Interactive knowledge transfer for INTERREG European Territorial Cooperation 2007-13: new scenarios and opportunities First Round Table: East-Central Europe area Venice, 16th June 2006 Henrik Lauridsen – Project Manager INTERACT Point Managing Transition and External Cooperation Signore, Signori, Mesdames, Messieurs, ladies and Gentlemen, Firstly let me first thank the organisers of this very important event for the invitation to participate. I shall try moderate the discussion in this first round table of the day. To lead this discussion Ionas has invited three experts that, I believe, are well-known to most of you. However allow me to make a very brief presentation of INTERACT MT and INTERACT II after the presentation of our experts.

Introduction – Topic of the Round Table “Current INTERREG experiences of the participants on projects and programme management, which allows a space for exchange of best practices and ideas on projects development during the next programming phase 2007-2013“.

The Experts Flavia Zuccon, European Programmes Directorate, Veneto Region, Italy Margarita Jancic, Slovenian Ministry of Environment, Spatial Planning and Energy Office for Spatial Development, Slovenia Walther Stöckl, Senate Counselor, EU-Strategy and Economic Development, MA27, City of Vienna, Austria

INTERACT MTEC – 1 of 5 INTERACT Points (1) The INTERACT Point Managing Transition and External Cooperation (MTEC) is based in Austria and Finland. The objectives of MT are to: provide consultancy services to INTERREG actors set up a network of INTERREG actors facilitate the exchange of knowledge and experience between INTERREG actors

INTERACT MTEC (2) MTEC is exclusively concerned with the 10 new Member States, the regions of five "EU 15" Member States - Finland, Germany, Austria, Italy and Greece - with borders to the new Member States, and the new EU external border regions. MTEC works with the New Neighbourhood Programmes within the framework of Tacis, Phare and CARDS.

INTERACT MTEC (3) Providing consultancy services to INTERREG actors Advisory services Management tools Training opportunities Information services Setting up a network of INTERREG actors MTEC set up a network of 15 Nominated Contact Persons (NCPs) from the MTEC partner countries.

INTERACT MTEC (4) So what did we do? During the last two years MTEC provided events and networking activities for 8.931 stakeholders in 31 European cities with participants from 47 countries covering Member States and neighbouring countries.

INTERACT MTEC (5) Total documentation distributed, accumulated: 11.799 Total participant days, accumulated: 6.679 Total participants, accumulated : 3.101 Total activities: 101 Workshops 33, Trainings 32, Advisory Services 28, Conferences 8

INTERACT MTEC (6) A few examples: Cross-Border Cooperation within ENPI and IPA 2007-13, 07-10 March 2006 – Rome Cross-Border Cooperation within ENPI 2007-13, 09- 10 February 2006 - Helsinki Meeting of "Implementing INTERREG IIIA / Tacis and INTERREG IIIB / Tacis Neighbourhood Programmes 2004- 2006“, 19-20 December 2005 -Warsaw

INTERACT MTEC (7) Workshop - Eligibility of expenditure in LT-PL-RU (Kaliningrad) INTERREG III A Programme, 09-10 May 2006 – Vilnius Seminar on INTERREG IIIA - First and Second Level Control in study cases 24 January 2006 - La Valletta Financial Management - First level Control - Strands A, B and C, 24-25 November 2005 - Brno Between Enlargement and New Programming Period, 3-4 November 2005 - Trieste

INTERACT MTEC (8) Study on Selected Monitoring Systems in EU 25 Study on Monitoring Systems: Process Monitoring of Impacts: Working Paper The Eligibility Handbook National Co-Financing of INTERREG IIIA Programmes The Eligibility Handbook

Good practices in INTERREG III Programmes for quality project development (1) – Study Toolbox Project generation and development phase 1. Finding relevant partners from the start of the project generation phase. 2. Exploiting synergies in transition programmes. 3. The Lead Partner Principle. 4. Combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches in project generation. 5. Quality support from programme structures. 6. Well defined, transparent and well communicated admissibility and selection criteria. 7. Accessibility to quality information on the programme. 8. Adequate financial capacity of partners. 9. Innovation in project generation.

Good practices in INTERREG III Programmes for quality project development (2) Project instruction phase Organisation of quality events for project partners concerning the project start-up phase. Consolidation of partnerships. 3. Provision of quality support from programme structures. 4. The time factor.

Good practices in INTERREG III Programmes for quality project development (3) Project implementation phase 1. Ensuring continuous commitment of partners. 2. Quality accompaniment support provided by programme structures. 3. Set-up and application of quality tools/processes for effective project management and monitoring quality.

Good practices in INTERREG III Programmes for quality project development (4) Timing/stages of project generation 1. Good practice in managing quality versus quantity. 2. Good practice in balancing programme priorities / measures. 3. Timing for project generation that ensures a ‘critical mass’ of projects is generated. 4. Good practice in timing project generation according to programme strategic priorities.

Please contact MTEC for further information or visit MTEC’s website www.interact-eu.net/mt Feel free to contact also Henrik Lauridsen henrik.lauridsen@interact-eu.net