INTERREG IIIA Final Call for applications

• cross border
• Infrastructure
• Interreg IIIA
• economic development

In Northern Ireland and Ireland five INTERREG IIIA partnerships have been established to create cross-border partnership projects for the development of the eligible area. These INTERREG IIIA partnerships invite private, public, community and voluntary sector organisations located in or impacting upon Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland to submit proposals for genuine collaborative initiatives under the following measures:

Measure 1: Business and Economic Development

• Regeneration Projects
• Projects to promote effective cross-border business linkages which explore and develop new market opportunities - including rural businesses.
• Projects that encourage Business to Business development including economies of scale, shared resources, capacity building, exchange of best practice, collaboration and delivery of services to SME's.
• Projects targeting heritage, culture, the social economy, tourism and meeting gaps in strategic cross-border marketing arrangements.

Measure 2: The Knowledge Economy

• Cross-border networks that enable specific access to new technologies and innovative knowledge based applications.
• The application of the knowledge economy to the management of landscape and natural resources.

Measure 3: Human Resource Development and Skilling

• The training of specialists in sectors which particular skill deficiencies have been identified.
• Training for, and by, the social economy sector with emphasis on business management skills, ICT, the cultural and creative industries.
• Training to address technology transfer and innovation in the SME sector

Projects which will impact on the 12 county region will be considered. Both infrastructure and programme based projects will be considered. Grant aid will be available up to a maximum of 50% for private sector projects and 75% for public bodies /community and voluntary sector projects. Any proposals are must enhance cross-border economic co-operation within the eligible region and have an impact on the regional economy. All projects must be on a cross-border basis.

The amount of funding available is limited. Applicants are advised to contact their regional partnership for guidance before submitting an application. Details of the measures, guidelines and application forms are available online at www.eugrants.org or by contacting the regional partnerships.

Closing dates for applications is 4 pm on Friday 3 March.

Comet INTERREG IIIA Partnership Secretariat
Tel: 028 9027 0317
E-mail: leonardl@belfastcity.gov.uk

East Border Region INTERREG IIIA Partnership
Tel: 028 3025 2684
E-mail: interreg@eastborderregion.com

Irish Central Border Area INTERREG IIIA Partnership
Tel: 028 6634 0711
E-mail: info@icban.com

North East INTERREG IIIA Partnership
Tel: 028 2563 3935
E-mail: nepartnership@ballymena.gov.uk

North West Region INTERREG IIIA Partnership
Tel: 028 9137 0808
E-mail: info@nwrcbg.org