CONCLUSIONS

1
INTERREG IIIA Conference "United by Borders"
24-25 September 2007 Reval Hotel Latvia, Riga
CONCLUSIONS FROM THE EXPERIENCE EXCHANGE
WORKSHOPS
2
Workshop I LESSONS LEARNT FROM PROJECT
IMPLEMENTATION Moderator Inga Goldberga,
Director of the Department of Development in
Daugavpils City Council, Member of INTERREG IIIA
Priority South Steering Committee, Latvia
3
LESSONS LEARNT FROM PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION (1)
4
LESSONS LEARNT FROM PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION (2)
5
Workshop II EXPERIENCE OF COOPERATION WITH
RUSSIA AND BELARUS Moderator Sergey Balanev,
Senior Expert, Tacis Regional Capacity Building
Initiative (RCBI) project, Russian Federation
6
EXPERIENCE OF COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA AND
BELARUS (1)

• Problem 1 Relations with authorities in
  Russia/Belarus (approval, registration,
  facilitation)
• Solutions
• Selection of programme/project priorities with
  participation and involvement of stakeholders.
• National priorities correspond Programme
  priorities.
• Clear procedures, clear and formally responsible
  officials in governmental organisations expand
  authorities of SC members to facilitate
  implementation of projects in the countries.
• Better correspondence of EC and Partner countries
  in project implementation.

7
EXPERIENCE OF COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA AND
BELARUS (2)

• Problem 2 Insufficient resources (material and
  ideas) for project development
• Solutions
• Seed Money facility, eligible preparation costs
• Better cooperation between authorities and NGO
• Officials responsible for project work in
  organization.
• Projects correspond to priorities of the Region.
• Support from RCBI and programme experts
  regionally and nationally.
• More extensive consulting and advice in regions,
  more information events in the regions.

8
EXPERIENCE OF COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA AND
BELARUS (3)

• Problem 3 Selection of relevant partner
• Solutions
• Extensive partner search through programme
  web-site.
• Events, partner search forums.
• Issuing of the e-partner-search-bulletin.

9
EXPERIENCE OF COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA AND
BELARUS (4)

• Problem 4 Optimize mechanisms of project
  financing.
• Solutions
• To harmonize project financing mechanisms for
  partners from EU and RU/BY (advance payments for
  all partners).
• To simplify national procedures in RU/BY
  (approval, registration, taxes). To consider VAT
  as partner country co-financing.

10
Workshop III ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM
Moderator Silja Lehtpuu, INTERREG IIIA
Project Coordinator and Financial Manager,
Estonia
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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM

• How to achieve concrete results by implementing
  economic development projects (from business plan
  into establishment of new business and new jobs)?

• Change of the mentality (business thinking)
  using promotional campaigns and other tools
• Practice programmes for students
• Networks of business incubators / technology
  parks
• Co-operation with universities
• Exchange of students/ teachers

12
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM

• Promoting RD / new ideas
• Business trainings in schools
• Development of strongest industry in the
  region
• Trainings of developing business ideas,
  marketing, finances etc.
• Mentoring as an important method of business
  development
• Helping start-ups and SMEs to get feedback and
  expertise
• Study tours

13
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM

• 2. How to develop further tourism
  projects/products supported by INTERREG so far?
  Which should be the next steps?
• Promotion of tourism products
• Training of local people in tourism development
  and in guiding
• Creating tourism packages
• Emphasize the quality of tourism products and
  service
• Think about long term financing, not just
  INTERREG

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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM

• Advertisement of tourism products to tourism
  operators
• Tourism products in several languages
• Database of local guides
• Support for the investments to tourism
  infrastructure
• To connect south and north (to extend the
  borders)
• Private companies to participate in INTERREG
  project
• To get the balance between
• Public/ private partnership
• Protection/ Exploration of nature
• Cooperation/ Competition of tourism businesses

15
Workshop IV JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF
SERVICES AND RESOURCES Moderator Peeter
Unt, Head of Joint Secretariat of the
Estonia-Latvia 2007-2013 Programme, Estonia
16
JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF SERVICES AND
RESOURCES

• Working group questions for project idea
  development
• What do you want to do?
• Who are your partners?
• How big is the budget?

17
JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF SERVICES AND
RESOURCES

• Project idea 1 (EE-LV programme)
• On bike from Estonian summer capital to Latvian
  Costa del Sol
• Bicycle road from Pärnu to Saulkrasti marking
  and construction, if necessary
• Public-private partnership include the private
  sector services on the road
• Budget 2 MEUR

18
JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF SERVICES AND
RESOURCES

• Project idea 2 (Baltic Sea Programme)
• More bikers than car drivers by 2015
• Transfer of experiences from Nordic countries in
  issue of bicycle roads and wider use of bicycles
  as mode of transport.
• Unification of road signs, special lines in the
  border crossing points for bicycles.
• Partners municipalities, road administrations
• Budget around 1 MEUR

19
JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF SERVICES AND
RESOURCES

• Project idea 3 (CBC programmes around Latvia or
  Baltic Sea)
• Less Mr Muscles, Mr Propers and Fairys
• Proper and more moderate use of household
  chemicals.
• Promotion of more nature friendly household
  chemistry (marketing in shops, campaigns, etc)
• Wide public-private partnership.

20
JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF SERVICES AND
RESOURCES

• Project idea 4 (CBC programmes around Latvia)
• Forest fires know no borders
• Joint planning of natural hazards response
  system.
• Training polygon and joint alarm system.
• EE-LV-RU partnership.
• Partnership including national authorities and
  local bodies.
• Large-scale project.

21
JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF SERVICES AND
RESOURCES

• Project idea 5 (Central Baltic, EST-LV or Baltic
  Sea)
• Sea of friendly harbours
• Joint system and infrastructure for yachts in
  Baltic Sea.
• Development of small harbours.
• Infosystem, joint web portal.
• Partners municipalities, tourism associations,
  local entrepreneurs.
• Budget depends on the partnership.

22
JOINT PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF SERVICES AND
RESOURCES

• Project idea 6 (Baltic Sea or CBC programmes)
• More comprehensive databases
• Development of e-services in cities, both for
  civil servants and local inhabitants.
• Partnership partners have to be from equal level
  (local level, regional level, national level).

23
Workshop V SMALL SCALE PEOPLE TO PEOPLE
COOPERATION Moderator Vytautas
Stankevicius, Lector at Kaunas University of
Technology, Lithuania
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Work In Groups

• Quality of people to people projects
• Partnership
• People to people projects preparation
• People to people projects implementation.

25
Conclusions

• Quality of the project solved problem!!!
• People to people projects success depends on
• Active involvement of local people in project
  preparation and implementation (bottom-up-planning
  )
• Reliable and motivated partners
• Simplicity in projects preparation stage
• Flexibility in project implementation stage.

26
Recommendations

• Simple project application forms for small
  projects (less bureaucracy)
• General priorities and procedures in related
  programs
• Motivate close partnership between NGO and local
  authorities
• Pre-financing or establishment of NGO oriented
  financial credit system.

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Thank you for your attention!