Sustainable growth: the EU is investing EUR 107 million in south-western Europe

The European Commission has just adopted last June 19th a territorial cooperation programme for south-western Europe (the SUDOE Programme). The programme will receive more than EUR 100 million in financial support from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) during the period 2014-2020.

The SUDOE Programme covers:

• All of Spain, except for the Canary Islands
• All of Portugal, except for Madeira and the Azores
• The regions of south-western France: Aquitaine, Auvergne, Languedoc-Roussillon, Limousin, Midi-Pyrénées, Poitou-Charentes
• Gibraltar
• Andorra

The SUDOE area has a densely populated coastal zone, with cities such as Lisbon, Porto, Barcelona, Valencia and Bordeaux, and a more rural inland zone, including regions such as Auvergne, Limousin, Extremadura, Castile, Alentejo and the Centre region of Portugal; with the exception of Madrid and Toulouse, this zone mainly contains small to medium-sized towns and cities.

The programme consists of five priority axes (plus technical assistance for implementing the programme):

1. Promoting innovatory capacity to create smart and sustainable growth
2. Boosting the competitiveness and internationalisation of SMEs
3. Improving policies on energy efficiency in public buildings and housing
4. Preventing and managing risks more efficiently
5. Protecting the environment and promoting resource efficiency.

The results expected from these investments include:

• 600 businesses and organisations participating in international research projects
• 50 services for the development and internationalisation of SMEs
• 30 pilot actions, tools or services for improving the energy efficiency of buildings
• 13.5 million people benefiting from transnational action plans for risk prevention and management
• 50 natural sites benefiting from management processes for sustainable development or environmental protection.

Additional information:

• Press release 
• Cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation programmes for the period 2014-2020
• Twitter: @EU_Regional  @CorinaCretuEU #cohesionpolicy