This web guide is a joint effort by the County Administrative Board, the County Council and the municipalities of Västerbotten. |
This web guide is a joint effort by the County Administrative Board, the County Council and the municipalities of Västerbotten. |
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EU Structural Funds and New Objective1 The Structural
Funds
These structural funds, which account for roughly one third of the EU's total budget, are channeled mostly through the various so-called objectives and community initiatives for regional development. They should be considered as complements to the country's own regional development programmes in the weakest regions and labour markets. These programmes represent the culmination of a process to which all partners concerned--the Member States, the regions, other bodies and the Commission--have contributed. The intention is that the new programmes under the Structural Funds will involve a greater degree of concentration (both geographic and financial), more delegation of management structures, improved efficiency and tighter checks. The part-financing of regional development programmes by the EU requires that EU priorities are taken into account. The Commission’s guidelines for the period 2000-06 seek to help national and regional authorities prepare their programming strategies. Three strategic priorities have been identified: 1) regional competitiveness, 2) social cohesion and employment, and 3) the development of urban and rural areas. These priorities should help ensure the best possible use of EU assistance at the national and regional level. The key factors in the success of structural programmes are decentralised and broad partnerships, which increase the commitment of those involved and maximise collaboration. http://www.inforegio.cec.eu.int/wbdoc/docoffic/coordfon/coord_en.htm New Objective 1 The main aim of the EU's structural policies is to reduce economic and social disparities in regions that are lagging behind within the EU. The Objective 1 area represents regions where the average GNP per head is less than 75 % of EU average. Although Northern Norrland has a better GNP, it still remains part of the Objective 1 area, as the aim of the programme is to develop the regions. The County Administration in Norrbotten has been appointed as the administrative authority for Objective 1 in Northern Norrland. The head secretariat is located at the office for Regional Development. The County Administration in Västerbotten has a working secretariat and can deal with matters that involve Västerbotten. The same is true of the Sami Parliament, which deals with matters that involve Sami areas of interest. The Swedish government has also set up the Structural Fond Commission, which is a decision-making body with representation from both counties that, among other things, is responsible for granting EU funds. The County Administrations deal with project applications in each respective county. An overall aim is to develop Northern Norrland so that development of trade and commerce in the area is comparable to other successful regions in Sweden and the rest of Europe. The funds allocated by the EU are a complement to national and regional development programmes, that is to say that all projects which receive European assistance must also receive cofinancing from national or other sources. The total amount of funds invested in the development of Northern Norrland from both public and private sources for said programmes is slightly more than 8 billion Swedish crowns. Which projects
are eligible?
If financial support is to be granted, the project must be about one of the aforementioned areas. Furthermore, certain general criteria must also be satisfied. The more criteria that are involved in the project, the better the chances of getting EU financing:
How to get
application forms
County
Administration in Västerbotten Sami Parliament
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Updated: 07 maj 2003 |
