phone: 00386 1 308 31 88, fax: 003861/478 37 60, email: euskladi.svrp(at)gov.si
mag. Peter Wostner, Deputy Director
The EU Cohesion Policy area is responsible for coordination of activities, directed at the use of Structural and Cohesion Funds. The stated includes content coordination and approval of development instruments as well as monitoring and evaluation of the effects which the stated instruments achieved or should achieve.
Our aim is to ensure efficient and successful use of funds, which are available to us from the EU Cohesion Policy funds. In this area Slovenia had quite a few problems in the first year, therefore our principle for achieving the above objective is as follows:
To ensure a transparent, user-friendly system for implementing development policy with the assistance of EU funds, which will enable Slovenia to fully use its development potential and opportunities: in public, private and non-governmental sector as well as on the level of individuals.
With regard to the complex nature of the rules, both the EU and national ones, this is not an easy task and should be regarded as gradual attaining of the set objective. The development instruments and incentives of the ministries should be prepared on the basis of a strategic consideration and in accordance with the needs on the field, while the applicants should be provided with clear and timely guidelines, which will lead us jointly towards the objectives, set by Slovenia within its Development Strategy. It is also necessary to strive for the major part of the administrative burden (especially that arising from the EU rules) to fall on the public administration rather than the applicants.
Before you jump to the above website, allow us to guide you through a brief presentation of the EU Cohesion Policy, which provides funds for development projects of the EU Member States. These funds are important because they do not substitute the national funds, but are additional funds, earmarked by the state or region for its development. It is important to stress that the EU Cohesion funds are intended for the least developed parts of the EU.
The objective of the EU policy is the development of regions or states, which lag economically and socially behind the EU average, with a view of diminishing disparities and achieving positive effects for the whole Union. In order to pursue the objectives of the economic and social cohesion, the European Commission has established financial instruments in the form of the Structural and Cohesion Funds.
The funds co-finance regional and horizontal programmes and projects in Member States in the area of basic and information infrastructure, environment maintenance, research, technological development and innovations, entrepreneurship sector support, human resource development, modernisation and diversification of activities in rural areas and fisheries sector.
By entering the EU, Slovenia became eligible for the EU structural funds. These funds are used by Slovenia on the basis of the Single Programming Document 2004-2006 – SPD (the document was negotiated between Slovenia and the European Commission, which officially approved it in June 2004), where Slovenia defined its priorities for this period. The priorities are as follows:
Promotion of the productive sector and competitiveness, Knowledge, human resource development and employment, Restructuring of agriculture, forestry and fisheries EAGGF & FIFG, Technical assistance.
The SPD is an action plan for the period until 2006, which defines how Slovenia will achieve its strategic objectives and guidelines. In the period between 2004-2006, 237.52 million EUR are earmarked for Slovenia from the Structural Funds and further 190.57 million EUR from the Cohesion Fund (2004 prices). The amount of funds available to the individual EU Member States in the 2007-2013 period is still unknown, as we are still in the process of negotiations. I should stress that within the new financial perspective 1&2 (NFP) the Cohesion Policy issue is central for Slovenia, since the main part of our development will be financed with its assistance.
SLOVENIA AND EU COHESION POLICY IN THE PERIOD 2007-2013
A Package of the Regulations on EU Cohesion for the period 2007-2013 was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 31 July 2006.
CONVERGENCE OBJECTIVE
For the implementation of the EU cohesion policy in the 2007-2013 period, the member state needs to, in compliance with the EU normative bases, prepare programming documents on two levels:
on the 1st level, the National Strategic Reference Framework is prepared which defines the strategy of the member state for achieving faster convergence, emphasis being on the use of the cohesion policy means
The National Strategic Reference Framework includes the analysis of the situation and the strategy; the basic mechanisms for achieving the set objectives are specified including a list of the operational programmes and the basic financial allocation. In doing so, it is from the viewpoint of the European Commission essential that in this document the member state exhibits consistency with the Community Strategic Guidelines on Cohesion, National Programme of Reforms (Lisbon Strategy) and the Joint Report on Social Inclusion. The operational programmes for the 2007-2013 period have the same function as the Single Programming Document for 2004-2006 period and thus in the legal framework present the legal basis for drawing on the resources of the funds as the European Commission approves them by issuing a decision.
