Estonia - Latvia Programme 2007-2013 EstLat/Annual...4 The Operational Programme (hereinafter also referred to as the “OP”) for the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013 was approved

1

Estonia - Latvia Programme 2007-2013

Cross-Border Co-operation Programme under the European Territorial Co-operation Objective

CCI No 2007 CB 163 PO 050

ANNUAL IMPLEMENTATION REPORT

2012

May 2013

2

Table of Contents 1 IDENTIFICATION ............................................................................................................................... 3

2 OVERVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OPERATONAL PROGRAMME ................................ 5

2.1 Achievement and analysis of the progress .............................................................................. 5

2.1.1 Information on the physical progress of the Operational Programme ........................... 5

2.1.2 Financial information as of 1 January 2007 – 31 December 2012 .................................. 8

2.1.3 Information about the breakdown of the use of the funds ........................................... 10

2.1.4 Assistance by target groups .......................................................................................... 10

2.1.5 Assistance repaid or re-used .......................................................................................... 11

2.1.6 Qualitative analysis ....................................................................................................... 13

2.2 Information about compliance with Community Law........................................................... 22

2.3 Significant problems encountered and measures taken to overcome them ........................ 22

2.4 Changes in the context of the operational programme implementation ............................. 24

2.5 Substantial modification pursuant to Article 57 of Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 ............. 24

2.6 Complementarity with other instruments ............................................................................ 24

2.7 Monitoring and evaluation .................................................................................................... 25

2.8 EU Strategu for the Baltic Sea Region ................................................................................... 26

3 IMPLEMENTATION BY PRIORITY .................................................................................................... 28

3.1 Priority 1 Increased cohesion of the Programme area ......................................................... 28

3.1.1 Achievement of targets and analysis of the progress ................................................... 28

3.1.2 Significant problems encountered and measures taken to overcome them ................. 30

3.2 Priority 2 Higher competitiveness of the Programme area .................................................. 30



3.3 Priority 3 Active, sustainable and integrated communities .................................................. 32



4 MAJOR PROJECTS .......................................................................................................................... 34

5 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ................................................................................................................ 34

6 INFORMATION AND PUBLICITY ..................................................................................................... 41

6.1 Information and publicity activities ....................................................................................... 41

6.2 Media Monitoring ................................................................................................................. 44

7 CHALLENGES FOR 2013 ................................................................................................................. 45

3

1 IDENTIFICATION

OPERATIONAL

PROGRAMME

Objective concerned European Territorial

Cooperation

Eligible area concerned Estonia (Lõuna-Eesti, Lääne-

Eesti) and Latvia (Kurzeme,

Pierīga, Rīga, Vidzeme)

Programming period 2007-2013

Programme number (CCI No) 2007 CB 163 PO 050

Programme title Estonia – Latvia Programme

2007-2013

ANNUAL

IMPLEMENTATION

REPORT

Reporting year 2012

Date of approval of the

annual report by the

Monitoring Committee

The Annual Implementation Report of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013 has been

prepared in accordance with Article 67 of the Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 of 11

July 2006 laying down general provisions of the European Regional Development Fund, the

European Social Fund and the Cohesion Fund as well as the model provided in Annex VI of

the Commission Regulation (EC) No 846/2009 of 1 September 2009 amending Regulation

(EC) No 1828/2006 setting out rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No

1083/2006. The Commission Regulation (EC) 1828/2006 was further amended by

Commission Regulation (EC) 832/2010 of 17 September 2010. Annex I of this Regulation

replaces point 2.1.2 Financial information of Annex XVIII of the Commission Regulation (EC)

No 1828/2006. The Programme implementation is also based on the relevant provisions of

the Regulation (EC) No 1080/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the

European Regional Development Fund.

The Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013 (hereinafter also referred to as the

“Programme”) is a cross-border cooperation programme including the NUTS III regions from

Estonia (Lõuna-Eesti, Lääne-Eesti) and Latvia (Kurzeme, Pierīga, Rīga, Vidzeme).

4

The Operational Programme (hereinafter also referred to as the “OP”) for the Estonia –

Latvia Programme 2007-2013 was approved by the European Commission on 21 December

2007.

The Agreement between the Estonian Ministry of the Interior, the Republic of Estonia and

the Republic of Latvia on the management and administration of the Estonia – Latvia

Programme 2007-2013 came into effect in March 2009. The agreement stipulates the

structure, as well as the rights and obligations of the Programme institutions and the main

principles of the Programme implementation and management. In Estonia, the Ministry of

the Interior hosts the Managing Authority (hereinafter also the MA), the Certifying Authority

(hereinafter also the CA) and the Audit Authority (hereinafter also the AA) of the

Programme.

In Latvia, the Ministry of the Environmental Protection and Regional Development is the

responsible institution for the Programme as of 1 January 2011.

The main contact point for the applicants and beneficiaries is the Joint Technical Secretariat

(hereinafter also as the JTS), which is located in Estonia, in Tartu. The JTS is established as a

separate legal entity within Enterprise Estonia (hereinafter also as the EAS). During the

previous years, the JTS had the Info-point in Riga. However, as there was no practical need

for the info-point anymore because all the funds had been committed by the end of 2012,

the decision was taken by the MC to close down the Riga info-point as of 1 January 2013.

The relations between the Programme authorities and the JTS as well as the JTS’ activities

and obligations are regulated by the Administration Contract between the Estonian Ministry

of the Interior and the EAS.

The overall objective of the Programme is to promote sustainable development and

economic competitiveness of the Programme area through achieving an integrated and

cross-border approach to economic, social and environmental development in ways, which

involve and benefit local people and communities.

The report includes the following annexes:

1) Information about the breakdown of use of the funds

2) List of the projects approved in 2012

3) List of supported projects during the implementation period

4) List of the projects contributing to the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region

5

2 OVERVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OPERATONAL

PROGRAMME

2.1 Achievement and analysis of the progress

2.1.1 Information on the physical progress of the Operational Programme

The Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013 has four priority axes: priority 1: Increased

cohesion of the Programme area” with two directions of support, priority 2: “Higher

competitiveness of the Programme area with three directions of support, priority3: “Active,

sustainable and integrated communities” with two directions of support. Priority 4 is

Technical Assistance (hereinafter also the TA). The total ERDF allocation to the priorities 1 –

3 is 35 934 836 EUR. By the end of 2012 all Programme funds had been committed. As

described in the Annual Implementation Report 2011, in May 2011 in Jurmala, the MC

decided to allocate the funding available under the 1st and 2nd priority to the projects

strategically important for both countries. This decision was taken to better focus the

Programme aims and to manage the de-commitment risk. Finally six such project

applications were approved by the MC at the meeting in Tartu in May 2012 or via written

procedure. The projects are described in the section 6.1.2 “Qualitative analysis”.

By the end of 2012, sixty three projects had received financing from the Programme and

during the year nine subsidy contracts were signed including the contracts for two strategic

projects. All in all 30 amendments were formalised to the previously signed subsidy

contracts. As of the end of 2012, twenty five projects had been completed with the final

payments made.

With so many projects finished and several being close to submitting their final reports it is

fair to make some conclusions about the overall implementation of the programme, which

concerns implementation of projects. All in all, the projects have done a good job with

fulfilling their promises stated in the application forms and none of the projects have been

stopped or closed down before its planned end. In the Programme Document the target set

for an indicator “percentage of all projects approved for funding implemented successfully”

was 95%, but so far the Programme has the success rate of 100% and it should be realistic to

keep it this way till the end of the Programme.

Partly it is a result of a thorough assessment procedure before approval of projects - the

weaker projects have been put aside already during assessment. But also a good and

intensive cooperation between the projects and authorities of the Programme has

supported achievement of this aim, and professional work of project teams, both on a lead

partner and partner level. Naturally, the capacity of project teams has varied with some

projects needing only comments and clarifications from the first-level control bodies and the

JTS during the whole project cycle, while there have also been projects, who need sufficient

assistance in compiling the reports or request for changes. Usually finishing the project is the

most challenging part for partners, as processing the last reports might extend to a year or

more after all the other project activities are completed. It means that people have already

6

other tasks, possibly some involved persons have left for other jobs etc, which makes this

step of the project in some cases problematic and time-consuming. But again, for projects

with cooperative and professional teams, who might have also earlier international

cooperation experience and are led by strong managers, the finalisation of the projects does

not pose a problem. Often such teams are led by outsourced project managers.

However, as said above, all the projects have been successfully implemented so far, i.e. their

objectives have been achieved, and only in a few cases have the projects lost partners during

project implementation. Most common reason for stepping out of partnership has been

limited financial resources, i.e. the partners have not had sufficient funds to credit their

activities and wait for reimbursement. In such cases other partners have always taken over

the tasks of stepped out partners and negative effects on achieving the projects’ objectives

have been avoided.

In 2012 the Amendment to the Operational Programme of the Estonia - Latvia Programme

2007-2013 was approved by the European Commission Decision C(2012) 7497. The

Monitoring Committee had approved the Amendment on 28 February 2012 and before the

final approval, the unofficial consultations were held with the Commission. The proposal for

amendments to the Operational Programme of the “Estonia - Latvia Programme 2007-2013”

arose from different necessities – from the results of the Programme evaluation, highlighting

the socio-economic changes, as well as from more technical issues related to the

implementation of the Programme.

Amendments to the Operational Programme were the following:

Chapter 7.6.4. Amendment to specify requirements for signing the declaration of

confidentiality and impartiality – exclusion of the principle of signing a declaration of

confidentiality and impartiality when being nominated by each member of the

Monitoring Committee. Only the principle of signing the declaration of confidentiality

and impartiality at each meeting of the Monitoring Committee was preserved in the text

of the OP.

Chapter 8.1 (d) Amendment to specify de minimis rule applicable to the Programme –

the principles of granting de minimis aid to agricultural production in accordance with

the Commission Regulation (EC) No 1535/2007 and to the fisheries sector in accordance

with the Commission Regulation (EC) No 875/2007 were included to the text of the OP.

Amendment in the ERDF co-financing rates of Priority Axes 1 and 2 – community funding

allocated for private partners under priorities 1 and 2 was decreased to 600 000 EUR in

Priority Axis 1 and 500 000 EUR in Priority Axis 2; and the share of community funding

allocated to public partners was increased accordingly to ensure more efficient use of

ERDF funds.

Amendment in the ERDF co-financing rate to Priority Axis 4 – Technical Assistance. The

amount of ERDF co-financing for Priority Axis 4 remained at the same level, as in the

7

original Operational Programme, but the ERDF co-financing rate was raised to 49% from

35,76%.

