The Norwegian Financial Mechanism and the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area (EEA) in Croatia. Tuesday, 25 April 2017 Zagreb

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1 The Norwegian Financial Mechanism and the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area (EEA) in Croatia Tuesday, 25 April 2017 Zagreb

2 What are the Norwegian Financial Mechanism and the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area? Financial contribution of Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein towards the reduction of economic and social disparities with the additional aim of strengthening bilateral relations in 16 EU member states in Northern, Central and Southern Europe.

3 Contribution is based on the European Economic Area Agreement, which entered into force on 1 January Agreement brings together EU Member States and the three EEA EFTA States Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway in a single market. The EEA Agreement also states that when a country becomes a member of the European Union, it shall also apply to become party to the EEA Agreement.

4 After becoming a member of the European Union on 1 July 2013, Croatia subsequently became a member of the European Economic Area as the 16th EU Member State on 1 April 2014.

5 Since the signing of the European Economic Area Agreement in 1994, four mechanisms were implemented in the periods of , , and For the financial period, Croatia received amount of 9.6 M (proportional amount for the period 1 July 2013 end of 2014).

6 From the financial perspective, Croatia implemented projects in the areas of: Local and Regional Initiatives aiming at the reduction of national inequalities and promotion of social inclusion, Strengthening of civil society development and enhancement of contribution to social justice, democracy and sustainable development,

7 Continued: Judicial Capacity-building and Cooperation, Civil Society Support Programme - Decent Work and Tripartite Dialogue, Support under Bilateral Fund.

8 Bilateral Fund A flexible source of funding for initiatives of interest to both the donor and beneficiary states that strengthen their cooperation, Not meant to fund projects, but complementary initiatives such as conferences, workshops, study tours, studies, etc., as well as the activities in the programming phase preparing the ground for future cooperation in programmes and projects.

9 Within the Bilateral Fund in perspective, Croatia received an allocation of 515, In July 2016, Innovation Norway and Croatian Chamber of Commerce received approval of their application Study on economic cooperation between Croatia and Norway in the value of

10 The overall objective of this activity is to define areas for possible future bilateral economic cooperation between Croatia and Norway. Activity is ongoing with the planned end date - 30 May More details about this activity will be shared by my colleagues.

11 Financial perspective Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and the EU signed the agreements on the European Economic Area and Norway Grants for the period on 3 May 2016.

12 Perspective In the funding period, a total of 2.8 billion ( 1.5 billion through the EEA Grants and 1.3 billion through the Norway Grants) will be made available to the 15 EU member states to reduce social and economic disparities and strengthen bilateral relations with the three donor countries.

13 Perspective Croatia will receive 103,4 million EUR, out of which 56,8 million from the EEA Grants and 46,6 million from the Norway Grants. The support provided through the Grants reflects the priorities set out in the Europe 2020 strategy the European Union s ten-year growth strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.

14 Negotiation process Based on five priority sectors and 23 programme areas of the EEA and as defined in the document called Blue Book. Specific priorities in each beneficiary country will be agreed upon between the donor and recipient states. Croatia started the negotiation process on 21 March 2017.

15 Implementation of the EEA funds in Croatia National Focal Point & Program Operator Certifying Authority Audit Authority Irregularities control - MRDEUF - National Fund (Ministry of Finance) - ARPA (Agency for the Audit of EU Programmes Implementation System) - Service for Combating Irregularities and Fraud (Ministry of Finance)

16 Official EEA and Norway Grants web page in Croatia Contact THANK YOU!!