Hongaars voorzitterschap over regionaal beleid (en)
I am pleased to present you with this publication. 2011 will be the year of Central Europe in the European Union. In the first half of the year, Hungary will assume the EU’s rotating presidency and Poland will take over in the second. The year 2011 will be a milestone in many respects in regional policy and the future of Cohesion Policy. By the end of January, the public consultation of the Fifth Cohesion report will have been concluded. The in-depth debate of the Cohesion Policy of the next Programming Period will begin, the Territorial Agenda will be revised, and as a result of Central European macro-regional cooperation the EU Strategy for the Danube Region will be adopted.
The aim of the Hungarian Presidency is to initiate a substantial debate on the future of Cohesion Policy at expert and political levels alike, in order to promote an effective dialogue between the Member States and the actors of regional policy. In order to reinforce the role and prestige of the policy, the question will be discussed at the highest political forums. We expect that by the beginning of the summer, the European Commission will have published the new legislation drafts on the cohesion and structural funds, which are essential preconditions of successful preparation for the post-2013 Programming Period.
The complexity of this publication appropriately symbolises the wide spectrum of regional policy. Under the auspices of the Hungarian Presidency, you can join the debate of Cohesion Policy, visit events relating to territorial cohesion, be part of the preparation of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region, or participate in the in-depth debate of urban development and the current issues of sustainable architecture. In addition, this brochure also includes a wide repertoire of European Territorial Co-operation Programmes thereby expanding the subject of Cohesion Policy.
Given the complex nature of regional policy, the programme events of the Hungarian Presidency will be organised in close co-operation with ministries and government bodies in order to make the Presidency a real success. Should you have any questions in relation to the specific programmes, please feel free to contact the person in charge of the specific area.
I wish you all success in your work in the first half of 2011 and I hope to see you all in person in the events organised under the Hungarian Presidency.
Best regards,
Dr. Tamás Fellegi Minister of National Development
Priorities
Cohesion Policy is a key priority for the Hungarian Presidency. As a real community policy, Cohesion Policy contributes significantly to the balanced development of regions and Member States within the European Union. By enhancing the achievement of cohesion-related objectives and aligning local needs and potentials with strategic goals, this policy also plays a key role in improving the global competitiveness of the European Union.
The Hungarian Presidency has established two major objectives in relation to Cohesion Policy. In order to increase its visibility, importance and recognition, Hungary intends to debate Cohesion Policy at high political level. On the other hand, Hungary aims to ensure, by the end of the presidency, an agreed consensus by Member States on the strategic orientation of the policy. Therefore, as part of the consultation on the Fifth Cohesion Report, Council conclusions will be prepared and the Presidency will also offer fora to facilitate the discussion of strategic issues, in particular thematic concentration, result orientation, conditionality and the integrated approach.
During the six months of the Hungarian Presidency, we aim at laying the foundations ofeffective and successful work for the Polish Presidency. This is a crucial factor for the earliest possible adoption of the new Cohesion Policy regulations and the timely start of preparations for the next programming period.
Over the past few years, in the field of territorial cohesion, Europe has witnessed a lot of changes. Since the Territorial Agenda and its background document, the Territorial State and Perspectives of the European Union have been adopted in Leipzig in 2007, territorial cohesion became the third dimension of Cohesion Policy as the Lisbon Treaty entered into force and became a shared competence of the Member States and the EU.
In Leipzig the ministers responsible for spatial planning and development asked the Hungarian Presidency to evaluate and revise the Territorial Agenda. During the revision process the interim changes in the European trends and in the policy framework will be reflected.
The aim of the Hungarian Presidency is to draw attention to the importance of territorial cohesion and channel it into the major development policy processes, such as the implementation of the Europe 2020 Strategy and the discussion on the future of Cohesion Policy.
