INTERREG IVC Programme Information Seminar, Newry 04 March 2011

The BMW Regional Assembly together with the Special EU Programmes Body, hosted an Information Seminar on 04 March 2011 in Newry.  The event was held as part of the support offered by both organisations for applicants to the current call to the INTERREG IVC programme.  

INTERREG IVC is an interregional programme, specifically for local and regional authorities, which aims to improve the effectiveness of regional policies and instruments, by the exchange of experiences and the transfer of good practices between participating partners responsible for the development of local and regional policies.  The third call for INTERREG IVC is currently open and will close on 1 April 2011. 

The areas of support are innovation and the knowledge economy, environment and risk prevention. Typical tools for exchange of experience are networking activities such as thematic workshops, seminars, conferences, surveys, and study visits. Project partners cooperate to identify and transfer good practices. Possible project outcomes include for example case study collections, policy recommendations, strategic guidelines or action plans. INTERREG IVC also allows light implementation or piloting, but only if these complement the exchange of experience activities.

The information seminar provided over 30 local and regional authorities in Northern Ireland and Ireland with an overview of the programme, presented by Michael O'Brien, BMW Regional Assembly which is the National Contact Point for the Programme in Ireland.   A range of opportunities to join established partnerships were also presented by Teresa Lennon, SEUPB. Mr Akos Szabo from the INTERREG IVC Info Point West provided an overview of the requirements of the current call and Sabine Kalke from Belfast City Council and Colm McColgan from ERNACT in Donegal outlined their experiences of being involved in the INTERREG IVC programme.