Promoting Barents-Carpathian partnerships

The Norwegian Barents Secretariat invites Norwegian organizations to engage in the Programme on Cross-Border Cooperation between Slovakia and Ukraine, a major CBC initiative under the EEA/Norway Grants.

The programme has a total budget of €14,8 million and offers project support to a broad range of institutions, authorities and civil society groups in the Slovak-Ukrainian borderlands, as well as in Norway. Norwegian organizations and authorities are welcome to participate in project partnerships with Slovak and Ukrainian entities.

An opening conference on 24 September officially marks the start of the programme and a first, and only, open call will be announced on the same day.

The Barents Secretariat is Donor Programme Partner in the programme, which aims to strengthen contact and cooperation across the Slovak-Ukrainian border, and to facilitate exchenge of experiences between Slovak, Ukrainian and Norwegian entities. The Secretariat has participated in Programme development and will promote Norwegian interests in the Programme implementation phase.

“A key objective of the Programme is not only to strengthen contact and cooperation across the Slovak-Ukrainian border, but also to facilitate exchange of experience between key institutions in the Carpathian region and the Barents region”, Barents Secreretariat leader Rune Rafaelsen says.

”In the course of 20 years of Barents Cooperation a great number of Norwegian organizations has accumulated significant experiences and expertise in CBC and this can serve as a basis for valuable exchange of best practice”, he adds.

The programme opening conference will be held in Kosice, eastern Slovakia, followed by a matchmaking seminar in the neighboring town of Mikhalovce. Read more about the opening conference and the CBC programme at the website of the Programme Operator:

www.eeagrants.sk/cross-border-cooperation