Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Paschal Donohoe,T.D., and the NI Executive Minister of Finance, Máirtín Ó Muilleoir, have confirmed that the EU letters of offer for funding Programmes PEACE IV and INTERREG VA for 2014-2020 will issue starting next week.
Together these Programmes represent more than half a billion euro of funding to be delivered on a cross-border and cross-community basis.
The NI Executive, the Irish Government and the Scottish Government (for INTERREG VAonly) provide match-funding for both Programmes. The NI Department of Finance and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform have worked closely together to ensure these Programmes are successfully completed in full.
The Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), which is responsible for managing the Programmes, will now commence the process of issuing letters of offer for projects which have been approved at Steering Committee, allowing successful applicants to commence project implementation.
Welcoming this development, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Paschal Donohoe, said: ‘The Irish Government is committed to the successful implementation of the PEACE and INTERREG Programmes, and I am delighted that funding for projects has started to flow. The two Programmes have made an enormous contribution to cross border cooperation over the last quarter of a century and remain important drivers of regional development in a cross-border context. More than that, they represent a key element of the European Union’s continuing commitment to the process of peace building and reconciliation. I look forward to projects being announced in the coming period which will have real results for the people of the region’.
Highlighting the importance of the announcement to the Executive, NI Finance Minister Máirtín Ó Muilleoir, said; ‘I am pleased that from next week offers of €120 million (c. £110 million)will issue from SEUPB to 17 successful applicants for the recent round of INTERREG VA funding. In the coming weeks we will also see decisions made and letters of offer issued for the PEACE IV Programme in vital areas, such as Victims and Survivors and Shared Education with calls for applications opening under the Children and Young People and Shared Spaces and Services objectives’.
Commenting on the development Gina McIntyre, CEO of the SEUPB, said: ‘We are delighted to issue the letters of offer for the PEACE IV and INTERREG VA Programmes. We look forward to working closely over the coming years with our successful projects to support them as they contribute to the delivery of the Programmes objectives’.
ENDS.
For more information please contact John McCandless, Communications Manager with the SEUPB on Mob. 07834 778018 or via e-mail john.mccandless@seupb.eu
Notes to Editor:
SEUPB
- The Special EU Programmes Body is a North/South Implementation Body sponsored by the Department of Finance in Northern Ireland and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in Ireland.
- It is responsible for managing two EU Structural Funds Programmes, PEACE IV and INTERREG VA which are designed to enhance cross-border co-operation, promote reconciliation and create a more peaceful and prosperous society.
- The Programmes operate within a clearly defined area including Northern Ireland, the Border Region of Ireland and in the case of INTERREG VA, Western Scotland.
- The INTERREG VA Programme has a value of €283 million and aims to address the economic and social problems which result from the existence of borders.
- The PEACE IV Programme has a value of €270 million and aims to support peace and reconciliation and promote social and economic stability.
- For more information on the both programmes and the SEUPB please visit www.seupb.eu