Jems
This year Interreg celebrates its 35th anniversary with a central celebration happening on the 21 September during the Interreg Cooperation Day.
In the border areas of Croatia several Interreg programmes have been implemented: Italy-Croatia, Slovenia-Croatia managed by the partner countries. However, with the accession of Croatia to the EU, two more Interreg cross-border cooperation programmes, Croatia-Serbia and Croatia-Bosnia and Herzegovina-Montenegro, have been established and are managed by Croatia. Recently, Croatia has also taken on the management of the Hungary-Croatia programme.
Interreg VI-A IPA Programme Croatia-Serbia 2021-2027
The Interreg programme Interreg IPA Cross-border Cooperation Programme Croatia – Serbia 2014-2020 enabled the implementation of 48 EU projects with an investment of 30,9 million euro from the EU funds in the following areas: Improving the quality of public social and health services, environment and energy, tourism and cultural heritage, and entrepreneurship. In the 2021-2027 financial period, through the Interreg VI-A IPA Programme Croatia-Serbia 34,8 million euro is available from EU funds for cross-border projects. Following the first call for proposals 25 projects are in implementation as well as two strategic projects.
With the support of Interreg programmes, residents across the cross-border programme area achieve better mutual understanding and improve their quality of life, being not divided but connected by the state borders. As part of the celebration, we have chosen several hallmark projects that have made a substantial positive impact in the two border countries.
Helping People in Need
In the 2014-2020 period, the partnership of the Take Care! project have jointly identified problems in the health and social system of the Programme area. Inappropriate distribution and mobilisation of capacities, reduced access to services for the elderly, infirm and persons with disabilities and reduced access to health and social services, especially for people living in rural areas. Basing their project idea on a community-based concept of health and social care, Take Care! has substantially improved accessibility and quality of health and social services for elderlies, infirm and people with disabilities. Seven mobile teams for people in need were set up, thus employing 32 people from the cross-border area. 40 employees of the social and healthcare sector were educated on palliative care. To facilitate transfer of know how between medical institutions from Croatia and Serbia, a Take Care! on-line network platform was developed. Take Care’s efforts have ensured that almost 1.000 residents in need of Vukovar-Srijem County and Srem District have been supported with previously lacking health and social services.
Protection Against Disasters
Climate change is an additional factor present in the region that in some cases causes additional damage to nature and communities. Partners of the Together We Stand project (2014-2020) had recognized these threats and created a monitoring and early warning system that has shortened the response time for disasters and ensured a safer environment. The project budget was 1,8 million euro. The project integrated a cross-border, multi-sectoral approach that raised a higher level of disaster preparedness, as well as joint action in the event of major floods or accidents involving hazardous chemicals or other hazardous substances and environmental remediation through coordinated disaster and waste management using EU best practices.
Introducing New Technologies to Children
The UPDATE project from the 2014-2020 period brought together a dynamic consortium of partners who had a successful history of cooperation on the XBIT project. The project improved competitiveness in the program area by strengthening cooperation between business support institutions, clusters, education and research organizations, and entrepreneurs. The key project activities was implementation of STEAM education in schools, with a focus on robotics, AI, 3D printing, and VR. Through this, students were introduced to the concepts and applications of these technologies. The project also included the development of courses in AI (Artificial Intelligence) and IoE (Internet of Everything) areas. The project organized two STEAM fairs, one in Serbia and one in Croatia, as well as a VR demonstration day. The project won 2023 edition of the Interreg Project Slam competition, both in the Grand Finale and the Social Media Award, securing a double victory.
Supporting Local Milk Producers
The 2021-2027 project Milkyway is underway. The projects aim to foster innovation in dairy production in the cross-border areas by pilot implementation of new technology/lyophilisation, as well as finding solutions for other industry issues as packaging and piloting cooperation in production of new premium health food to open international markets. The project will promote networking between two clusters, support SMEs. Additionally, clusters will encourage cross-sector partnerships contributing to regional development, job creation, and industry excellence.
Addressing Microplastic Issues
The project ECO(RE)ACT started in 2024 with a goal to establish a comprehensive system for addressing plastic and microplastics issues in ecosystems, contributing to climate change adaptation. It will encompass a well-developed Strategy, control points for monitoring microplastics contamination, and the Centre for Microplastics. The goal is to achieve sustainable practices, reduced contamination levels, heightened awareness among stakeholders, and implement policies for effective adaptation to climate change. This involves knowledge exchange workshops to share expertise, identifying key control points for microplastics monitoring, and conducting a pilot monitoring program to put these solutions into action. And finally, project is focused on piloting innovative solutions to mitigate microplastics contamination from agricultural production. To its end, the project aims to establish a specialized Centre for Microplastics as a research and mitigation hub. Furthermore, a certification process for microplastics contamination will be developed to standardize assessment procedures for farmers and SMEs involved in agricultural production.
Boosting Local Culture and Tourism
With a budget of 3 million euro, the project INNATUS, which started in 2024, will enhance the role of culture and sustainable tourism in wider areas of Municipality of Ernestinovo and Subotica, by strengthening stakeholder capacities, developing cultural tourism infrastructure and distinctive cultural tourism offer grounded in shared cultural heritage of naïve art, thereby fostering economic development, social inclusion and social innovation in cross-border area. Project will establish NATUS: Naive Art and Sustainable Tourism Network integrating 20 stakeholders, of which two are partner organizations formally collaborating in the project. Tourists, local businesses, and cultural enthusiasts will gain from enhanced coordination in promoting naïve art and sustainable tourism, ensuring a consolidated effort in boosting the regions’ cultural tourism appeal. Also, in Municipality of Ernestinovo, the project will construct Creative Children’s Centre with furnishings and state-of-the-art equipment. Concurrently, the Subotica Interactive Cultural Centre will undergo vital adaptation works, ensuring it meets the standards of a modern-day cultural hub. Both centres will be enriched with modern VR technology and enable branding of smart tourist destinations.
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