On 13 June 2017, the EU Strategy for Danube Region (EUSDR) National Coordinators have conferred the “EUSDR Strategic Project” status on nine projects, showcasing the successful progress, joint efforts and commitment of the Danube Region countries and relevant stakeholders in implementing the Strategy through projects.

This is the result of a collective effort led by the Danube Strategy Point (DSP) -- involving the key implementers of the EUSDR i.e. the Priority Areas Coordinators (PACs) and Steering Group Members, project promoters and ultimately the National Coordinators -- which aimed at identifying projects with high macro-regional impact benefitting the Danube Region and its EU Strategy.

The EUSDR Strategic Projects’ selection and validation process followed a bottom-up approach in line with the methodology and selection criteria set up in the Concept Paper for EUSDR Strategic Projects.

The overall process considered some 31 projects initially identified by five EUSDR Priority Areas which have decided to pursuing the status of “EUSDR Strategic Project” for selected projects in their respective areas, namely PA1a (Mobility Waterways), PA3 (Culture & Tourism), PA6 (Biodiversity & Landscapes), PA9 (People & Skills), and PA10 (Institutional Capacity). This pre-selection phase was followed by a comprehensive quality review conducted by the DSP which has led to the recommendation that nine projects meet the EUSDR strategic value and attributes defined in the Concept paper. This outcome was agreed upon and confirmed by the EUSDR National Coordinators during their meeting of 13 June 2017 in Budapest. Accordingly, the “EUSDR Strategic Project” status has been conferred on the following nine projects:

1. FAIRway Danube - Coordinated deployment of the Fairway Rehabilitation & Maintenance Master Plan for the Danube and its Navigable Tributaries;
2. Danube STREAM - Smart, Integrated and Harmonized Waterway Management;
3. Energy Barge - Building a Green Energy and Logistics Belt;
4. DAPhNE - Danube Ports Network;
5. DANTE - Improving Administrative Procedures and Processes for Danube IWT;
6. Danube SKILLS - Increased institutional capacity in Danube navigation by boosting joint transnational competences and skills in education and public development services;
7. CultPlatForm_21 - Danube Culture Platform - Creative Spaces of the 21st Century;
8. EDU-LAB - New Danubian Governance in Labour market relevance of higher education;
9. CrowdInno - Crowdfunding to drive regional Innovation.