- The program with EEA funds is not only an important contribution to economic and social development in the 15 EU countries that receive the funds. It also creates good opportunities for the development of our bilateral cooperation with recipient countries, says Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide.
Negotiations will start soon. Portugal, which currently holds the EU presidency, has signaled that the first negotiating meeting could take place in June. Norway has established a negotiating delegation led by the Norwegian ambassador in the EU Rolf Einar Fife.
EEA funds will be channeled to areas of mutual interest, building on past experience and system improvements
– EEA Funds are voluntary contributions that have helped reduce economic and social inequalities in the EEA. EEA finance will be directed to areas based on shared interests, building on experience from previous periods and system improvements where possible and appropriate. Europe's green environment goals are strategic important for both the EU and Norway, so the contribution to achieving them will also be important in the next period, says Eriksen Søreide.
It is crucial that EEA Grants are based on fundamental values such as democracy, the rule of law and the protection of human rights
– It is crucial for Norway that EEA funds are based on fundamental values such as democracy, the rule of law and the protection of human rights. We will demand that the agreement with the EU includes basic conditions related to the rule of law and democracy, says the minister. foreign affairs Eriksen Søreide.
- So far, an important element of the program has been support for civil society. We want the interest allocated to such purposes to increase in the next period, says the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Let us recall that last year, on the basis of a report from the Financial Mechanism Office (this is the secretariat of the EEA funds in Brussels), the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the financing of various projects in Poland in counties and municipalities that declared themselves free from LGBT ideology was inconsistent. with the provisions of the EEA funds.
Read our next article: Child care and family allowance in Norway
The report for 2020 shows that 1600 projects are currently being implemented
Every year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reviews the state of EEA funds. The report for 2020 has just been presented. It shows that 1600 projects are currently being implemented. In almost half of them, the Norwegians participate as partners. Tariff quotas and other EU improvements will be negotiated in parallel the system of trading in fish and sea products. The agreement on the new EEA funds envisages a satisfactory agreement on market access for fish and marine products.
Negotiations on EEA funds. Facts about EEA funds:
The EEA Financial Mechanism and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism (i.e. the so-called EEA and Norway Grants) are a form of non-returnable foreign aid granted by Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein. The main purpose of the Norway Grants and the EEA Grants is to contribute to the reduction of economic and social differences within the EEA and to strengthen bilateral relations between the donor and beneficiary states.
The EEA Grants amount to € 2,8 billion for 2014-2021 and are distributed among 15 recipient countries. Norway finances over 97 percent, while Iceland and Liechtenstein cover the rest.
Poland signed intergovernmental agreements (Memoranda of Understanding) on the 2014rd edition of the Norwegian and EEA funds (2021-20) on December 2017, 809,3, receiving EUR 2,8 million (out of a total pool of over EUR XNUMX billion), which makes it, as in previous editions, the greatest beneficiary.
