On 9-10 November 2020, the Mission Opérationnelle Transfrontalière (MOT) is hosting in Paris the first edition of the BORDERS FORUM. This exceptional event will take place under the patronage of Mr Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic.
At a time when Europe is at a turning point and is about to decide on its budget and political guidelines for the period 2021/27, the MOT, AEBR (Association of European Border Regions), and CESCI (Central European Service for Cross-Border Initiatives), are launching an European Cross-border Citizens’ Alliance, which is addressed to the European and national authorities so that they recognise the importance of cross-border cohesion as the cement of the European Union.
The MOT network’s working groups met for the first time in the form of webinars on 12 June (the “Territorial Solidarity” group), 17 June (the “Cross-Border Governance” group) and 24 June (the “Metropolitan Cooperation” group). Their purpose is to share experiences along borders, to generate proposals for action, and to contribute to political reflections for the BORDERS FORUM to be held on 9-10 November.
The MOT has contributed to the production of a report together with Professor Philippe Weckel and Robert Botteghi, within the framework of the territorial diplomacy (DITER) programme, of the University of the Côte d’Azur.
A year ago, the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Region commissioned the MOT to carry out a capitalisation study that gave a voice to regional players involved in ALCOTRA and MARITTIMO projects by means of a broad consultation process.
The current crisis across Europe has sparked criticisms, divisions and inconsistencies between countries, with significant impacts on the lives of people in border regions. However, the European Union – which is working to restart activity – is there to restore free movement in Europe, which is indispensable for the development of European citizenship. As a central part of the recovery, we need to rethink the challenges of the post-Covid period, such as education, agriculture, healthcare, trade, eco-friendly mobility and sustainable development.
Edited by Isabelle Pigeron-Piroth (University of Luxembourg) and Rachid Belkacem (University of Lorraine), the latest thematic issue published by the UniGR-Center for Border Studies provides an analysis of cross-border employment and related issues. Comprising seven chapters contributed by ten authors, it has a preface by Jean Peyrony, the MOT’s Director-General.
Since 2008, the Léman Council has provided a Léman Coherence Transport Strategy. This initiative, which is led by the Canton of Valais, provides an overview for the whole of the Léman region.
Drawing on 29 years of cross-border cooperation, the "Espace Mont-Blanc" ("Mont-Blanc area") on the Franco-Italian-Swiss border is striving to adapt its territory by seeking joint responses to the impacts of climate change.
Resolution adopted on 19 June.
The MOT has published an analysis of the consequences for cross-border territories of the health crisis – the result of a call for experiences issued to all of its members. Organised in three main parts, it aims to set out the impacts, difficulties and initiatives linked to the management of the Covid-19 health crisis in cross-border territories.
While a circular issued by France’s Prime Minister, Edouard Philippe, dated 12 May has just extended France’s internal border controls until 31 October 2020,1 there have been growing calls to give attention to the difficulties faced in border territories, notably for the 360,000 cross-border workers who cross the French border every day to work in a neighbouring country.
The barriers that were put up between the two countries from the start of the health crisis have had a major impact on citizens who were used to crossing the border on a daily basis*. In this context, there have been many local cooperation initiatives and the MOT would like to highlight them.
"The coronavirus crisis is putting our European ideals to the test, and obliges us to invent tomorrow’s world. We need to think, in the design of our policies, about the impact of our decisions on our neighbours."
GeoRhena, the Upper Rhine geographic information system, has developed a simplified dynamic mapping tool that enables people to view and search for regularly updated data on developments in the Covid-19 epidemic in the Franco-German-Swiss trinational region.
The National Agency for Territorial Cohesion, which was created out of the merger of the CGET, the EPARECA and the Digital Agency, was founded on 1 January 2020. Its name well encapsulates its purpose – which is to strengthen territorial cohesion and combat social division. To do this, the ANCT supports local elected representatives in the implementation of their projects, adapting to the needs on the ground.
Anne Sander, Vice-President of the MOT, and Pascal Arimont and other MEPs have called on the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, "to firmly recommend the immediate ending of checks and entry restrictions on our internal borders".
The MOT has published on its website and on social media a series of maps showing the situation with respect to the easing of lockdown measures along France’s borders.
Six local authorities bordering the Strait of Dover and the North Sea have decided to turn their bilateral relations into a multilateral area for dialogue in order to encourage the emergence of cross-border projects across the territory of the Strait.
The INTERACT programme offers training courses to players involved in the management of and decision-making for Interreg programmes. Jean Peyrony, the MOT’s Director-General, contributed to a training session devoted to the relevance and concepts of territoriality and functional areas in the upcoming 2021-2027 programming period, in which political objective 5 aims to give greater prominence to territorial strategies and action by local players.
The European Committee of the Regions, the European Commission (DG REGIO), the MOT, the Association of European Border Regions (AEBR) and the Central European Service for Cross-Border Initiatives (CESCI) are working together to give a voice to local and regional players in border territories in the context of the Covid-19 health crisis. You can now share your border region and cross-border experiences on the platform created by the Committee of the Regions.
The European Commission, in cooperation with the President of the European Council, has put forward a European roadmap towards lifting coronavirus containment measures.
