research was explained by Rupert Körber (Ecoplus) presenting the Technopolprogram Lower Austria. This programme oversees projects which help building bridges between businesses and scientific research. In this context, the BioTec Area Krems - a life science cluster - was introduced which provides a unique mix of practical academic training, advanced research and innovative applied science by interlinking the fields of education, economy and research and development. This co-operation enables fast-track approval procedures, provides practice oriented scientific training and above all, profits from a strong political support making this scientific cluster become one of the strongest players in the Vienna Region. (Presentation)

Another interesting example of a cluster co-operation in this field was given by Dr. Beat Glatthaar (BioValley Basel) presenting BioValley, the tri-national life science cluster (D/ F/ CH). This cluster offers a trans-national network consisting amongst others of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, universities and research centres, technology parks and economic promotion agencies. A cluster needs a clear strategy and measurable targets which for BioValley are the transfer of technology, the promotion of start-up companies as well as the enhancement of new alliances with (inter)national partners, thus aiming at becoming the most successful biotechnology region. (Presentation)

Further presentations in terms of life science education were held by Prof. Müller (Kepler University Linz) giving an overview on the BIO System Analysis (BIOSA), a university cooperation with neighbouring regions and by Ms Kalliopi Kotzamani (Laboratory of Anthropology Democritus University Thrace) introducing the European Association of Global Bioethics which is mainly focused on the implementation of research and education on ethical problems arisen from the ongoing developments in life science and technology. (Presentation)

After having discussed various aspects of biotechnology and life science clusters in border regions within the scope of this Thematic Forum, the afternoon was finally dedicated to the related study visit to the University of Applied Sciences in Linz, specialised on medicinal technology, as well as to the Upper Austrian Research GmbH (UAR), centre for biotechnical nanotechnology. It has become clear that the UAR tries to positively affect innovation in Upper Austria by enhancing the creation of new technologies, products and services and consequently, contributes towards raising the competitiveness of the entire region.

Thematic Forum 1 meeting – Maastricht, 29 September 2006

"Environment, governance and flood prevention in border regions"

The Province of Limburg (NL) organised a Thematic Forum 1 meeting on 29th September 2006 in Maastricht. Right at the beginning of the meeting the study visit to the village of Meers at the Border Meuse project between the Netherlands and Belgium gave an interesting insight in the cross border cooperation, the related obstacles and the ecological solutions like river widening and soil storage found. At the Government of Maastricht, the forum was officially opened by the deputy Governor of the Province of Limburg. Mr. Hans Mooren (Policy advisor Benelux, Brussels) explained in his presentation the new legal instrument "European Groupings of Territorial Cooperation" (EGTC) which could be useful for future cooperation in the field of flood prevention. He referred e.g. to the following advantages:

• no dependence on personal sympathies
• management of own funds and staff
• structured and transparent organisation
• appropriate form of cooperation for public authorities.

The INTERREG IIIC network "FLAPP" (Flood Awareness & Prevention Policy in border areas) is led by the Province of Limburg and deals e.g. with questions of ecologically sustainable water management. Flood prevention is also an important issue in the Evros Basin in the Greek-Turkish-Bulgarian border region on which Mr. Panagiotis Koudoumakis from the Managing Authority of the Regional Operational Programme gave a short overview. At the end of the meeting, Mr. Aad Blokland from the Province of Limburg introduced "some thoughts about usefulness of crossborder cooperation" in the German-Dutch-Belgian region by outlining some main issues like transport and mobility or water quality.

Thematic Forum 1 meeting - Syros, 23 March 2006

“European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC): A new instrument in the making?”

A Thematic Forum 1 meeting had been held on the island of Syros in the region of East Macedonia Thrace (GR) on 23rd March 2006. The hosting region and the Lead Region of North Karelia/East Finland (FI) being responsible for the superordinated Thematic Forum 1 opened the meeting with some welcoming words and stressed the significance of the judicial instrument EGTC particularly for border regions and the effective implementation of cross-border cooperation.

The representatives of the region North Karelia/East Finland referred to the aim of the RFO to improve the instruments and methods of cross-border cooperation. They emphasized that many questions in connection with the new judicial instrument will be discussed with experts in the framework of this Thematic Forum meeting like e.g.

• What is the added value of the regulation and what's possible and what isn't?
• To what extent is the EGTC optional?
• Which legal forms will be applied?
• Are there any conflicts with national legislation and how can these be avoided?

Ms Anastasia Panopoulou, Greek Ministry of Economics and Finance, reported on the recent state of affairs of the negotiations between the Member States and the European Council. She furthermore pointed out that there are still some questions in conncection with the EGTC which need to be clarified as regards its conformity with national legislation and the fact that a consensus between the different opinions of the Member States must be found. Questions which need to be clarified are e.g.

• Who can become a member of an EGTC?
• What does "legal entity" mean (institutions of public and private law)?
• Who checks the status of the members?
• Can third countries participate e.g. in the field of transport?

Ms Panopoulou referred to the possible benefit for the project and programme processing in the framework of structural funds also highlighting its practicability outside the structural funds programmes. Moreover, she explained some points as regards the judicial and financial situation of the EGTC. The financing can be assured either through Technical Assistance or exclusively through member's contributions. As many questions and discrepancies concerning the EGTC cannot be assessed yet, provision is made for compiling an evaluation report after 5 years. This report should be the basis for the improvement and adaptation of the regulation.

