5.14 National Development Plan (NDP) 2007-2013

In developing this Programme the Managing Authority has been cognisant of the need to be complementary to the National Development Plan (NDP) 2007-2013. The NDP 2007-13 is a high level strategic document which sets out within a sustainable economic and budgetary framework the indicative multi-annual seven year investment allocations totalling almost €184bn. Unlike the previous funding period (2000-2006) where EU co-financed programmes were fully integrated within the NDP, the EU co-financed Operational Programmes 2007-13 are separate from the NDP.

The National Development Plan with an emphasis on improving quality of life in a sustainable manner will take account of the National Spatial Strategy, environmental sustainability, impact on Social Inclusion, the all-island dimension, value for money considerations and the requirements of the EU Lisbon process. The new NDP in particular seeks to consolidate progress made under previous programmes and address the investment now necessary to maintain national competitiveness within a sustainable economic and budgetary framework. It also sets out the resourcing commitments necessary to achieve policy developments agreed under the Towards 2016 agreement.

In developing this Programme the Managing Authority has been cognisant of the fact that significant investment in the BMW region will take place under the new NDP and that most publicly-funded developmental objectives will be supported through this mainstream framework.

As specified in Chapter 13 of the NDP 2007-13, the BMW Regional Assembly will participate on the NDP monitoring structures, thus ensuring co-ordination between interventions supported under this Operational Programme and those supported under the exchequer-funded NDP.

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