Brussels announces alpine region plan

The European Commission has officially launched the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP).

The strategy will have four key objectives, namely: fair access to job opportunities by building on the high competitiveness of the region; sustainable internal and external accessibility; and a more inclusive environmental framework; and renewable and reliable energy solutions for the future. The final goal is a crosscutting objective, which aims to build a sound macro-regional governance model for the region in order to improve co-operation and the action co-ordination.

This macro-regional strategy concerns seven countries, namely Austria, France, Germany, Italy and Slovenia, and the non-EU member states of Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

Detailing the new Communication and Action Plan, European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Creţu, said: “Alpine regions have a long lasting tradition of co-operation, with a number of networks already in place, and the ambition of this strategy is to strengthen this existing solidarity.

“It is the fourth macro-regional strategy in Europe; experience shows that their success highly depends on commitment and ownership. We therefore need strong political leadership and active involvement of all regional and national partners to fully exploit the potential of the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region.”

EUSALP will mobilise and draw upon existing EU and national funding instruments, including the European Structural and Investment Funds, Horizon 2020, the COSME programme, the Connecting Europe Facility, LIFE programme and the European Fund for Strategic Investments.

It is anticipated that more than 70 million people will reap the benefits of closer co-operation. The Commission hopes the new strategy will be endorsed by the European Council later this year.