The advantages and significance of such a judicial instrument for cross-border cooperation were then underlined by Mr Christian Gsodam, Head of Deparment "Subsidiarity and Monitoring" Committee of the Regions (CoR). He described the history of origins and the recent discussion related to the EGTC and the role of the CoR in this context. Besides, he informs about the intention of the CoR to set up a database in which all EGTCs will be registered in order to disseminate experiences and best practice examples.

Mr Jens Gabbe, Secretary General of the Association of European Border Regions (AEBR), told about the role of the AEBR in the development and support of the judicial instrument. He explained that the AEBR has been a proponent of this instrument for a long time as mostly institutions of private law can be founded until now. He stressed the added value of a cross-border structure according to public law and constitutes the EGTC as an instrument for the simplification of cross-border cooperation.

In the second part of the Thematic Forum meeting, an interactive discussion was initiated in which Ms Panopoulou stated that Greece still has some objections concerning the judicial security as the national consequences cannot be overlooked. Member States have the possibility to refuse the EGTC because of judicial reasons, but not due to other reasons like e.g. ethnical reasons or the role of minorities. Mr Gabbe pointed out that cross-border cooperation takes places anyway and that the Member States now have the possibility to control initiatives even more.

Thematic Forum 1 meeting - Neumark 07.10.2005

“Cross-border transport”

A Thematic Forum 1 was held on 7 October 2005 in Neumark, Saxony (DE). The topic of the meeting was cross-border transportation including the related infrastructure. More than 40 participants from seven countries attended the Forum.

The discussions were focused on cross-border transport projects, solutions to transport problems as well as the lasting cooperation between different border regions. Several examples of successful collaboration between different regions were highlighted.

The presentations from representatives of different border-regions dealt with:

• The development of cross-border transport between Saxony and its neighbours
• Administrative cooperation between cross-border regions
• The utilisation of cross-border infrastructure developments to further improve the cooperation between countries.

Ms Yvonne Schönlein, member of the Joint Technical Secretariat at the Saxon Development Bank, presented an example of an INTERREG IIIA project in Saxony dealing with the possibilities for supporting cross-border infrastructure.

Besides the meeting a study visit in the Bavarian - Saxon / Czech border-region took place. As an example for cross-border transport, the participants had the opportunity to travel by regional train from Saxony to the Czech Republic and continuing to Bavaria. The so-called "Vogtlandbahn" is aiming at improving the public rail transport in this border region. Several small German and Czech cities are now easy to reach in a day-trip. The public transport facilities are well-accepted and the number of passengers has risen.

Thematic Forum 1 meeting – Joensuu 17.03.2005

“Governance in Border regions” was the topic of the second “Thematic Forum 1” meeting, which was held on 17 March in Joensuu (agenda). The experience of the RFO partners with the cooperation at external EU - borders was in the focus of the discussion. Several experts from RFO Main Partner regions presented their knowledge on cross-border structures.

The participants learned a lot about the Finnish-Russian Border and the development of cooperation structures along this border. Since the EU membership of Finland in 1995, regions have gained more importance in the planning of (cross-border) regional development strategies.

An example for institutional cooperation along the Russian-Finnish border is the “Euregio Karelia” consisting of the Republic of Karelia/Russia and several Finish regions. The Euregio Karelia was set up in 2000 and is comprising 700 km of joint border between the EU and Russia within an area of 1.5 Mio inhabitants. For more information about the Euregio Karelia see: www.euregiokarelia.fi.

The question, how to get from government and administration to governance in cross-border cooperation could not be answered in general. The meeting has shown, that each region has specific characteristics, that need to be taken into account, when building up cross-border structures. This is the reason why there is no standard solution for a cooperation structure in border regions.

In order to enhance the gained knowledge, a study visit was arranged to the Koli National Park. During the morning, the group was hosted by the Nature Heritage Centre Ukko. Several INTERREG IIIA cooperation projects with Russia were presented. One project for example is dealing with the ecological assessment and monitoring of the transboundary Lake “Pyhäjärvi” in the context of the Water Framework Directive. This project helped to clarify the ecological state of the lake, gathered data for the further cooperation within the implementation of the Water Framework Directive and contributed to water protection.

Thematic Forum 2 meeting – Enschede 27. – 29.01.2005

Thematic Forum 1 meeting – Pamplona 01. – 02.10.2004

The first meeting of “Thematic Forum 1” was organised by the Region of Navarra (ES) and took place in Pamplona on 1-2 October 2004 (agenda). Several Main Partners and experts from different regions attended the meeting. It focused on cross-border water management and Geo-Information Systems (GIS).

Experts in the related fields gave presentations on their experiences. One subject for example was “cross-border flood prevention and river basin management along the Rhine”. Another presentation informed about the role and experiences made with GIS in Navarra.

During the meeting an enthusiastic project partnership consisting of Spanish, Dutch, Austrian, Polish and German partners was formed with the aim to exchange experiences in the field of cross-border Geo-Data Systems. The Region of Navarra, which has gathered a lot of expertise in the development of Territorial Information Systems, was willing to lead the project. (In the meantime this sub-project has been submitted and it was approved under the name “CrossSIS” in the third call.)

The second day of the meeting was dedicated to a study visit to “sewage treatment plants” in the villages of Roncal and Garde near the Spanish-French border.