“HAVE YOUR SAY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE!”
CROSS-BORDER INFORMATION EVENTS TO HELP INFORM THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE FUTURE EU PEACE AND COOPERATION FUNDING PROGRAMME
A series of stakeholder information events, to help inform the content of the new cross-border EU PEACE PLUS Programme (2021-2027), will take place in every county in Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland, throughout January and February.
The purpose of each event is to let people know about the possible funding sectors for the new programme and give them an opportunity to help shape its future content.
PEACE PLUS will replace the previous PEACE and INTERREG Programmes which (for over 20 years) have provided approximately €3.4 billion in EU funding to tens of thousands of projects, on both sides of the border.
It is anticipated that the value of the PEACE PLUS Programme will be similar to the total of the current two programmes, PEACE IV (€270m) and INTERREG VA (€283m) and is likely to be in excess of €600m.
The new programme has been written into the post-2020 EU regulations for the next programming period and is supported by both the UK and Irish Governments.
As with the previous programmes, PEACE PLUS will also have a strong results focus with successful applicants expected to deliver upon its overall outputs and objectives.
The programme’s area will include all of Northern Ireland and the six Border Counties of Ireland , but has flexibility to also include organisations based outside this area; as long as
they are making a contribution to the objectives of the programme and benefit the citizens living within the eligible region.
Encouraging people to make their voices heard at the events Gina McIntyre, CEO of the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), which will be responsible for delivering the new programme, said: “PEACE PLUS is a new EU cross-border programme that will contribute to a more prosperous and stable society in Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland.
“It reflects the European Union’s, along with Ireland and the UK Government’s, continued commitment to support on-going peace and reconciliation activities and the future socio-economic and environmental development of the region.
“We are delighted to be able to start the design of the new programme and would encourage everyone who has been previously involved, or not, to come to our events and share their views,” she continued.
There are five different over-arching European policy objectives from which the PEACE PLUS Programme can be created; each with its own set of potential funding activities, designed to improve the lives of citizens on both sides of the border. The focus of the information events will be on explaining these different policy objectives and on providing an overview of the programme implementation process.
A full listing of all the events, as well as information on how to respond to the new PEACE PLUS Programme, is available at https://www.seupb.eu/peaceplus
Stakeholder information events are being held. Each event will run from 6pm-8pm, with registration starting from 5.30pm. For a full list of event locations and to register follow click the link : https://www.seupb.eu/peaceplus