Chapter 10.1. ERDF co-financing rate to revenue generating projects was previously up to

50% of eligible expenditure of revenue generating projects. According to the amendment

the principle of co-financing all types of legal entities participating in revenue generating

projects with the co-financing rate 50 per cent was excluded from the text of the OP.

In 2012, the Member States started to design the Estonia – Latvia programme 2014-2020.

Several activities in this context were implemented including formation of the Joint

Programming Committee (hereinafter also “JPC”), identifying the possible cooperation areas,

recruiting Programme preparation expert etc. Different activities related to the

programming of the next period are described in a more detail in the chapter 2.1.6

Qualitative analysis.

8

2.1.2 Financial information as of 1 January 2007 – 31 December 2012

Table 1

Total funding of the operational programme (Union and national)**

Basis for calculating Union contribution (Total cost)

Total amount of certified expenditure paid by beneficiaries

Corresponding public contribution

Implementation rate in %

a b c d e=c/a

Priority Axis 1 Increased cohesion of the Programme Area 26 035 355,00 Total costs 10 473 003,41 10 165 411,12 40,23%

Priority Axis 2 Higher competitiveness of the Programme area 12 579 750,00 Total costs 8 110 584,67 7 818 223,04 64,47%

Priority Axis 3 Active, sustainable and integrated communities 4 227 628,00 Public costs 2 643 534,57 2 643 534,57 62,53%

Priority Axis 4 Technical Assistance 4 681 047,00 Public costs 1 703 577,75 1 703 577,75 36,39%

Grand Total 47 523 780,00 22 930 700,40 22 330 746,48 48,25%

*Certified and send to the European Commission as of 17.10.2012. ** Based on Commission decision 24.10.2012

The Certifying Authority carried out its activities according to the work-plan for 2012. The CA sent to the European Commission an annual statement for the year 2011 on

withdrawal and recovered amounts, pending recoveries and irrecoverable amounts on

14.03.2012. In annual statement for the year 2011 on withdrawal and recovered amounts,

pending recoveries and irrecoverable amounts the CA stated that 704,14 euros of ineligible

costs were deducted from Technical Assistance Priority1 and that the programme had 2,26

1 The CA deducted these recovered ineligible TA costs 704,14 euros from the statement of expenditure No 6 that

was sent to the European Commission on 17.01.2011.

9

euros of pending recoveries in the under the priority 1 and 1143,64 euros pending

recoveries in priority 22.

The CA submitted 2012-2013 ERDF payment forecast to the European Commission on

09.04.2012. The indicative ERDF forecast for Estonia-Latvia Programme 2007-2013 for the

year 2012 was 7 935 000 EUR and for the year 2013 it was 6 123 610.

In 2012 the CA received from the European Commission interim payments in total 8 759

577,88 EUR (the CA fulfilled 110,39% of the payment forecast). All together the CA drew up

and submitted to the European Commission the certificate, statement of expenditure and

application for payment three times on the following dates: 29.02.2012; 18.05.2012 and

17.10.2012. By 30 September 2012 the CA had cumulatively certified 22 930 700,40 EUR of

total eligible costs to the European Commission.

The CA applied for and received bridge financing 13 130 000 EUR from the Ministry of

Finance of the Republic of Estonia in 2012, the repayment deadline is 2.12.2012. Most of the

bridge financing was paid back to the Ministry of Finance by end of 2012; however

571 511,12 euros bridge financing has not been paid back to the Ministry of Finance. This

amount will be paid back after next interim payment will be made by the European

Commission. The European Commission did not make any additional prepayments to the

Estonia - Latvia Programme account during the year 2012.

The CA certified 10 429 190,41 EUR (incl. eligible ERDF support 8 408 982,09 EUR) total

eligible costs at project level during the period January 1, 2012 - December 31, 2012. The CA

had sufficient resources for making all required ERDF payments to the project beneficiaries

in 2012.

In 2012 the CA was fully staffed, there was some turnover of staff in the CA. The new CA

senior accountant joined the CA in 9 March 2012. There were 4 officials working for Estonia

– Latvia Programme in the CA: Head of the Finance Department, Deputy Head of the Finance

Department, chief specialist (part-time) and senior accountant (part- time).

The assessment of the CA is that the progress of the implementation of the Estonia - Latvia

Programme 2007-2013 in the year 2012 was good. In order to speed up the implementation

of the Estonia – Latvia Programme, CA made 726 812 euros pre-payments to the projects in

2012.

2 As of 31.12.2011 there were 2 pending recoveries: project EU30063 „Back to Nature“ (total ineligible sum

2,26 euros) and project EU29867 „IAVV“ (total ineligible sum 1143,64 euros). These ineligible costs the CA

deducted from the next statement of expenditure No 9 that was submitted to the European Commission on

25.01.2012 .

10

2.1.3 Information about the breakdown of the use of the funds

The information about the breakdown of the use of the funds has been completed as

foreseen in Part C of Annex 2 of the Commission Regulation (EC) No 1828/2006 of 8

December 2006 and transmitted to the European Commission via SFC system.

2.1.4 Assistance by target groups

By their legal status, the project applicants in 2012 represented only public sector, as only

strategic projects were supported by the Programme in 2012. The six supported projects,

which were pre-selected by the Member states, are all carried out by different publicly

financed bodies, as can be seen from the table below . Altogether they involve 43 partners –

38 from Latvian and 15 from Estonia.

In total, the division of ERDF commitments between target groups is as follows (in EUR):

Table 2: Assistance by target groups

TOTAL 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008

Local public authorities 8 258 274 23% 1 483 118 19% 452 721 7% 49 943 1% 2 323 425 19% 3 949 067 71%

Regional public authorities 1 786 523 5% 879 388 11% 113 844 2% 0 0% 793 291 7% 0 0%

Environmental bodies 1 576 620 4% 0 0% 228 779 5% 164 617 4% 1 140 751 9% 42 473 1%

Universities and research institutions 1 441 046 4% 183 426 2% 274 776 4% 0 0% 982 844 8% 0 0%

State agencies 5 634 371 15% 349 995 4% 901 739 14% 2 971 112 70% 380 482 3% 1 031 043 19%

Other public bodies 13 327 684 36% 5 483 802 65% 2 861 862 45% 0 0% 4 982 020 41% 0 0%

NGOs 3 882 241 11% 0 0% 1 281 583 20% 1 066 805 25% 1 206 911 10% 326 942 6%

Private partners 687 838 2% 0 0% 200 219 3% 0 0% 307 592 3% 180 027 3%

Total 36 594 597 100% 8 379 729 100% 6 315 523 100% 4 252 477 100% 12 117 316 100% 5 529 552 100%

Examples of the projects implemented in the framework of the Programme

Project FoodArt organized a number of specialized trainings for farmers and food growers,

teaching them different methods that would help them sell their locally grown products to

gourmet restaurants in nearby cities and finding new markets. Põlva region farmer Ly Kaasik

from Põhjala farm in Southern Estonia participated in Food Art hands-on training about

baking, herbs and spices. Already by Christmas time the product that she designed during

the training sessions – tea „The Christmas Warmth” („Jõulusoojus” in Estonian became a

seasonal bestseller. The farm managed to produce around 1500 packages for the holidays,

all sold out in markets in Tallinn and Võru. The project promises to bring many other success

stories in the area of food in the future.

11

ICT DCNet project focused on establishing better connections between the IT and business

sectors in Estonia and Latvia. The most visible and also most successful creation of this

project were three Demo Centres – hubs for information and communication technology

service developers – in Riga, Tartu and Ventspils. Each of the centres specializes in providing

a slightly different service, for instance, Riga Demo centre focuses on robotics testing, Tartu

Demo Centre’s focus is mobile and location based services, and Ventspils is more specializing

for showcasing high technology products. All three centres are now up and running and

available for business clients that want to test their product prototypes or software

applications as well as other audiences, seeking to learn more about locally designed

technologies.

Local Artists for Regional Development project, which aimed to educate and motivate

artists in the regions to become more active in selling their art, has not only been recognized

by its immediate target audiences but also beyond. In December 2012 this project,

implemented jointly by Cesis and Tartu received an international „Cultural Award 2012 ”

from the Union of Baltic Cities. This annual award is given to a Baltic sea region city for active

and innovative work in culture and was awarded to Tartu and Cesis for for joint cultural

cooperation and involving of local artists living in the regions into the cultural life of the

society. The justification of the award also notes the contribution of cultural activities

towards other areas, for instance, economy, social sphere and city environment.

Connecting Stende and Võhma project concluded in 2012 with opening of an open air stage

in Stende on the European Cooperation Day 2012. Similar stage earlier has been constructed

also in Võhma. Both towns have a long-lasting cooperation, which started in 2001 and in

2012 was even more active thanks to the project, during which a number of exchange visits

between various groups of people - dance groups, choirs, youth choirs and craftspeople –

were organised. The main events – Latvian Days in Võhma and Estonian Days in Stende –

already took place for the second year in a row and are bound to become a tradition in the

future, thus uniting these two rural communities long beyond the official project duration.

The project also helped both towns with marketing – new logos were established for

attracting visitors, as well as a special table game was developed, thus creating an interest

about cooperation across borders among younger Stende and Võhma inhabitants.

2.1.5 Assistance repaid or re-used The CA made one reclamation decision for project EU29902 “Protolab” on 23 January 2012.

Total ineligible costs were 4788,58 EUR, including ineligible ERDF support 4070,29 EUR and

ineligible co-financing 718,29 EUR. Tartu Science Park Foundation paid back ineligible ERDF

support 4070,29 EUR on 24 January 2012.

The contracting authority Tartu Science Park Foundation did not respect the following

provisions of the Estonian Public Procurement Act: § 39 section 1; § 38 section 2 in

conjunction with section 1 and § 47 section 1 and section 2. Legal basis for the recovery

12

decision was decree of the Government of Estonia No 278 “Conditions and procedure of

recovery and reimbursement of assistance and submission of information concerning

irregularities in granting and using assistance” §11¹ section 4.

Tartu Science Park Foundation also did not perform correctly the requirement arising from

the Subsidy Contract for the implementation of the project of the Estonia – Latvia

Programme 2007-2013 § 3 point 2 to implement the project with the requisite care,

efficiency, transparency and diligence, in line with best practice in the field concerned and in

compliance with the contract: this is related to the ineligible alcohol costs.

Table 3: Detailed breakdown of ineligible costs based on 23.01.2012 “Protolab” reclamation decision

Ineligible costs Sum (in euros) Incl. ineligible ERDF support for public sector

Incl. ineligible co-financing for public sector

5% from Termoskale UAB (procurement No 111513) contract for furnace 5 333,37 € (without VAT)

266,67 226, 67 (85%) 40 (15%)

5% from all other contracts (27882,02 €) of procurement No. 111513

1 394,10 1 184,98(85%) 209,12(15%)

5% from contract with Fastems UAB No. 09/07/03-1 on 03/07/2009 for universal turning lathe NEF 400 in sum 59600 € (without VAT) (procurement No. 114451)

2 980 2 533(85%) 447(15%)

50 % of the costs of alcohol beverages (Wild Grupp OÜ invoice No. 90 on 06/10/2009 and OÜ Püssirohukelder invoice No. 1458 on 13/01/2009. Total sum 295, 61 (VAT included))

147,81 125,64 (85%) 22,17 (15%)

Total 4 788,58 (100%) 4 070,29 (85%) 718,29 (15%)

13

2.1.6 Qualitative analysis

The implementation of the Programme continued actively in 2012. There were two MC

meetings held in 2012, both in Estonia - in Tartu in May and in Pühajärve, in December. The

MC made altogether six funding decisions in 2012.

Three funding decisions in the total amount of 5 029 999 EUR were made at the MC meeting

in May when the following three strategic projects were approved:

1) Project “Improvement of traffic conditions on Ape-Mõniste connection road between

Riga-Pskov and Võru-Valga-Valmiera transport corridors (Reconstruction of road

Ape–Mõniste)”;

2) Project “Coastal and maritime spatial planning in Pärnu Bay area in Estonia and

coastal municipalities of Latvia (Coastal and maritime spatial planning)”;

3) “Renovation of Valga-Valka railway station (WRS)”.

Three funding decisions in the total amount of 3 349 730 EUR were made by the MC via

written procedure:

4) Project “Development of Estonian – Latvian and Latvian – Estonian dictionary

(DICTIONARY)” (Priority 1);

5) Project “Building Cross-border Capacity to Perform Joint Activities in Tough

Environment (JATE)” (Priority 1);

6) Project “Development of water tourism as nature and active tourism component in

Latvia and Estonia (Riverways)“ (Priority 2).

In total, the ERDF commitment to the six projects was 8 379 729 EUR.

The first MC meeting was held in Tartu, Estonia on 11 May, where additionally to the

approval of the applications of the strategic projects, the main decisions were related to the

changes in the Programme Manual specifying some implementation and reporting

requirements:

1. Setting a threshold for costs of alcohol beverages allowed to be

reported by project partners. The formulation added to the Programme Manual

is: “Alcoholic beverage are eligible only together with a meal and in

moderation, forming up to ¼ of the respective invoice” (Chapter 5.3.4. Travel

and Events);

2. Defining the situations when the MA has the right to decrease a project

budget (Chapter 8.9 De-commitment Rule). The following was decided:

Budgets of the projects which have spent less than 60 % of their planned

funding by the end of the 1st project year will be reduced by the unused

amount of the 1st year, unless a sound justification for non-reduction is

provided by the LP. The JTS follows the spending rate and in case of such

significant under-spending, the projects will be individually contacted;

14

3. Amending and simplifying the reporting procedure in case partners have

no costs to report (so called zero costs report) (Chapter 9.1. Submission

of Progress Reports);

4. Changing the procedure for declaring costs by allowing the reporting of

the costs from the previous milestone and specifying that the division of

project budget into work packages is indicative (Chapter 9.1. Submission

of Progress Reports);

5. Setting forth the rules for applying the flat rate in reporting

administration costs according to the decision of the MC made in

October 2011, approved by the European Commission in April 2012

(adding a new chapter 9.2. Use of flat rate for reporting administration

costs).

- These decisions were taken to better manage the Programme implementation as well

as to facilitate the reporting procedure in order accelerate carrying out the project

activities and the use of funds.

The MC approved the guidelines for preparation of reclamation decisions in the

Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013.

The second MC meeting in 2012 was held in Pühajärve, Valga County, Estonia on 4

December where the main decisions were the following:

1. In relation to the Programme’s commitments and expenditure, the MC asked the

JTS to contact the project “Seto-Suiti Renaissance”, which was the first project in

the reserve list of the 3rd priority by the decision made by the MC at the meeting

on 13-14 December 2011 and inquire whether the project partners are still able

to carry out the project.

To date, the partners have confirmed the readiness to implement the project.

Also they have fulfilled the conditions set by the MC and the project application

was approved by the MC at the meeting on 13-14 May 2013.

2. Taking into account the amendments to the Operational Programme, the MC

made the following decisions:

To approve the principle of continuation of the use of pro-rata based

shares to national contribution of Priority Axis 4 (Technical Assistance), as

agreed in the Agreement between the Estonian Ministry of the lnterior, the

Republic of Estonia and the Republic of Latvia on the management and

15

administration of the Estonia - Latvia Programme 2OO7-2013 CCI No.2OO7 CB

163 PO 050.

New co-financing levels are as follows:

- Estonian national contribution will be 20.62% of the total TA budget,

which is 40.43% of the total member states’ contribution to national co-

financing budget to Priority Axis 4 (Technical Assistance).

- Latvian national contribution will be 30.38% of the total TA budget, which

is 59.57% of the total member states’ contribution to national co-financing

budget to Priority Axis 4 (Technical Assistance).

3. Concerning the Riga Information Point, the MC decided:

3.1. Close the office of the Information Point of the Estonia – Latvia

Programme 2007-2013 at the State Regional Development Agency of the

Republic of Latvia (hereinafter also SRDA) as of 1 January 2013.

3.2. Stop covering costs related to the office space of the Information Point

from the technical assistance budget of the Estonia – Latvia Programme as of

1 January 2013, which have been approximately 2500 EUR/year.

3.3. Stop covering costs of the support staff of the Information Point at SRDA,

which have been approximately 5800 EUR/year.

3.4. Close the Information Point of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013

according to the host agreement by Enterprise Estonia and State Regional

Development Agency, i.e. on 31 December 2013.

Preparation of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2014-2020

In 2012, the programming of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2014-2020 started. The

Member States decided to form the Joint Programming Committee for the preparation of

the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2014-2020 and it was established in March 2012. The JPC

consists of the representatives of the ministries and regional public authorities, five persons

from both countries. The JPC discusses all the issues related to the programming and is the

decision-making body for the preparation of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2014-2020.

In 2012, two JPC meetings took place: in March in Riga, Latvia and in October in Tallinn,

Estonia. The main issues of discussion included the working procedures of the JPC, and

mainly steps to be taken for the preparation of the new programme. It was decided to have

stakeholders’ seminars on prior agreed topics (see below in this chapter), start elaborating

of the content of the thematic objectives and decide on the investment priorities.

The activities of the JPC were included as a separate section into the work-plan of the

Programme and EUR 150 000 was allocated from the TA budget to the new programme’s

preparation activities during the 2012, 2013 and 2014 if necessary. The work-plan and the

TA budget were approved by the MC on February 6, 2012.

16

The JTS of the current Programme supports and provides services to the JPC, including

organisation of the meetings, conducting written communication, preparing documents etc.

In 2012, two JPC meetings were held.

The Member States also decided to recruit a programme preparation expert – a person who

is responsible for writing the Programme document as well as for the coordination and

supervision of all activities related to the preparation of the new Programme. The vacancy

of the programme preparation expert was announced in May and following the interviews,

the programme preparation expert started to work at the JTS office in Tartu on 13 August

2012.

The preparation of the new Programme also implies carrying out the ex-ante assessment

involving the Strategic Environmental Assessment. The JTS launched the first tender on 17

July with a deadline of 15 August. However, the first tender was not successful and the

second one was launched on 9 November with the deadline of 3 December 2012. Three

offers were received and consequently a contract was awarded to the consortium of

companies CPD (Estonia) and Safege Baltija (Latvia).

Stakeholders’ involvement

One of the most challenging tasks of the programming process is to design the content of

the new programme. As the first step, the Member States had to agree on the cooperation

areas based on the 11 thematic objectives as presented in Article 9 in the proposal of the

Regulation by the European Parliament and the Council laying down common provisions for

the European Social Fund, for the European Regional Development Fund, the Cohesion Fund,

the European Agricultural Fund for Rural development and Fisheries Fund covered by

Common Strategic Framework. The areas were identified via consultations with the regions

and the Member states decided to research the following fields further:

1) Education (including higher education, vocational education, hobby schools, adult

education (based on the TO 10)

2) Transport networks and accessibility including physical transportation and ICT

(based on the TO 9)

3) Environment and green economy renewable energy, energy saving, energy

independency (based on the TO 6)

4) Business development and competitiveness (based on TO 3)

5) Employment and labour market needs combined with the lifelong learning (based on

TO 8)

Four of these five seminars were organised in 2012.

The early involvement has ensured transparency and pro-activeness, as the information

about the Programme preparation is proactively accessible. In general, the constant

communication with the stakeholders helps indicating priorities, specifying information and

17

needs within each priority topic, and compiling situation analyses upon which the content of

the programme will be designed.

The overall objectives of the seminars were to identify on a bottom-up basis the main

problem areas and sub-themes in the specific fields, and the possible solutions, actions and

measures that could be supported from the next Estonia-Latvia programme. The seminars

were organised as moderated discussions and group work, using a brainstorming

methodology. During the seminars 2-3 brainstorming sessions were organised which were

focusing on the following issues: identifying the main problems, suggesting possible actions

for the next programme period and coming up with concrete ideas for possible projects,

which could be submitted during the next programme. Finally, the participants were asked

to vote for the ideas they considered most important.

The first seminar was held with the stakeholders and experts in the field of education, and

took place on 27 June 2012 in Salacgriva, Latvia with 42 participants. During the seminar 3

brainstorming sessions - individual and in group - were organised.

In the first session the participants identified a large number of existing problems, which

were grouped by the moderators into 5 areas:

1. Quality and Content of Education. The problems identified under this sub-topic

reflected the general idea that the quality of the education needs to be improved

on all levels, starting with primary and secondary education and finishing with

higher education.

2. Better Links between Education and Labour Market. The topic highlighted mostly

the challenges how to better adapt the focus and content of education with the

real needs of companies.

3. Building joint vision and strategy for Estonia-Latvia cooperation. The topic

highlighted lack of coordination and planning between Estonian and Latvian

policy makers in the area of education. Many problems in both countries could be

better addressed if it would be done jointly and with shared resources.

4. Life-long learning and continuing education. The main problems identified were

related to the shortage and accessibility of life-long learning possibilities. Another

major problem area was linked to the fact that e-learning possibilities are not

effectively used and properly promoted.

5. Role of education for regional development. This topic highlighted mostly the

problems related to the role educational institutions in local and regional

development.

