1. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DANUBE STRATEGY István Joó ministerial commissioner Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade 17 th April 2015, Budapest MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE

2. The EUSDR was launched during the Hungarian EU presidency in 2011. „ The most international river of the World ”  14 countries (9 EU + 5 non-EU)  100 million inhabitants  1/5 share of the EU’s area GDP per capita in the Danube Region (2013, USD) Source: World Bank

3. Coordinating development policies in 4 pillars and 12 areas Connecting the Danube Region PA 1/a Improve mobility – waterways Austria and Romania PA 1/b Improve mobility – Rail, Road, Air Serbia és Slovenia PA 2 To encourage more sustainable energy Hungary and Czech Republic PA 3 Culture and tourism Bulgaria and Romania Protecting the environment in the Danube Region PA 4 The quality of waters Hungary and Slovakia PA 5 Environmental risks Hungary and Romania PA 6 Biodiversity, landscapes, and the quality of air Bavaria and Croatia Building prosperity in the Danube region PA 7 Knowledge societySerbia és Slovakia PA 8 Competitiveness Baden- Württemberg and Croatia PA 9 Invest in people and skills Austria and Moldova Strengthening the Danube region PA 10 Institutional capacity and cooperation City of Wien and Slovenia PA 11 Security Bulgaria and Germany

4. Main objectives of the implementation in Hungary  I. Supporting projects that foster the harmonized development of the region’s economy by increasing competitiveness.  II. Assistance to the EU-integration process of non- member states by sharing experience.  III. Supporting water diplomacy objectives (preventing/minimizing the economically harmful qualitative and quantitative water damage is only possible with efficient share of information)

5.  Mapping out the main challanges  Create a regional network  Consortiums for specific projects  Execution of planned projects  Efficient allocation of sources PreparationProjects „The region’s power lies in the intensive cooperation amongst countries.” Objective: efficient utilization of the development opportunities in the 2014-2020 programming period first years Result: balanced development of the region

6. Economic impacts and results I. Energy Priority Area(PA 2 )  Danube Region Gas Market Modell and gas storage analysis  Biomass Action Plan macro-regional project led by Szent István University with the participation of 8 countries  Geothermal report macro-regional project led by Geological and Geophysical Institute of Hungary with the participation of 10 countries  Training programme for the Rep. of Moldova: sharing practices how to adapt and implement elements of the EU law  Energy Union Study: how the Energy Union affects the Danube Region (market integration, energy safety, climate change)

7. Economic impacts and results III. Water Quality Priority Area(PA 4 )  Danube river basin sediment management project (SEDIMENT) led by the Budapest University of Technology and Economics  The project aims to analyze the basin-wide sediment transport having impact on both flood risk management, drinking water production, hydropower generation and navigation  Tisza river basin management project  cooperation between key actors of water management, flood management and spatial planning in the Tisza River Basin  identifying preventive investments reflect to the needs of the river basin the utmost

8. Environmental Risks Priority Area (PA 5 ) Example: flood damages along the Danube in 2013 Economic impacts and results IV. CasualtiesDamages personsmillion EUR Germany (BW) 23.00 Germany (Bavaria) 1300.00 Austria5870.00 Czech Republic Slovakia 12.14 Hungary 58.00 Croatia Serbia 0.28 Romania446.10 Bulgaria 0.30

9. Economic impacts and results V. Environmental Risks Priority Area (PA 5 ) Example: flood damages affected the Sava basin in 2014 CountryAffectedEvacuatedCasualtiesDamageCause Serbia1.6 million32,00051 (25 drown) 1.35 billion € Torrents, landslides, levee breach Bosnia-Herzegovina1 million90,000252 billion € Torrents, landslides, levee breach Croatia38,00015,0003297.6 mil € Levee breach

10. Economic impacts and results VI. Environmental Risks Priority Area (PA 5 ), achievements  Danube Region Operative Flood Management and Cooperation Programme (DR Oper&Cooper)  Extensive flood survey in all 14 Danube region countries: experience and development goals concerning the recent floods  Concrete projects (e.g. synchronization of the flood forecasting systems) for preventing the water damages affecting the economy  Promoting integrated flood management in the framework of the EUSDR (river basin approach)  Supporting the EU integration of non-EU member states:  Training for water management experts in Bosnia-Herzegovina  HU-UKR flood management programme: common river basin management plans are elaborated

11. Economic impacts and results VII. Knowledge Society Priority Area (PA 7 )  Danube Region Research and Innovation Fund (DRRIF)  DRRIF is a Flagship project of PA7 with the primary objective to identify, mobilize and coordinate existing funding schemes in order to support the development of R&I activities in the Danube countries;  EUREKA Danube-call has been launched to support innovative SME-s („E!DI“ – EUREKA Danube Initiative) – financed by 11 Danube countries including Hungary  On the initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research a common fund supporting the preparation of research, development and innovation projects was set up;

12. Danube Strategy Toolbox 2014-2020 in Hungary Danube Region Strategy Programs for European Territorial Cooperation National Operational Programs Twinning experience exchange Other resources: DANUBE START and Technical Assistance Fund EIB loans and services Centrally managed programs 7 cross- border Budapest Danube Contact Point 2 transnational 4 interregional LIFE+ HORIZON 2020 Central Europe Danube OP

13. Thank you for your attention! http://dunaregiostrategia.kormany.hu/ DunaStrategia@mfa.gov.hu MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE