We have reached an important milestone for the new Danube Region Programme yesterday! At the 10th Task Force meeting on 13 December 2021, Member state representatives approved the final version of the cooperation programme 2021-2027.

 

Yesterday's decision brings us another step forward in the process of adopting the new programme, which has formally started in 2019. Since then, the Task Force, composed of the representatives of 14 Danube countries, have held regular meetings to decide on the programme's content. The final version of the programme was prepared by the Managing Authority/ Joint Secretariat based on an independent Analysis of Territorial Challenges, Needs and Potentials of the Danube Region, the Interreg Regulation for the 2021-2027 period and the feedback from more than 500 contributions from the public consultation. The following are the priorities for the new period: 1. A Smarter Danube Region, 2. A greener, low-carbon Danube Region, 3. A more social Danube Region, 4. A better cooperation governance in the Danube Region.

 

However, the programming process is still not at the end yet. In the final step, the programme needs to be submitted to the European Commission (EC) for approval. We expect this to happen early next year, with its final adoption expected in June 2022. Before that, we are planning to present the new Danube Region Programme in a series of online events and announcing the first call for applications in April.