On 30-31 January 2014 in Cavan (Republic of Ireland), a conference was held entitled “Cross-Border Economic Development and the Border Development Zone (BDZ) Concept”, which was jointly organised by the Centre for Cross-Border Studies (CCBS) and the International Centre for Local and Regional Development (ICLRD).
Implementation of a cross-border strategy for the future of the Mont Blanc mountain range took a step forward on 22 January 2014 with the signature of a statement of intent regarding the setting-up of a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation by the three vice-chairmen of the Mont Blanc Cross-Border Conference.
On 17 December 2013, the European Parliament and the European Council approved Regulation 1302/2013 concerning European Groupings of Territorial Cooperation (EGTCs). This new regulation introduces a series of amendments to Regulation 1082/2006, which forms the legal basis for EGTCs. It will help to clarify, simplify and improve the establishment and functioning of EGTCs.
The 12th OPEN DAYS - the European Week of Regions and Cities - were launched on 10 January 2014.
On 15 January 2014, the European Parliament adopted on its first reading the proposal for a directive on public procurement, thus opening up interesting scope for cross-border cooperation.
Final report – “Cross-Border Metropolitan Regions” (MORO IMeG project, Germany)
The Picardie Region is located at the heart of North-West Europe. This strategic position, with its shared border with Belgium and its maritime border with the United Kingdom, has for nearly 20 years enabled it to be a major actor in cross-border cooperation.
By endorsing the UDC’s initiative “against mass immigration” on 8 February, the Swiss voted for the introduction of annual quotas for workers, whether from across the border or people that have been granted asylum, thus going against the recommendations of the Federal Council.
The final version of the draft legislation on the “modernisation of territorial public action and the affirmation of metropolitan areas” was adopted by France’s Joint Parliamentary Committee on 19 December 2013
The Committee of the Regions launches a bi-annual European award named “Building Europe Across Borders” to recognise and give visibility to the best practice of a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC) related to the creation of growth and jobs in Europe (Europe 2020 Strategy).
On 16 January 2014 cross-border meetings took place in Maubeuge, organised by the Charleroi-Sud Hainaut region and the Communauté d’Agglomération Maubeuge-Val de Sambre (CAMVS) to reinforce their collaboration initiated in 2011.
On 7 January, the European Commission adopted a code of conduct providing a framework for partnership in the management of the European regional policy with regional and local authorities, economic and social partners and the other representatives of civil society.
The French authorities officially submitted the partnership agreement to the European Commission on 31 December 2013. This document provides the framework for the programming of the European funds for the period 2014-2020. It will be the subject of negotiations between the European Commission and France.
The regulations of the new Cohesion Policy 2014-2020 have been formally endorsed by the Council of the European Union and have been published on 20 December in the 'Official Journal of the EU' (L 347).
The French-Belgian health monitoring unit (EEIG OFBS) and the Wallonia-Lorraine-Luxembourg cross-border health monitoring unit (EEIG LUXLORSAN) organised a conference on health systems and cross-border cooperation, which took place on 18 December 2013 at the Committee of the Regions offices.
In the context of the 2014-2020 programming period, the CECICN1, of which the MOT is a member, in December 2013 officially submitted two contributions to the European Union’s DG REGIO and DG MARKT in order to prepare an upcoming meeting at European level.
The overall objective of the Eurometropolis strategy is to “proceed from the collective project to practical implementations”.
“Build bridges between the States through the construction of development programmes that are going to join together the communities on either side of physical borders” was the objective of the conference on cross-border cooperation which took place on 17 to 19 December 2013 in Dakar, Senegal, under the aegis of the UEMOA1, attended by Aminata Touré, prime minister of Senegal, ministers from Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Benin and Guinea-Bissau, representatives of Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, the African Union and the ECOWAS, and many local elected representatives and experts.
This OECD report, published in December 2013, to which the MOT contributed, analyses cross-border cooperation in the area of innovation, based on the study of six cross-border regions: Oresund (Denmark-Sweden), Helsinki-Tallinn (Finland-Estonia), the Bothnian Arc (Sweden-Finland), Hedmark–Dalarna (Norway-Sweden), Ireland-Northern Ireland, Top Technology Region/Eindhoven-Leuven-Aachen Triangle (Netherlands-Germany-Belgium).
In 2013, the MOT conducted a large-scale study aimed at defining the priority areas for the development of the French-Swiss Jura Arc. This cross-border territory encompasses the Franche-Comté Region and the Swiss cantons of Bern, the Jura, Neuchâtel and Vaud.
On 4 December, the MOT’s Chairman, Michel Delebarre*, and the MOT team took part in a hearing at the National Assembly conducted by Philip Cordery, Chairman of the parliamentary study group on cross-border cooperation, along with numerous French MPs for border areas.
The Council of Europe adopted a report on "Prospects for effective transfrontier cooperation in Europe".
Michel Charrat, Chairman of the Groupement transfrontalier européen (GTE, European Cross-Border Grouping), an association that defends the rights of cross-border workers along the French-Swiss border, replies to our questions.
At the instigation of the department of Pas-de-Calais and Kent County Council (United Kingdom), which are on either side of the Pas-de-Calais Strait – one of the busiest in the world – the European Straits Initiative has since 2009 brought together a network of 15 local authorities bordering 8 European straits from the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean.