Following the close ex-ante coordination with the general public and other relevant institutions started already in spring 2006, the Slovenian Government Office for Local Self-Government and Regional Policy in cooperation with the competent ministries, on 16 February 2007 prepared the official proposal of the programming documents and on the same day forwarded them to the European Commission:
National Strategic Reference Framework 2007-2013 on 16 February 2007
Operational Programme for Strengthening Regional Development Potentials for the period 2007-2013 on 16 February 2007
Operational Programme for Human Resources Development for the period 2007-2013 on 16 February 2007
Operational Programme of Environmental and Transport Infrastructure Development for the period 2007-2013 on 16 February 2007.
Following the demanding negotiations with the European Commission and the successful implementation of the overall review of the impacts on the environment the programming documents were approved as follows:
Slovenia concluded the negotiations for all the programming documents in the first half of the programming documents depending on the fund; for the operational programmes financed by the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund the negotiations were concluded already in the first quarter. In doing so, Slovenia successfully concluded the negotiations and the process of coordination of the programming documents and thus entered into the period of implementing the financial perspective 2007-2013.
OBJECTIVE 3 – EUROPEAN TERRITORIAL COOPERATION 2007–2013
The European Territorial Cooperation objective is one of the three objectives of the EU Cohesion policy 2007-2013. 2.52%, i.e. 7.75 billion €, of all the cohesion means are directed into this objective.
The operational programmes are in the stage of preparation, which is why drafts or working versions are presented on these pages. Despite this fact, certain chapters of the operational programmes are already substantively completed. Until the programmes reach the final version, they are written in the English language, as it is agreed with other countries involved. They are translated into the languages of the participating countries when they reach their final content and form. For a better understanding, the priorities and working areas of individual operational programmes are summarized here.
TENDERS OF OBJECTIVE 3 AND IPA PROGRAMMES 2007-2013
Cross-boarder, trans-national and interregional cooperation, currently carried out in the framework of INTERREG III 2004-2006 programmes, will in the new financial period 2007-2013 continue at the internal EU borders in the framework of the European Territorial Cooperation programmes and at the external EU border in the framework of the Instrument for Preaccession Assistance. Thus, Slovenian partners will be able to cooperate in the framework of 5 cross-border programmes, 4 trans-national programmes and 3 interregional programmes (INTERACT II programme does no longer foresee project co-financing). There will be, altogether, 13 programmes available for the Slovenian partners.
The preparations for European funds disbursement are well underway. The operational programmes, which represent the basis for the disbursement of the European Regional Development Fund funds (ERDF funds) and the disbursement of the Instrument for Preaccession Assistance funds (IPA funds), are for the most part prepared; they still have to be brought into line with and approved by the European Commission, which is most likely to take place in the second half of this year or in the beginning of the forthcoming year at the latest.
Numerous opportunities open up for the potential beneficiaries from Slovenia to form new or upgrade the already-existing partnerships throughout Europe. To seize these opportunities as well as possible, we enclose a TABLE from which it is apparent in which programmes Slovenia is involved, who the contact person is and where on the internet you can find more information. A valuable data in the preparation for the forthcoming tenders is also the indicative announcement date of the first tender of individual programmes. The tenders will be announced by the managing authority which is for some programmes located in Slovenia, for others in other EU member states.
You should follow the table regularly as it will be updated and supplemented promptly. It is impossible to foresee the precise announcement date with certainty as all the member states which cooperate in the international programme have to express their agreement; this usually takes a longer period of time. Nevertheless, we believe that the indicative assessment can be valuable in planning the development of your project while the overview of all the programmes is the perfect starting point to explore which programme is the most suitable for the realization of your project ideas.
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