Programme description

Main objectives

The overall objective of the Interreg IPA Cooperation Programme Croatia-Serbia 2014-2020 is to strengthen the social, economic and territorial development of the cross-border area through the implementation of joint projects and activities to be supported within four thematic priorities:

• Health and social care services;
• Environment, biodiversity, risk prevention, sustainable energy and energy efficiency;
• Tourism and cultural and natural heritage;
• Competitiveness and business environment development.

The selected thematic priorities have been translated into four priority axes which will enable the programme to become the tool for implementing smart solutions that answer to the programme area needs and challenges.

Funding priorities:

The Programme will focus on four priorities:

Improving the quality of public social and health services in the programme area”

• The Programme aims to strengthen the care for elderly by improving palliative care system and implementing joint activities on active and healthy ageing. It will also improve the care for social care beneficiaries and other vulnerable groups by e.g. establishing joint community centres, providing legal counselling services, implementing joint activities or projects on applying ICT solutions and small infrastructural improvements, by equipping small ambulances and mobile teams and emergency help-centres on both sides of the border as well as by developing joint training programmes for education and exchange of experiences in the cross-border area. This will be achieved through better quality and strengthened capacities for improving facilities and skills.
• "Protecting the environment and biodiversity, improving risk prevention and promoting sustainable energy and energy efficiency”.
  The Programme aims to strengthen the environmental management and biodiversity protection as well as the communication between the relevant authorities across the border on monitoring and joint management of protected areas and NATURA 2000 areas. Furthermore, the programme will aim to develop joint initiatives in relation to emergency preparedness with focus on key existing and expected risks, e.g., floods, mines, droughts and pollution. In that respect, pilot and demonstration projects applying innovative solutions will be implemented in order to enforce risk prevention management. In addition, joint cross border initiatives will be implemented in order to increase the capacities for the development of sustainable energy (i.e. investing in small-scale infrastructure and developing joint pilot projects on innovative technologies and solutions) to improve the related planning and legal framework as well as to strengthen joint awareness raising and promotional activities as important tool in the policy of increasing energy efficiency.  
• "Contributing to the development of tourism and preserving cultural and natural heritage”
  The Programme will aim to provide platform for strengthening joint cross-border tourism management in order to increase the attractiveness of sites and joint cross-border touristic offer by strengthening joint branding and protection of new touristic products, mapping and designing of joint thematic routes, developing and improving public tourism, cultural and heritage services, organizing joint cultural events as well as joint training of personnel, especially in developing entrepreneurial spirit and destination management skills. The programme will also seek to achieve better cooperation and coordination between the relevant stakeholders in the tourism sector as well as to develop and implement joint tourism strategies, action plans and studies on preservation and restoration of cultural and national heritage assets.
• "Enhancing competitiveness and developing business environment in the programme area”
  This Programme will aim to address these challenges of the programme area in terms of improving business support services in order to use business support institutions in helping the SMEs to build up performance and to strengthen their competitiveness. In addition, this Programme will seek to promote and establish business networks which will support product protection, marketing and development of cross-border markets and address the needs of the programme area in expanding the quality of services and products meanwhile improving skills and knowledge on applying innovative technologies. Furthermore, the programme will aim to support actions towards establishment or further development of laboratories, innovation and technological centres and ICT solutions jointly used by the enterprises in the programme area.

Expected impacts:

Intensified cooperation in order to better address challenges in the field of:

• Improving the quality of public health and social services in the programme area” through measuring the number of elderly people and children assisted by social services provided through government bodies
• Research and innovation,
• "Protecting the environment and biodiversity, improving risk prevention and promoting sustainable energy and energy efficiency” through reporting the disaster response capability in the programme area; and counting the energy consumption by public buildings in the programme area
• "Contributing to the development of tourism and preserving cultural and natural heritage” through pointing out the number of overnights in the programme area
• "Enhancing competitiveness and developing business environment in the programme area” through reporting the range of cluster activities enhancing innovation, new technologies and ICT solutions.

Information on reported financial data to the European Commission (by theme) can be found here

Source and further information: Interreg IPA CBC Croatia-Serbia