The actions that were voted as the most important for cooperation were: strengthening

cooperation of vocational education centres (ranked 1st); support increased qualification of

teachers and adaption of teaching curricula to industry/business needs (ranked 2nd);

integrating real business elements into education (ranked 3rd).

18

Concrete project ideas identified as most important were: elaboration of Estonian-Latvian

language teaching materials (ranked 1st); vocational schools networking (teachers trainings

and exchanges) (ranked 2nd and 3rd); joint training of specialists for cross-border (business)

projects (railway, wind parks etc.); future strategic projects between Estonia and Latvia

(ranked 2nd and 3rd).

The second seminar was held with the stakeholders and experts in the field of

transportation and accessibility, which took place on 18 October 2012 in Valga, Estonia. The

discussion seminar was held in a group of 24 experts and specialists from relevant ministries,

regions, local authorities and road administrations. The seminar also took into account the

outcomes of the Latvia - Estonia Intergovernmental Commission meeting that was held a

week earlier on 9-10 October in Pärnu, Estonia.

The discussion was structured under three topics; the problems and the ideas were

mapped relevantly. With each topic, the discussion followed three aspects:

- Strategic plans in the state level (members of ministries)

- Plans and needs on the local level with cross-border impact (members of

municipalities)

- Concrete ideas, objects and their estimated approximate cost.

• Railways. To apply for railway projects was not considered to be reasonable as the

states have more resources from other funds (Cohesion fund, TEN-T) to finance bigger

railway projects. Programme resources should come to the local level.

• Waterways. Very much related to the tourism (e.g. yachting as tourism segment,

connect all small harbours – agree on standards for harbours, improve the infrastructure

(similar standards – access to water, electricity), marketing campaign. As for the ferry

lines: the programme should not support daily operating activities, but investments and

infrastructure.

• Roads. It was discussed to be reasonable to support roads that connect bigger towns

rather than small roads with low density of traffic; key word is connectivity. The

bottlenecks on existing roads, dangerous places in the border area should be identified

and improved. To see the bigger complex picture: e.g. link to education when the

number of schoolhouses is decreasing: access to schoolhouses, cycle roads to connect

villages and small towns etc.

Taking into consideration that the financial capacity of the Estonia – Latvia programme is

relatively small for large investments, it might be reasonable to concentrate on either 1-2

bigger strategic investment objects or several smaller scale service improvement

activities in the area of transport and accessibility. The rating of the listed objects and

ideas emphasised the cooperation interest in sea area (passengers and ferry lines - 8

points; yacht and tourism development at ports - 7 points), which are also strongly

related to the tourism development.

19

The third seminar was held with the stakeholders and experts in the field of

environment and green economy, which took place on 6 November 2012 in Valmiera,

Latvia. Altogether 30 persons participated representing the range of specialists from the

relevant ministries, local authorities, and environmental organisations. The discussions

were held under 5 following sub-topics that were identified after grouping all indicated

problems from the first individual brainstorming:

- Energy

- Urban planning, waste management

- Nature protection

- Water and coastal issues

- Awareness and education

Most important measures and actions mentioned were the following: using renewable

energy sources, renewable energy planning; saving energy in buildings; green infrastructure;

water, parks, recreational area (riverbanks etc.) - to make it attractive for people; eco traffic

system in urban and rural areas; bicycle paths (urban and rural); re-designing brown areas

(industrial and military fields); waste management; development of joint methodology for

ecosystem service (assessment and evaluation); work out joint set of management rules for

cross-border protected areas and joint visitors’ infrastructure (nature centres); pilot projects

and good practices for managing cultural heritage sites (both privately and publicly owned);

generate local nature products and services for tourists, support for product development,

branding, marketing; best practice in management of Natura 2000 sites; the Baltic Sea coast

protection.

The seminar showed the high importance of the issue of energy and resource saving, yet the

investments are too big and cross-border effect needs to be specified. Awareness and

education on green economy is needed and this could be implemented as a supportive

activity in parallel with any other action. Urban planning and waste management is

important, but organising this in cross-border cooperation is a challenge as the country-

specific regulations could be an obstacle. Nature protection was the most common

cooperation area.

The forth seminar was held with the stakeholders and experts in the field of business

support, and took place on 28 November 2012 in Kopra Farm, Viljandi County, Estonia. The

focus of the discussion was on supporting the SMEs, therefore it targeted the

representatives of organisations and authorities in the programme area that were involved

with supporting the SMEs on a daily bases.

The seminar focused on the following subtopics: public sector’s support to businesses;

business to business activities; capacity of SMEs: product development, R&D, innovation; life

in rural areas. The most important actions and measures to overcome the problems

mentioned in the seminar were the following:

20

- Creating a meeting point (15 points). Physical and virtual meeting place for SMEs, start-

ups, unions, local government, investors, etc. Purpose: to consult, coach, network,

exchange, finance.

- Separate small project fund for border areas (12 points). To consider both land and sea

border.

- Clustering (9 points). Joint marketing / tender etc.

- Market research projects (5 points). Virtual networks. Business meetings.

- Creating risk capital (5 points). Fund for export, start-up’s, fast growing businesses.

- Regional marketing (5 points). Cross border marketing.

- Developing rural infrastructure (incl. business infrastructure) (4 points).

It was emphasised at the seminar that support for the SMEs is most effective when

comprising a strong practical output and impact for small businesses daily action.

Therefore practical benchmarking trips lead by competent coordinators, social events for

trust building, and individual contacts can be the most beneficial methods for long term

impact, and are highly valued among SMEs.

The results of the seminars will be further discussed by the JPC members in order to

finalise the selection of topics and to meet the needs of the area in the best possible

way.

Impact of the projects on the Programme environment

As the programme period nears its end and many projects have already been completed, the

Programme authorities continue to hear positive stories about the impact of the

implemented projects. Most project implementers and beneficiaries agree that the projects

have left an impact on their communities and helped develop connections and products that

otherwise would have not been possible. According to several impact interviews that were

conducted in 2012 with the partners of the finished project and also written feedback that

has been received, projects not only achieved their intended goals but lied ground for other

future cooperation activities between Estonians and Latvians either in other territorial

cooperation programmes, in business contacts or just in the area of cultural and social

exchange.

Protolab network partners in Tartu, Ventspils and Ogre noted that the project helped them

establish a cross-border network of prototyping laboratories, thus sharing individual

experiences and specializing in various areas of prototyping. Now partners can easily direct

potential clients to the best possible service provider. Also, the establishment of the network

is helping these specialized laboratories to cooperate with clients from the business and

research sectors not only in their home markets but also internationally.

Representatives of the project admitted said the project implementation period coincided

with the economic recession, and the project funds and challenges helped their

21

organizations to survive through the toughest times, when the funding from other sources

was minimal or non-existent. The laboratories were able to develop also during those slower

times and now, when the economies have recovered, are ready to provide services to

innovative companies. The greatest benefit from the project, as all three sides noted, are the

contacts with partners in the neighbouring country, which have already been used in putting

together and implementing other joint projects as well as development of business relations.

Estonian partners from Tartu are finding ways to the Latvian clients through partners in Ogre

and Ventspils, while Latvian partners find new markets for prototyping services in Estonia

and even Scandinavian countries through their Tartu counterparts.

Representatives from Cultural Cooperation for Intermediates project similarly value most

the contacts established across the borders. They point out that some of the cultural

traditions, started during the project, are now continued on a voluntary basis. Now it has

become easy to pick up the phone and call their counterparts across the border and invite

them to perform at a local cultural event. The infrastructure that has been renovated in the

framework of the project helps attract more people to the social and cultural activities in the

community, claims the director of one of the renovated culture houses. In some cases the

number of people participating in local cultural groups have doubled. Simple investments

into infrastructure, such as renovation of bathrooms or instalment of lighting equipment in

small rural culture house are still talked about and appreciated by the beneficiaries.

Alūksne – Haanja Uplands project representatives told that besides improved contacts with

the neighbours, the project helped to upgrade the qualifications of many skiing and biathlon

trainers and judges. They are now able to find work opportunities and although it was one

small part of the project, it changed the lives of many individuals in the situation of

economic recession and unemployment in the region. They are able to find jobs for training

or judging. Some of the traditions of visiting competitions across the border were created

with the help of the project.

Est-Lat-Pharma project representatives have told us that the project has helped them

establish new working contacts between pharmaceuticals industry and research bodies in

Estonia and Latvia. Now the cooperation in this fast growing and developing industry is much

smoother than before, which also helps to develop new products and attract new customers

from new markets, including in Western Europe.

In general the effect created by the projects is usually greater than the project partners

expected during the preparation process, as cross-border cooperation and new contacts

have widened their horizon and created new opportunities. In many cases the intensity of

cooperation is high also after the end of the project with project partners clearly benefiting

from it. While most of the benefits often stay within partner organisations or within a limited

group of experts, there are also projects with wider and more visible impact. The most

22

intensively used public sites improved with the help of the Programme are probably the

reconstructed cross-border roads in south-western Estonia and Northern Latvia, and large

recreational area in the centre of Valga/Valka on the border of Estonia and Latvia. But also

small-scale cooperation projects, which have altogether attracted tens of thousands of

spectators and participants in the fields of singing, dancing, art, handicraft, various sports

and youth cooperation have increased visibility of the Programme in the border area and

enlivened the idea of cooperation in the region.

Last, but not least, the Programme has also managed to support entrepreneurship in the

region, which initially did not go so smoothly. The projects like Good Fruit, ProtoLab

Networks, BaltOrgPotato, Food Art, Buy Local, SIB Net and Est-Lat Pharma have all

contributed to development of entrepreneurship and supported especially small companies

to define and fulfil their plans.

2.2 Information about compliance with Community Law

The Programme has been set up and is implemented according to the relevant Community

legislation: Regulation (EC) no 1080/2006 of 5 July 2006 on the European Parliament and of

the Council on the European Regional Development Fund; Council Regulation (EC) no

1083/2006 of 11 July 2006; Commission regulation (EC) No 1828/2006 of 8 December 2006

setting out rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006;

Commission Regulation (EC) No 846/2009 of 1 September 2009 amending Regulation (EC)

No 1083/2006; Commission Regulation (EU) No 832/2010 of 17 September amending

Regulation (EC) No 1828/2006.

The applicable legislative acts are available on the Programme web-site and appropriate

provisions have been included into the Programme Manual. In addition, the subsidy contract

signed between the Managing Authority and the lead partner lists all relevant Community

legislation as well as refers to the Estonian and Latvian national legislation to be followed in

the implementation of the projects.

The changes in the Community and national legislations are followed on a regular basis and

if necessary, the approved legislative changes will be incorporated in the Programme

documents. So far there have been no problems with the implementation of the operational

programme regarding Community Law.