During the Hungarian Presidency, in the field of territorial cohesion, meetings will be organised at expert, director general and ministerial levels. These meetings aim at the adoption of the revised Territorial Agenda at the informal meeting of the ministers responsible for spatial planning and development in May 2011.
From an overall European perspective, the EU Strategy for the Danube Region has a symbolic significance: it clearly indicates the increasing interdependence of the Member States in the period of globalisation. Macro-regions as units of development may contribute significantly to reducing differences in regional development within the European Union. The value of cross-border co-operation and the establishment of local and regional relations have increased, in view of the common matters a Member State is unable to manage on its own. The European Union will approve of the submitted communication and action plan of the European Commission during the Hungarian Presidency.
The Hungarian Presidency will organize thematic conferences between March and June 2011. Related to the meeting of chairpersons in charge of environment protection, nature conservation and water management at the parliaments of the various EU Member States, the Hungarian Presidency will organise a conference on 4 March 2011 on the water policy of the European Union, the EU Strategy for the Danube Region, and in connection with this, the future of Cohesion Policy. The conference is expected to focus on the ecological aspects of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region, sustainable water management and the protection of biodiversity in the region. The Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry plans to hold a regional event in April 2011 on deepening the internal market of the region, with special focus on the inclusion of Western Balkans. The conference will host top-ranking national and European Union decision-makers and trade representations. In May 2011 the National Contact Persons in charge of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region in the Member States will consult, and then Priority Area Co-ordinators will meet to discuss the key issues under the Hungarian Presidency. The aim is to have the partner states mark out the main directions of practical implementation of the Strategy and take account of the best practices before the EUSDR is launched in June 2011.
The Hungarian Presidency intends to address primarily two topics in the field of urban development, as they are major challenges to European cities: the impacts of climate change and demographic changes, including migration.
The impacts of climate change on cities will be approached in an integrated way (spatial planning, the creation of compact cities, transport planning, etc). A manual will be compiled for European city governments on the tasks and opportunities related to climate change, including examples of best practice from all over Europe. The manual will be put up for discussion in early 2011, and we intend to hand it over to the Member States at the Directors General meeting in early May.
Our second priority is the urban dimension of demographic trends. Europe requires an answer to one of the most significant global challenges, as ageing, population reduction and migration have profound influence on the everyday life in European cities. An expert study is being prepared on this issue to provide a basis for a high-level conference. Our ultimate objective is to focus attention on the global challenges of cities and channel our results into the development documents and relevant regulations of European policies. The direct target groups of our events are the Member States of the European Union, European institutions and professional organisations but our publications are intended to reach a wider audience, European municipalities and experts.
The European Forum for Architectural Policies was established to ensure regular exchange of information through its informal network for the dialogue on architectural policy, and enable individual countries to form their own architectural policies corresponding to their peculiar features but based on the shared experiences with a view to improving the quality of the built environment. The Hungarian presidency aims to reinforce the representation of professional interests in the EU Commission and promote regular co-operation in issues relating to architecture between the Member States and the institutions of the European Union. To this aim a conference is planned to be held with the title: Europe - Danube - Water -Innovation and Sustainability. The event will be an excellent opportunity for the comparative presentation of the architectural policies of the individual countries and for the exploration of the role of architecture in the implementation of the Europe 2020 Strategy and the Leipzig Charta. In round table discussions, we can share our thoughts on the appropriate answers to global problems in consistency with European trends in the implementation of the architectural policy. As regards the EU Strategy for the Danube Region, we will look at the role that Hungary and Budapest as well as architecture and spatial planning can play in the European Danube Region. With the presentation of the forward-looking - German, Austrian, Slovakian, Hungarian, Serbian and Romanian - architectural projects, we wish to set a good example to riverside developments. With the inclusion of subjects such as innovation and sustainability, we wish to draw attention to the significance of changing our ways of thinking by examining the interdependence between cities and rural areas, water management and land use. We will also explore the opportunity of architectural innovation by creatively adapting sustainable traditional skills. Target groups of the events include: politicians, professional policy-makers, decision-makers in the local governments, community planners, landscape architects, and architects from Europe and Hungary, architectural and other related educational institutions, and the representatives of professional and non-government organisations.
