Interreg V-A Hungary-Croatia Co-operation Programme 2014-2020 is to deepen and, as much as possible, to extend the scope of the co-operation and networking on the basis of the success of the already started and experienced co-operative efforts. To achieve this, the programme creates better conditions and provides incentives for the main stakeholders of the region.
The strategy of the programme aims to effectively promote the overall long-term vision for the programme area, jointly formulated by the various participants of the programming process in the following way:
“The Hungary – Croatia border area is characterised by an intense and diverse co-operation, facilitated by appropriate cross-border connections, shared knowledge and active and motivated groups of the society, in the focus of which stands the sustainable and value-added exploitation of the region’s rich natural and cultural resources and the permanent enrichment of economic, institutional and individual relationships across the border.”
In order to achieve this long-term goal, five priority axes have been identified within which a number of investment priorities have been recognized as tools for the strategic development of the region:
Priority Axis 1:
Economic Development - Enhancing the competitiveness of SMEs
Priority Axis 2:
Sustainable Use of Natural and Cultural Assets – Preserving and Protecting the Environment and Promoting Resource Efficiency
Priority Axis 3:
Cooperation - Enhancing Institutional Capacity and an Efficient Public Administration
Priority Axis 4:
Education - Investing in Education, Training, including Vocational Training for Skills and Lifelong Learning by Developing Education and Training Infrastructure
Priority Axis 5:
Technical Assistance
These priority axes are part of a comprehensive strategy identifying the appropriate course of action, which focuses strongly on the enhancement of economic competitiveness of SMEs, in that way boosting the economic development of depressed rural areas.
In order to achieve the Programme’s long-term goal, five priority axes have been identified within which a number of investment priorities with specific intervention fields have been recognized as tools for the strategic development of the region:
| Priority Axis (PA) | Investment Priority |
|---|---|
| Priority Axis 1 - Enhancing the Competitiveness of SMEs | 3c- Supporting the creation and the extension of advanced capacities for product and service development |
| Priority Axis 2 – Sustainable Use of Natural and Cultural Assets | 6c- Conserving, protecting, promoting and developing natural and cultural heritage |
| 6d- Protecting and restoring biodiversity and soil and promoting ecosystem services, including through Natura 2000, and green infrastructure | |
| Priority Axis 3 – Cooperation: Enhancing Institutional Capacity and an Efficient Public Administration | 11- Enhancing institutional capacity and an efficient public administration by promoting legal and administrative cooperation and cooperation between citizens and institutions |
| Priority Axis 4 – Education: Investing in Education, Training, including Vocational Training for Skills and Lifelong learning by Developing Education and Training Infrastructure | 10- Investing in skills, education and lifelong learning by developing and implementing joint education, vocational training and training schemes |
| Priority Axis 5 – Technical Assistance | N.R. |
Priority Axis 1 - Enhancing the Competitiveness of SMEs
Investment Priority - Supporting the creation and the extension of advanced capacities for product and service development
Investment priority focuses on fostering value added producing capability of enterprises operating in industry and services by boosting their product and service development activities through joint economic development actions which could generate higher GVA and consequently makes it possible to find new markets.
Priority Axis 2 – Sustainable Use of Natural and Cultural Assets
Investment Priority - Conserving, protecting, promoting and developing natural and cultural heritage
Investment Priority - Protecting and restoring biodiversity and soil and promoting ecosystem services, including through Natura 2000, and green infrastructure
The region has a rich and diverse natural and cultural heritage, including a high proportion of protected areas. The potential of this heritage to generate economic growth in the border area will be better exploited by the conservation, protection and development process. Investments will mostly result in assets developed to become attractions but in justified cases the endangered elements of the built heritage will be conserved for future use. It’s expected that these attractions – developed and their accessibility improved – will generate more intense appearance of visitors in the region, contributing to increase of incomes and the stabilization of revenues of people who deliver services to them.
Besides, developed and upgraded infrastructural investments focused on upgrading the accessibility and providing better access to existing and potential tourists sites for the purpose of common utilization of cultural and natural heritage assets (including small scale access roads, establishing ferry connections and similar) are envisaged under this priority axis.
Substantial size of nature-protected territories of both Croatia and Hungary will be given back to proper usage by the eradication of remained minefields in Croatian part and the clear up of Hungarian territories contaminated with other types of unexploited ordnance.
Priority Axis 3 – Cooperation: Enhancing Institutional Capacity and an Efficient Public Administration
Investment Priority - Enhancing institutional capacity and an efficient public administration by promoting legal and administrative cooperation and cooperation between citizens and institutions
Cross-border cooperation can only be effective if a wide range of organizations – public bodies, NGOs, companies, citizens and any other entities – in any combination needed, regardless of the borders, form territorial governance frameworks, which can take care of developing and implementing cooperation along agreed strategies in a continuous manner. Therefore, interventions to be implemented aim at different cooperation policy dimensions and are expected to create new or strengthen joined structures and shared processes to ensure the continuity of cooperation effective in the border area.
Priority Axis 4 – Education: Investing in Education, Training, including Vocational Training for Skills and Lifelong learning by Developing Education and Training Infrastructure
Investment Priority - Investing in skills, education and lifelong learning by developing and implementing joint education, vocational training and training schemes
To move towards the long term vision of the border region this intervention is to develop means which promote the enlargement and the specific local knowledge base as well as exploit development opportunities of a cross-cultural knowledge base.
Priority Axis 5 – Technical Assistance
The Technical Assistance will support actions that enhance the capacity of applicants and beneficiaries to apply for and to use the programme funds and that improve the administrative procedures while ensuring a proper verification of project outputs and results under the quantitative and qualitative point of view. Moreover, Technical Assistance funds will be used to prepare programme processes and templates, for programme administration, monitoring, evaluation, communication, auditing and to improve the administrative capacity and the common working procedures of the programme bodies and stakeholders.