2.3 Significant problems encountered and measures taken to overcome

them

In 2012, some significant problems were identified by the second-level audit. These concern

two projects: “Baltic small harbours network” (“Baylink”) and “Raising the attractiveness

and competitiveness of North Kurzeme in Latvia and Saaremaa Island in Estonia by

improving tourism environment and its offer using the natural advantages of coastal

municipalities” (One vacation – Two Countries”).

23

Regarding the project “Baylink”, the contracting authority, Mersrags Port Authority has not

followed the certain provisions of the Latvian national legislation and of the Subsidy Contract

signed for the implementation of the project. The infringements concerned the following:

Incorrect amendments of the employment contracts of some employees of the

Mersrags Port Authority. These amendments stipulated overtime work for the

project, whereas overtime work according to the Regulation No 89 adopted on 27

January 2009 of the Cabinet of Latvia is ineligible.

The requirements set for the project manager in the project application and in the

tender documents were not followed thus the selection of the best possible

candidate was not ensured.

Regarding the project “One vacation – Two countries”, the case concerned the Estonian

partner, Kuressaare Municipality. One sub-objective of the project was to get the Blue Flag

for the beaches of Kuressaare municipality and for Ventspils city (LV). However, by the time

of the application for the Blue Flag by Kuressaare municipality, the Estonian organisation

“Keep the Estonian Sea Tidy”, which coordinated the Blue Flag application procedure, had

withdrawn its membership from the international organisation granting the Blue Flag

certificate. Unfortunately the Kuressaare Municipality was not aware of this situation. In this

case the amendment to the Subsidy Contract should have been formalised in order to

change the sub-objective, however this was not done. Yet Kuressaare Municipality had

implemented all activities and made all investments related to this sub-objective, which

considerably improved the conditions of the beach therefore making it more attractive for

the tourists as well as for the local people. However, it is only in the competence of the

Foundation of the Environmental Education to tell whether the activities were sufficient for

the obtaining the Blue Flag.

As a result of these infringements the error rate of the of the audited operations was 6,32%.

The Programme authorities have seriously considered these findings and taken measures to

improve the management system. The procedures of the first level control are re-checked

and special attention is paid to the verification of procurements. The procurement checklists

have been reviewed to ensure that all procurement types are covered. Also the need for the

procurement expert in the Programme is assessed.

The JTS reinforces its monitoring system – in addition to the Programme consultant and the

project partner, the site visit reports will be reviewed and signed also by the Head of the

Secretariat. The Programme Manual will be further complemented by the cases requiring

the amendments of the Subsidy Contract.

However, it could be mentioned that measures taken in 2011 to decrease the risk of de-

commitment (e.g. introduction of flat rate for administration costs, pre-payment system),

24

which were described in the Annual Report 2011, have helped to achieve the target level of

expenditure to avoid de-commitment till the end of the Programme. Nevertheless, the JTS

will continue close monitoring of the spending rate of projects and will ask also quarterly

updates from the project partners on their expenditure plans to be able to react quickly in

case the risk of de-commitment rises again.

2.4 Changes in the context of the operational programme implementation

In order to monitor changes in the context of the operational programme implementation,

10 context indicators have been listed in the programme document. Mostly the trends of

context indicators reflect macro-level developments in Estonia and Latvia, and more

specifically also in the programme area.

In 2012 both Estonia and Latvia showed clear evidence of coming out of economic recession.

The first signs of passing recession were visible already in 2010 and 2011 and in 2012 these

trends continued. Compared to 2011 unemployment rate decreased from 10,80 % to 10,24

% in the programme area in Estonia and from 13,88 % to 13,65 % in the programme area in

Latvia, the growth of GDP per capita was 5,6 % year on year in Estonia and 9,9 % year on

year in Latvia; and increasing number of enterprises and NGOs in the programme area both

in Latvia and Estonia.

Also more specific context indicators show positive trends, including growing number of

households with internet access in the programme area, by 69,61 % in Estonia and 68,70 %

in Latvia in 2012 compared to 2011 and steady raise in number of tourists, both domestic

and foreign by 7,9 % in Estonia and 17,2 % in Latvia in 2012 compared to 2011.

2.5 Substantial modification pursuant to Article 57 of Regulation (EC) No

1083/2006

There have been no cases of investments in infrastructure or productive investments,

undergoing substantial modifications, caused by a change in the nature of ownership or

cessation of productive activities, affecting the nature or the implementation conditions of

the operation or which gave to a firm or a public body an undue advantage in 2011 – as

stipulated in paragraph 1 under Article 57 of the Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 of 11

July 2006, amended by Regulation (EU) No 539/2010 of the European Parliament and of the

Council of 16 June 2010.

2.6 Complementarity with other instruments

As in 2012 only strategic projects were supported by the Programme and these strategic

projects were pre-selected by the member states, initially the member states checked that

the projects, were not financed from any other sources.

25

During the assessment procedure, in order to avoid double financing, the JTS checks the

projects stored in Enterprise Estonia database, which have a link with the project

applications submitted under Estonia – Latvia Programme and may have received financing

from the ERDF or ESF. In addition similar checking is performed in SFOS system, which is an

operative system of Structural Funds in Estonia, managed by the Ministry of Finance and

includes information on the projects financed under ERDF, ESF and CF.

On the Latvian side, similar procedures are carried out by Latvian National Responsible

Authority. More precisely, Latvian National Responsible Authority carries out cross-checking

with the relevant ministries to find out, whether similar activities have already been financed

by other financing sources.

Also the lead partners confirm by signing the application form, that the project, either in

whole or in part, has not received or will not receive any complementary EU funding during

the whole duration of the project. In addition the applicants are asked to describe any links

to on-going and/or finalised related programmes, projects and activities, and explain the

added value to be created through a particular project.

None of the strategic projects received financing in the field of agriculture in 2012 therefore

there was no need to do cross-checking with the Estonian Agricultural Registers and

Information Board, which was done during the previous years.

2.7 Monitoring and evaluation

The general basis for all the actions related to the proceedings of the project applications

and reports are the Programme Manual and rules of procedure of the Monitoring

Committee.

The technical tool for the proceedings regarding project application and monitoring of the

projects is Navision (internal electronic database of the Enterprise Estonia for project related

information, adjusted for the needs of Estonia – Latvia Programme). All documents related

to different project processing steps are uploaded in Navision, which enables to follow the

progress of a particular project.

On a project level, the JTS is carrying out regular site visits to each running project. On

average each project is visited ca 2 times by the JTS during its implementation. The

Programme consultants also try to participate in project meetings (especially kick-off

meetings), events or openings of investment objects. These visits significantly help the JTS

staff to get a real overview of the project activities and partners, and establish stronger

working relationship with the project staff. During the site visit, the “Site visit form” is

completed, where the results of the visit are described. In 2012 the JTS carried out 30 site

visits to projects.

The site visits are also carried out by Estonian and Latvian first-level control bodies. They,

inter alia, check the accuracy of the accounting system and the correct filing of

documentation including public procurement documents, verify themselves on the existence

26

of the goods and services procured or delivered during the Programme. In 2012, total 38 site

visits were carried out by Estonian and Latvian first-level controllers.

The first-level controllers check the partner reports and ultimately issue a confirmation on

the acceptance of the report to the lead partner of the project. Relevant information is also

sent to the project partner. On the basis of the approved partner reports the lead partner

compiles a progress report, which is sent to the JTS for approval and for further submission

for a payment.

Each progress report, when submitted for a payment to the CA, is accompanied by a letter

signed by the Head of the JTS confirming that the project has been so far duly implemented,

is in accordance with all set requirements and the applied amount comprises of eligible

expenditure only.

On the Programme level, the Managing Authority follows, through information received

from the JTS, FLC or from Navision, the implementation of the projects. The Managing

Authority submits a confirmation letter to the Certifying Authority on due implementation of

the Programme bi-annually. The letter is accompanied by a site visit table, which summarises

the information of the visits carried out by JTS and FLC as well as by the table on the

implemented audits. In case some shortcomings are identified, a deadline is provided for

their elimination in the site visit, and in the audit table.

2.8 EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region

Estonia - Latvia Programme 2007-2013 includes South, and West Estonia NUTS III regions

and North, West and part of the Central Latvia NUTS III regions. Thus the Programme area is

quite limited. Also most of the projects are of rather local character and impact, focusing on

the cooperation of local municipalities, foundations, NGOs in the border regions of the two

countries. The EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region is targeted at a macro-region and should

have a trans-national or at least inter-regional impact. Because of its local focus, the

Programme does not contribute directly to the implementation of the EUSBSR, as the small

projects do not have a wider trans-national impact.

However, as both countries are situated in the Baltic Sea region and the Estonia - Latvia

Programme is called forth to improve the situation in the border areas of Estonia and Latvia,

it has been decided to take EUSBSR on board to the extent it is considered appropriate and

feasible for the Programme. The projects which results have a wider impact and can be used

in the whole Programme territory or beyond it or which could create new development

potentials in the area the project is implemented have been identified as contributing to the

EUSBSR. The projects’ objectives and activities should also directly comply with the priority

areas of the Action Plan concerning the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region.

The labelling is done in cooperation between National Responsible Authorities, Joint

Technical Secretariat and Managing Authority.

27

Altogether 11 projects have been considered to have a link to the EU Strategy for the Baltic

Sea Region, and these links have been noted on the Programme website (at each project

description). In 2012, one new project was identified as contributing to the EUSBSR: „Costal

and Maritime Spatial Planning”. The table including the projects contributing to the EUSBSR

is added as Annex 4 to the report.

In 2012 the Programme Information Manager participated in two EU Strategy for the Baltic

Sea Region and at one of them presented Estonia – Latvia Programme storytelling example –

a documentary segment about the Reconstruction of Karksi-Nuia – Seda River cross-border

road, thus sharing the Programme experience in communicating its contributions to the

EUSBSR.

28

3 IMPLEMENTATION BY PRIORITY

Chart 1: Financial overview at the end of 2012

3.1 Priority 1 Increased cohesion of the Programme area

3.1.1 Achievement of targets and analysis of the progress

Table 4: Overview on the fulfilment of indicators under the 1st priority

Indicator Objective Baseline 2007

Achievement – 2012 (based on

project application

forms)

Programme target -

2015

Fulfil-ment % - 2012

Priority 1

1.Number of projects

creating new or

improving the existing

cross-border transport

connection links

Improved physical

connectivity of the

Programme area 0 5 10 50%


improving access to ICT

networks or services

Improved physical

connectivity of the


29


developing joint use of

infrastructure

Enhanced joint

management of public

services and resources

in the Programme area

0 9 5 180%


developing

collaboration in the

field of public services

Enhanced joint



in the Programme area

0 10 5 200%


finding joint solutions

to similar

environmental

problems

Enhanced joint



in the Programme area 0 9 10 90%

6.Number of people

participating in joint

education or training

activities

Increased knowledge

and capacity of the

target group 0 2134 300 711%

Table 5: Priority 1 by direction of support

Direction of support ERDF

allocation

ERDF committed

2012

ERDF committed

total

% of committed

ERDF ERDF paid

1.1 Reducing isolation through improved internal and external connectivity of the Programme area

21 914 737

4 949 994 12 091 680 54% 4 296 675

1.2 Enhancing joint management of public services and resources

1 629 735 10 151 476 46% 4 963 124

Total 6 579 729 22 243 156 100% 9 259 799

In total, twenty one projects have been supported under priority 1 – seven projects under

direction of support 1.1 and fourteen under direction of support 1.2. In 2012 five projects of

strategic importance to Estonia and Latvia were approved under priority 1, three under 1.1

and two under 1.2. At the end of 2012, the amount over-committed under this priority was

328 419 EUR. Although, the over-committed amount is steadily decreasing, as all the

finished projects report certain under spent sums, priority 1 might face a small shortage of

funds in the end of the Programme, which can be up to 67 000 EUR based on the newest

forecasts. However, on the Programme level no shortage of funds should appear in the end

of the period, thus re-allocation of funds between priorities should be sufficient for covering

a possible shortage under priority 1 in 2015.

As it was predicted in the annual report of 2011, major improvements took place concerning

the payment rate of priority 1 in 2012. While by the end of 2011 only 2.88 MEUR were paid

30

out to the beneficiaries, by the end of 2012 more than 9.25 MEUR are paid out, which

constitutes over 42% of the ERDF allocation for the priority. It means that the payment

amount was more than two times higher in 2012 than during all the previous years of the

Programme. Mostly it was caused by large payment requests of road construction projects.

Also the status with fulfilment of indicators has improved under priority 1, as five out of six

strategic projects approved in 2012 belong under priority 1. Especially the increased

fulfilment rate of two indicators with the lowest rates („Number of projects creating new or

improving the existing cross-border transport connection links“ and „Number of projects

improving access to ICT networks or services“) must be appreciated. Nevertheless, these two

indicators remain with the lowest fulfilment rates with the reasoning provided in the annual

reports for 2010 and 2011.

3.1.2 Significant problems encountered and measures taken to overcome them

There were no significant problems encountered related to priority 1.

3.2 Priority 2 Higher competitiveness of the Programme area


Table 6: Overview on the fulfilment of indicators under the 2nd priority

Indicator Objective Baseline

2007


project application

forms)

Programme target -

2015


Priority 2


promoting

entrepreneurial spirit

and skills

Increased overall

economic

competitiveness of the

Programme area

0 11 15 73%


supporting the

development of

economic activities

with higher value

added

Increased overall

economic




encouraging the

development of cross-

border trade

Increased overall

economic


Programme area

0 7 10 70%

31

4.Number of co-

operation projects

between enterprises

and research or

education institutions

Increased overall

economic


Programme area

0 9 10 90%

5.Number of new or

improved joint tourism

products or services

Increased

attractiveness of the

Programme area for

visitors

0 20 20 100%


developing joint use of

infrastructure

Increased

attractiveness of the

Programme area for

visitors

0 6 10 60%

7.Number of

entrepreneurs

benefiting from the

projects aimed at

improving the business

environment

Increased capacity of

business operators in

the Programme area 0 942 300 314%

8.Number of people



activities

Increased knowledge

and capacity of the

target group 0 2475 1400 177%



allocation ERDF committed

2012 ERDF

committed total

% of committed

ERDF ERDF paid

2.1. Facilitating business start-up and development

10 426 615

0 3 581 215 33% 2 748 276

2.2. Increasing the attractiveness of the Programme area

1 800 000 6 716 603 62% 3 889 869

2.3. Enhancing employable skills and human resources

0 475 600 5% 250 829

Total 1 800 000 10 773 419 100% 6 888 974

Altogether sixteen projects have been financed under priority 2, nine under direction of

support 2.1, six under direction of support 2.2 and one under direction of support 2.3. One

strategic project was approved in 2012, which belongs under direction of support 2.2. At

the end of 2012, the amount over-committed under this priority was 346 804 EUR. However,

the over-committed amount is steadily decreasing, as all the finished projects report certain

under spent sums. Based on current forecasts up to 110 000 EUR could remain unspent

under priority 2 by the end of the Programme, unless these funds are allocated for

additional activities of the already running projects, as there is no reserve list of projects

32

under priority 2, or re-allocated to priority 1, which might face a small shortage of funds in

the end of the period.

The payment rate under priority 2 continues to be good with 2/3 of the total ERDF allocation

of the priority being paid out by the end of 2012.

The status with fulfilment of indicators has not changed much compared to 2011, still the

only project approved under direction of support 2.2. has made a significant shift in

fulfilment rate of the indicator “Number of new or improved joint tourism products or

services” from 25% last year to 100% this year. For the rest of the indicators more

explanations have been provided in annual reports for 2010 and 2011.


There were no significant problems related to priority 2.

3.3 Priority 3 Active, sustainable and integrated communities


Table 8: Overview on the fulfilment of the indicators under the third priority

Indicator Objective Baseline 2007


project application

forms)

Programme target -

2015


Priority 3


improving services for

the communities

Improved availability of

services in the



increasing the activity

of local communities

Increased activity of

the local communities 0 26 10 260%

3.Number of rural

municipalities involved

in project

implementation


local communities in


4.Number of non-

governmental

organisations involved

in project

implementation


local communities in


33

5.Number of

participants benefiting

from joint social and

cultural activities

Increased social and

cultural integration of

the people in the

Programme area

0 51984 40000 130%

6.Number of people



activities

Increased knowledge

and capacity of the

target group 0 8625 300 2875%



allocation

ERDF committed

2012

ERDF committed

total

% of committed

ERDF ERDF paid

3.1 Improving the environment for active and sustainable communities

3 593 484

0 1 433 857 40% 959 582

3.2. Promoting grass-root level actions

0 2 144 166 60% 1 416 059

Total 0 3 578 022 100% 2 375 641

Altogether twenty six projects have been financed under this priority, seven projects under

direction of support 3.1 and nineteen projects under the direction of support 3.2. In 2012,

no projects were approved under priority 3. Although it was predicted in the Annual Report

of 2011 that at least one of the priority 3 projects from the reserve list can be approved in

2012 it did not happen as there was not enough funding released from under spending of

finished projects yet. Compared to last year’s financial status of priority 3 with over-

commitment of 87 774 EUR the situation is more promising at the moment with 15 462 EUR

ready to be committed, but this is not sufficient for the first project in the reserve list, which

requests 107 310 EUR ERDF support. Based on the spending forecasts submitted by the lead

partners of the running projects such sum should be available by the time all the running

projects are finished, but hopefully the project could be contracted already earlier, i.e.

within 2013, to allow full implementation of the project before the closure of the

Programme. Thus, the JTS continues close monitoring of the spending rates and forecasts of

running projects under priority 3 and as soon as sufficient funds are available the first

project in the reserve list will be contracted.

The payment rate under priority 3 continues to be good with 2/3 of the total ERDF allocation

of the priority being paid out by the end of 2012.

As no projects were financed under priority 3 in 2012, the situation with fulfilment of

indicators has not changed and relevant chapter of previous annual report covers the topic.

34


There were no significant problems related to priority 3.

Chart 2: Share of each direction of support to the total funding

4 MAJOR PROJECTS

Financing of major projects is not applicable in the framework of the Estonia – Latvia

Programme 2007-2013

5 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

The overall allocation of Technical Assistance in the Programme is 6 413 396 EUR with the

Community funding being 2 293 713 and national co-financing 4 119 683 EUR. The

Community share made up 35,76% of the total allocation but as mentioned before in the

report, with the Amendment of the Operational Programme the ERDF allocation was raised

up to 49%.

The total approved TA budget for 2012 was 626 732 EUR. In total, the eligible expenditure of

the TA was 452 940 EUR in 2012. For the period 2007-2012 the total eligible expenditure of

the TA amounts to 2 170 209 EUR. These figures reflect the sums confirmed by the First

Level Control bodies. The certified amounts are provided in the chapter 2.1.2 above, in table

1.

35

TA budget and work plan for 2012 were approved by the Monitoring Committee on 6

February 2012. TA budget was amended once in 2012, the following amendments were

approved at the MC meeting on 4 December 2012:

Amendments to the budget of the Joint Technical Secretariat

1. Budget line “Labour costs”:

The annual planned sum for the budget line “Labour costs” was decreased from

249 600 EUR to 232 600 EUR, as the staff costs of Tartu office were not used in

planned extent due to leaving of one programme consultant in June 2012, whose

position was not filled during the second half of 2012, and parental leave of the head

of the JTS during the second half of 2012.

Costs of the programme preparation expert for Estonia - Latvia Programme 2014-

2020 were added, as since August 2012 an expert has been employed at the JTS.

2. The annual planned sum for the budget line „Office expenses“ was increased from

29 400 EUR to 30 400 EUR , because the costs for announcing the vacancy of the

programming expert’s position at the JTS had not been planned in the JTS budget.

3. Annual planned sum for budget line „Publicity and marketing“ was increased from

57 100 EUR to 73 100 EUR, as the costs for celebrating the European Cooperation Day

and producing a documentary movie about the Estonia - Latvia Programme was more

expensive than planned.

4. Room rent and catering at other meetings organised by the JTS was added under the

budget line “Programme Meetings’ costs”, because JTS organised a meeting in Tartu in

July 2012 for information managers of CBC programmes active in Estonia and Latvia in

order to coordinate European Cooperation Day celebration activities.

5. Budget line “External expertise, analysis”:

Monitoring implementation of approved projects was added, as in the end of June

2012 one of the programme consultants left the JTS and her employment contract

was terminated. However, the consultant has helped the JTS to conclude processing

of several projects – DemoFarm, FireSafe, ICT DCNet, Skills Centre and SIB-Net – in

the frames of a service contract.

Assistance to the acting head of the JTS and programme preparation expert was

added, because the head of the JTS is working for the JTS in the frames of a service

contract during his parental leave from June 2012 till May 2013.

Explanation of the JTS budget

The labour costs included:

1) Staff costs of an information manager, assistant, 4 programme consultants,

programme preparation expert and the head of the JTS, all full time positions;

2) 1 full time information point manager and part-time support staff of the State

Regional Development Agency;

3) Staff costs of the position of 1 controller of the Latvian FLC;

36

4) Staff training costs.

Office expenses included:

1) Office costs of the JTS office in Tartu (rent, utilities, stationary), office equipment,

communication costs, costs for publishing job offers;

2) Office costs of the Information Point in Riga (rent, utilities, stationary), office

equipment and communication;

3) Office costs of 1 Latvian FLC controller's position.

Travel and accommodation costs included:

1) Travel and accommodation costs of the JTS staff;

2) Travel and accommodation costs of the FLC staff for participating in 4 trainings;

3) Travel and accommodation costs of 1 Latvian FLC controller's position;

4) Travel and accommodation costs of the Monitoring Committee (MC) members,

related to participation in the MC meetings;

5) Rent, fuel and maintenance of a car of the JTS.

Programme Meetings’ costs included:

1) Room rent and catering at 2 MC meetings in Estonia;

2) Room rent and catering at 1 meeting between Estonian and Latvian FLCs and the JTS;

3) Room rent and catering at a few other working meetings organised by the JTS in

connection with implementation of the Estonia – Latvia Programme.

Database costs included:

1) Development of the database of Enterprise Estonia according to the needs of the

Estonia - Latvia Programme.

External expertise, analysis costs included:

1) Translation and interpreting costs;

2) Assessment of construction documentation attached to project applications by

construction expert;

3) Workshops on communication and seminars in Estonia and Latvia on procurement

issues – altogether 6 trainers;

4) Monitoring implementation of approved projects;

5) Assistance to the acting head of the JTS and programme preparation expert.

Publicity and marketing costs included:

1) Annual conference of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013;

2) Promotion of the ETC day;

3) Partner day to for partners of the running projects;

37

4) Events for partners of the running projects – seminars on reporting and publicity

requirements and on communications and procurement issues;

5) Website developments;

6) Newsletter design and translation;

7) Production of promotional materials (pens, reflectors, bags, stickers, flags).

Total sum for publicity and marketing costs for 2012 was a bit higher than that of 2011, as

for the first time the European Cooperation Day was celebrated in Europe and for the

Estonia – Latvia Programme it meant subcontracting production of several documentary

clips on the results of the projects and organising an annual conference in Võru, Estonia

focusing on the cross-border cooperation, its benefits and challenges.

Explanation of the MA, CA, AA budget

Labour costs included:

1) Labour costs of 2 full time employees in the MA, 2 part-time employees in the CA

with work load up to 60%, 1 full time employee in the AA;

2) Staff costs of the position of 1 controller of the Estonian FLC;

3) Ca 5 per cent for fringe benefit.

Wages of the employees of the MA, AA and CA for 2012 remained on the same level as in

2011, following the principles of the personnel policy of Estonian Ministry of the Interior.

However, as the workloads of the employees have increased and one full time position was

added to the First Level Control from the beginning of 2012, the total amount of labour costs

has increased.

Taking into account the phase of implementation of the Programme and the need to

manage de-commitment risk, the work load of the two employees of the CA increased due

to the increase of payment and pre-payment volume to the project partners as well as

keeping an account of amounts recoverable and withdrawn. Both employees of the CA spent

up to 60% of their time for the Estonia - Latvia Programme, in total this makes up 1.2 work

load for two persons.

Office expenses included:

1) Costs of translation;

2) Communication costs (landline and mobile phone costs);

3) Transportation costs;

4) Overhead costs – room rent etc;

5) Purchase of bureau equipment – 1 table and 1 dictophone to the CA, 1 laptop

computer and 1 laptop battery for the MA, workplace for 1 FLC controller if

necessary;

38

6) Room rent and catering at the meetings related to the Programme implementation,

including meetings of the Recovery Committee by the Certifying Authority, with the

Group of Auditors by the Audit Authority etc;

7) Costs related to trainings of the MA, AA, CA and 1 Estonian FLC controller’s position,

including MS Project software training, training and CGAP exam for the employee of

the Audit Authority etc;

8) Expertise – the following costs have been planned to the TA budget:

MA has planned 2 000 EUR for legal advice etc;

AA has planned 500 EUR for expertise related to the auditing of operations.

Travel and accommodation costs include:

1) Travel and accommodation costs of the staff, including

Travel and accommodation costs of 1 Estonian FLC controller's position;

Travel and accommodation costs of the Programme Authorities to MC meetings;

Travel and accommodation costs of the Programme Authorities, related to

participation in trainings in Estonia and abroad, including Interact-type of

trainings;

Travel and accommodation costs of the MA include attending COCOF meetings,

MA network meetings etc;

The costs of the AA for attending the meetings of the Group of Auditors and

carrying out site visits of the operations;

The costs of the Programme Authorities regarding participation in the activities

related to the preparation of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 20014-2020 and in

the Joint Programming Committee meetings.

Budget for the preparation of the cross-border programme between Estonia and Latvia for

the period 2014-2020

In addition to the costs of the Programme Authorities the TA costs also included the

preparation of the next co-operation programme between Estonia and Latvia for the period

2014-2020. The MC decided to allocate 150 000 EUR to cover the programming activities in

the years 2012, 2013 and in case of need in 2014.

The total available amount for programming activities is entered into the TA budget of the

Estonia - Latvia Programme 2007-2013 separately under ‘Preparation of the cross-border

programme between Estonia and Latvia for the period 2014-2020’. The detailed budget of

the programming activities was compiled and approved by the JPC.

The budget of the programming activities includes, but is not limited to the following types

of costs:

Travel and accommodation costs:

1) Travel and accommodation costs of the members of the Programming Committee.

39

Programme Meetings’ costs:

1) Room rent and catering at the meetings of the Programming Committee;

2) Room rent and catering at the meetings with the stakeholders.

External expertise, analysis costs:

1) Elaboration of the Operational Programme for the next period;

2) Carrying out the ex ante evaluation.

40

Table 10: Technical Assistance in 2012

Total Tartu

office Riga IP Total

Tartu

office Riga IP

Program-

ming

2014-

2020

Total Tartu

office Riga IP

Program-

ming

2014-

2020

Total Tartu

office Riga IP

Program-

ming

2014-

2020

Staff costs 773 651 661 076 112 575 232 600 178 600 54 000 180 062 158 125 21 937 953 713 819 201 134 512 0

Office expenses 137 311 114 699 22 612 30 400 24 400 6 000 24 230 20 719 3 511 161 541 135 418 26 123 0

Travel and accommodation 78 685 64 288 14 397 39 872 20 380 10 000 9 492 22 000 17 947 3 914 140 100 685 82 235 18 311 140

Programme Meetings (MC) 24 031 24 031 0 33 960 10 800 23160 12 126 4 277 7849 36 157 28 308 0 7 849

Database 39 856 39 856 0 3 000 3 000 0 1 499 1 499 0 41 355 41 355 0 0

External expertise, analysis 152 056 152 056 0 32 050 32 050 0 13 612 13 612 0 165 668 165 668 0 0

Publicity and marketing 132 626 132 626 0 73 100 73 100 0 65 797 65 797 0 198 423 198 423 0 0

Reserve 0 0 0 11 383 0 0 11383 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

JTS TOTAL 1 338 217 1 188 632 149 585 456 365 342 330 70 000 44 035 319 328 281 977 29 361 7 989 1 657 544 1 470 609 178 946 7 989

Labour costs 302 765 0 0 113 224 0 0 106 882 0 0 409 647 0 0

Office costs 31 670 0 0 21 940 0 0 5 862 0 0 37 532 0 0

Travel and accommodation 44 617 0 0 35 203 0 0 20 868 0 0 65 485 0 0

MA/AA/CA TOTAL 379 052 0 0 170 367 0 0 133 612 0 0 512 664 0 0

TOTAL JTS + MA/AA/CA 1 717 269 1 188 632 149 585 626 732 342 330 70 000 44 035 452 940 281 977 29 361 7 989 2 170 209 1 470 609 178 946 7 989

Eligible expenditure 2007-

2011Planned budget 2012 Eligible expenditure 2012 Total eligible expenditure 2007-2012

Joint Technical Secretariat

Managing Authority, Audit Authority, Certifying Authority

41

Table 11: Overview on the fulfilment of indicators under the Technical Assistance

Priority 4. Technical assistance

Indicator Objective Baseline

2007 Achievement

– 2012 Programme target - 2015

Fulfilment % - 2012

1.Percentage of all projects approved for funding implemented successfully

Efficient assessment, selection and monitoring procedures of the Programme

0 100% 95% 100%

2.Number of events, seminars and trainings organised for the publicity, information and capacity building about the Programme

Increased knowledge and capacity of the target group about the Programme 0 83 32 259%

3.Number of participants to different Programme events (conferences, workshops, seminars, trainings)

Increased knowledge and capacity of the target group

0 2732,

including 1835 female

1 200 thereof at least 50%

female

228%

6 INFORMATION AND PUBLICITY

6.1 Information and publicity activities

The information and publicity activities have been carried out in 2012 in accordance with the

Communication Plan approved by the European Commission in January 2009. The focus of

2012 activities has been on showcasing the Programme results through featuring project

partners and their achievements to various target audiences.

The following information, publicity and communication events were carried out by the

Programme in 2012:

An annual event of the Programme: International Conference on Border Areas

“Joint Experiences – New Challenges” on September 18-19, 2012 in Võru, Estonia,

with about 200 participants;

Annual partner day 2012 – event for the partners of approved projects on June in

Sangaste, Estonia;

– Information seminars for the partners of the approved projects (2 in Riga, Latvia and

2 in Tallinn and Tartu, Estonia);

42

– Specialized trainings for partners of the approved projects on procurement and

communication issues (2 events in Riga and Inčukalns, Latvia, and 2 events in Viljandi

and Tartu, Estonia);

– Production and broadcast of “Better Neighbours” documentary on ETV1, ETV2 in

Estonia and LTV1 and Re:TV in Latvia to an audience of more than 80,000 viewers;

– European Cooperation Day 2012 events during which project partners demonstrated

their achievements to local communities, all together 16 events in Estonia and Latvia;

– Programme newsletter – 2 editions, each in English, Estonian and Latvian;

– Regular updates of the Programme website, about a 100 stories on Programme and

project activities;

– Regular posts on newly established Programme social media pages on Facebook and

YouTube;

– Media activities in relation to approved projects.

In 2012, the main focus of all communication activities was communicating successful

implementation of projects and results achieved. The goal was to address broader

audiences, beyond the usual people involved in the Programme and project implementation.

Three man target groups were addressed:

- Programme stakeholders – all Programme authorities and people involved in

implementing the projects;

- Local communities – people from the regions that are directly benefiting from the

activities implemented by the project partners;

- General public – people from all walks of life that are interested in the results of

territorial cooperation and that potentially might be interested in submitting projects

during the next period.