Hungary, as the President of the Council of the European Union will also be chairing the INTERREG IVC Programme. The Budapest Monitoring Committee meeting will focus on the decision on programme capitalisation, the process of collection, analysing and disseminating the knowledge gathered by the INTERREG IVC projects in order to increase the impact of the programme.
During the Hungarian Presidency, the last call for proposals in the INTERREG IVC programme will be open for applicants with a deadline of submission set for 1st April 2011 with nearly EUR 100 million allocated for projects. Relating to the call, in the framework of the programme the 4th Interregional Cooperation Forum will be organised as an informative and partner search event and a platform for potential partners to meet and seek practical information on application.
URBACT is an urban development network programme serving the purpose of the exchange of experiences and learning between cities, with contribution of the European Commission Initiative “Regions for Economic Change”. The Monitoring Committee, convened three times a year, will have its first meeting in 2011 in Budapest, during the term of the Hungarian Presidency.
The expected topics to be discussed at the Monitoring Committee‘s first meeting in 2011 include, among others, closing the first round of tenders, evaluation of the projects implemented in the second phase, and preparatory work for third-phase tender invitations for thematic networks and working groups.
The European Commission Initiative “Regions for Economic Change” has an important role in the URBACT programme, as it provides special support to several projects, including Hungarian ones. During the implementation of these projects the affected cities, in cooperation with the Managing Authority and with support from the URBACT Local Support Groups, will elaborate their strategic plans, and then implement them in the form of action plans with assistance from the regional operational programmes.
As in the framework of the Hungarian Presidency, Hungary will attend to presidential tasks in the ESPON Monitoring Committee, thus - in addition to the programme elements in progress - Hungary will have an opportunity to include elements it considers emphatic. The ESPON Concertation Committee has been raising awareness of the Hungarian Presidency priorities since 2010. The ESPON 2013 programme research projects launched during the Hungarian Presidency will serve the reinforcement of territorial cohesion, the third pillar of Cohesion Policy. Such research projects will include, among others, the exploration of the territorial aspects of the Europe 2020 Strategy and setting up related spatial strategies, or the unfolding of opportunities in territorial contacts along the borders of the European Union.
The ESPON 2013 programme will participate in the preparatory work and elaboration of the revision of the Territorial Agenda, and this issue will be a focal point of the 2011 Open Seminar. We also set high value on raising awareness of the Danube Strategy and its development.
The seminar will also serve as a forum for familiarizing the wider public with the ESPON Programme, its research projects and tender opportunities. Guidance will be given at different events organised in Hungary and in various publications.
Revision of the EGTC Regulation adopted in 2006 is due during the Spanish, Belgian and Hungarian Trio Presidency. Spain, Belgium and Hungary have outstanding experience in regulation and practice. In the interest of a successful revision of the operation of European Groupings of Territorial Co-operation, the presidency undertaken by the three Member States will co-ordinate their activities with the Committee of the Regions and the European Commission. A questionnaire to size up experiences was made during the turn of the Spanish Presidency, summarized by the Belgian Presidency and the evaluation will be performed during the Hungarian Presidency in the framework of conferences. It is in Hungary’s special interest to enforce the regulatory proposals aimed at facilitating co-operation between people living in border areas during amendment.
Discussions on Multilevel Governance and Subsidiarity stated in Malaga, on 16-17 March 2010 during the Spanish Presidency, will be carried on during the Belgian and Hungarian Presidencies. Belgium organised a high-level conference on Good Governance during its presidency. Hungary will carry the initiative on by tackling Multilevel Governance.
The conference will address the revision of Regulation 1082/2006 EC, experiences in the current practice of law enforcement, and an overview of the regulatory proposals on multilevel governance as a new model.