Union Programmes means integrated set of activities adopted by the EU for the purpose of promotion of the cooperation between Member States in different areas related to the Union policies over a period of several years.
Almost every EU policy has complementary Union Programme. The primary reason for introducing the programmes was to get European citizens acquainted with the European Union policies and activities, as well as to create EU additional value of Member States national efforts in certain area. Therefore, at the beginning, the Programmes participation was limited to the Member States. All legal entities can participate in the Programmes, and in some, certain natural persons (individuals) from those countries.
The frameworks, budgets and priorities of each of the programme are agreed on Union level. Consequently, the Programmes are funded by the Union Budget. The budget amount and funding period (normally 4-7 years) is determined by the European Council. In general, there are no national quotas for the Programmes in terms of its distribution, i.e. if necessary, the funds are distributed under given priorities and objectives.
Union Programmes cover almost each area of the social and economic life of European citizens: education, culture, youth, media, social issues, SMEs development, environment, transport, public health, legal cooperation, fight against violence, fight against crime, fight against terrorism, information society, customs and taxes. Each Programme has its own Internet site providing all information related to its objectives, activities, budgets, calls and realised projects.
Contact point at SEA:
Sector for European funds and other foreign assistance
Unit for programming European funds
Email:
Phone: +389 2 3200 232