Events for Programme stakeholders include all seminars and the Partner Day, as well as the

Programme’s annual event, International Conference on Border Areas „Joint Experiences –

New Challenges” that was organized around the European Cooperation Day to discuss the

results and future challenges of territorial cooperation in the area, attended by about 200

participants from Estonia and Latvia. Stakeholders also received the newsletter and other

materials that were sent out through Programme internal communication channels,

reaching more than 2000 people each time.

Local communities in the areas where projects are implemented had an opportunity to

participate in European Cooperation Day 2012 local open doors events, during which

project partners presented their work to people in their communities. It included open

43

lectures, open houses, small markets and demonstrations of project achievements. Local

communities also received news about the projects from the media.

For the general public in Estonia and Latvia the Programme prepared a 45-minute

documentary “Better Neighbours” about 8 projects that was broadcast on Estonian and

Latvian public television channels and re-run on Estonian Public Television’s channel ETV2

and Latvian Regional Television. In addition to TV, the documentary could be seen at

Programme events, on social media and web channels.

The Programme website www.estlat.eu was constantly updated, with around 100 news

items on running project events and Programme activities. New sections for European

Cooperation Day 2012, Planning for 2014-2020, International Conference on Border Areas,

Documentary “Better Neighbours” have been added. Estonian- and Latvian-language

sections have been significantly updated, including videos in Estonian and Latvian. Social

media plug-ins were integrated into the website, allowing people to share our news easier

on Facebook, Twitter and Latvian site Draugiem.lv, and inviting them to follow the

Programme on Facebook. The website was also presented in European Commission

competition RegioStars 2012, where it was selected among the finalists for the award in the

area of communication. All together from January 1 until December 31, 2012 the website

was visited by 14,720 unique visitors, 47% of whom returned to the site several times. 41%

of all visitors were from Estonia, 33 % from Latvia, 20% from other countries, mostly in the

European Union. Most popular things viewed on the website were news about the newly

approved projects, Programme documentary “Better Neighbours” and Programme vacancy

announcements.

The Programme website also contains a special section on each project, listing the project

beneficiaries, contact persons, short project descriptions and project budget. These sections

are frequently updated with the newest available information that is received from the

beneficiaries, for instance, project newsletters and photographs are uploaded on these

sections. The most prominent news items also get highlighted on the Programme start page

in section „Project news”.

Programme social media channels were established on Facebook and YouTube. Facebook

page featured hundreds of posts, among them news, photos and videos from the

Programme events, project events and other Estonia – Latvia cooperation related activities.

By the end of its first year, the Programme Facebook page had 200 followers and potential

reach of about 50,000 people, mostly from Estonia and Latvia. The most popular post on

Facebook page was a photo gallery from filming of “Better Neighbours” – about 400 people

saw, liked and commented this gallery. Most followers are from Riga, Tartu and Tallinn;

majority of them in the age groups between 25-34 (30%), 35-44 (17%) and 18-24 (15%). The

Programme YouTube channel features all Programme filmed material – promo videos for

European Cooperation Day (that the Programme arranged to be dubbed in the Baltic

languages for our use), Programme documentary segments, conference presentations and

http://www.estlat.eu/

44

impact interviews with completed project partners. In 2012 the Programme uploaded 51

videos on YouTube that were shared later on other web and social media platforms. Total

number of views at the end of the year was 4,426.

The Programme newsletter was issued in February and October 2012, each time in the

English, Estonian and Latvian languages. Since 2012 the newsletter is electronic and web

based. The aim of the newsletter was to inform various target groups about the latest

developments in the Programme, including European Cooperation Day 2012 and the

planning of the new Estonia – Latvia Programme 2014-2020.

Programme has continued to actively organize various special activities for the target group

of the supported and running projects.

Two Communication Seminars took place in spring 2012 – one in Riga, Latvia and one in

Viljandi, Estonia, to provide partners of the running projects training in basic communication

activities, which are important for the visibility and overall success of the projects and

Programme. Project partners are very important source of information about the

Programme, and they are the ones who have the possibility to carry further the message

about the benefits and impact on the regional development supported by the Programme.

Joint Partner Day was organized in Sangaste, Estonia in June 2012, in order to provide the

partners of the supported and running projects with networking opportunities, as well as to

give them a chance to discuss various unclear and challenging project administration issues

together with the Joint Technical Secretariat and first-level control bodies.

Following the financing decisions, four seminars for partners of the approved projects were

held in Estonia and Latvia in spring and fall of 2012. These were mainly focused on the newly

supported projects, but also attended by interested partners of the previously supported

and running projects. Seminars involved the LV and EE first-level control institutions and

focused on the reporting requirements, eligibility rules and various other administrative

requirements, providing guidance and explaining in detail each partner’s obligations during

the project implementation. Separate seminars on procurement issues were held in Estonia

and Latvia for project partners.

6.2 Media Monitoring

In 2012, the Programme was covered by at least 12 media outlets and stations, but the

Programme-funded projects received much more extensive coverage, especially in local and

regional media outlets. The Programme does not use professional media monitoring

services, but monitors media, using its own resources, therefore not all media impressions

can be precisely counted.

45

Programme publicity mostly consisted of coverage about European Cooperation Day 2012

events, Programme website nomination for RegioStars Award and the International

Conference on Border Areas. The largest media exposure last year was demonstration of the

documentary about Programme projects in Estonia and Latvia. In Estonia, the documentary

was demonstrated on ETV1 and ETV2, and in Latvia by LTV 1 and Re:TV all together reaching

the total audience of more than 80,000 people.

The information about the Programme’s supported projects and their activities has

constantly been disseminated by the project partners and reflected in various printed,

audio-visual and internet media, on the web sites of partners and other relevant institutions.

Due to the Programme’s focus on regional development, the project activities mostly take

place outside the capitals and are often aimed at specific communities in the regions.

Therefore local and regional media are the main target group for project stories and most

interested in reflecting the project developments.

In 2012, there has been coverage of various events organized by the running projects in local

media, in some cases also in national media. For example, Cēsis regional newspaper Druva

wrote about Artists for Regional Development project on several occasions, Tartu Postimees

wrote about SIB Net and ICT DC Net projects, Elu24.ee wrote about the activities of Young

Active Creative and Ziemellatvija.lv covered Art School Walk project. Some projects have

received also the attention of National Media, for instance Baltorgpotato project has been

covered on Latvian Television and in Latvijas Avize, while several projects on the Estonian

side have been noticed by Estonian Public Broadcasting, Postimees and Õhtuleht (road

construction projects, Radio Classics, SIB Net). The partners of the project Eagles Cross

Borders have been active communicators and the project has received nationwide coverage

on several occasions both in Estonia and Latvia.

7 CHALLENGES FOR 2013

The key word for 2013 will be programming of the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2014-2020.

A series of important decisions have to be taken in 2013, including the focus of the next

Programme and its financial allocations, at the same time compilation of the programme

document, ex ante evaluation and strategic environmental assessment of the new

Programme will be underway. As the JTS and the MA are in charge of managing the

programme preparation process, it will without doubt be their main challenge in 2013.

In parallel to the preparation of the new Programme, also equal importance should be paid

to the closure of the current Programme. The closure group will be formed of the

representatives of the MA, CA, and AA specifying the responsibilities of each member. It will

be further ensured that all information necessary for performing the closure is orderly and

available, and that an adequate audit trail is kept.

46

Implementation of the strategic projects should be closely followed. The authorities of the

Programme must receive confirmation from the partners of the strategic projects that all of

them are ready and have the capacity to carry out the planned activities in a timely and

correct manner, as due to their special status among supported projects some partners

might be less prepared for the daily realities of project partners, including reporting and

following all the eligibility rules. By the beginning of 2013 all six strategic projects have

received an approval from the MC, a few have started their activities, but none of them has

submitted a report yet.

As the Programme will try out something new as an annual major information event, the JTS

has to be thorough, careful and flexible in carrying out related tenders in time with good

quality results, e.g. production of attractive animated infographics about the Programme

and its results.

47

Annex 2 to the Annual Implementation Report 2012

Categorization of Funds 2012

Objective

Priority

Theme

Form of

Finance Territory

Economic

Activity Location

Allocated

Community

Contribution

ETC 03 01 08 03 EU 966107

ETC 03 01 08 22 EU 1402543

ETC 05 01 08 22 EU 229979

ETC 08 01 08 06 EU 139900

ETC 09 01 08 03 EU 314699

ETC 09 01 08 22 EU 1141668

ETC 13 01 08 21 EU 693098

ETC 16 01 08 11 EU 399999

ETC 23 01 08 11 EU 9499026

ETC 30 01 08 11 EU 1305180

ETC 39 01 08 21 EU 1227920

ETC 43 01 08 12 EU 237468

ETC 51 01 08 21 EU 2204847

ETC 53 01 08 21 EU 430000

ETC 53 01 08 22 EU 279014

ETC 54 01 08 22 EU 3191670

ETC 55 01 08 22 EU 5045696

ETC 57 01 08 20 EU 389833

ETC 57 01 08 22 EU 1281074

ETC 59 01 08 20 EU 547005

ETC 59 01 08 22 EU 256670

ETC 60 01 08 20 EU 1406478

ETC 60 01 08 22 EU 444410

ETC 62 01 08 01 EU 548787

ETC 62 01 08 22 EU 399400

ETC 67 01 08 20 EU 184997

ETC 71 01 08 20 EU 158714

ETC 75 01 08 18 EU 122430

ETC 75 01 08 20 EU 528300

ETC 76 01 08 19 EU 1617687

ETC 85 01 08 00 EU 761680

ETC 86 01 08 00 EU 84560

48


List of Projects approved in 2012 in the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013

Project title/ short name Direction

of support ERDF funding

MC meeting

LP country

LP name LP type LP county/

district

Partners

EE LV Total

VVRS 1.1 399 999, 41 Tartu* EE Valga Town Government

Local public authority

Valga 1 1 2

Reconstruction of Road Ape-Mõniste

1.1 4 200 000, 00 Tartu EE Estonian Road Administration

National public authority

Harju 1 1 2

Coastal and maritime spatial planning

1.2 430 000,00 Tartu EE Estonian Ministry

of the Interior National public

authority Harju 2 4 6

DICTIONARY 1.1 349 994,70 WP1** EE The Institute of the Estonian Language


Harju 1 1 2

JATE 1.2 1 199 734,81 WP2 LV

State Fire and Rescue Service of

the Republic of Latvia


Rīga 1 1 2

Riverways 2.2. 1 800 000,00 WP3 LV Kurzeme Planning

Region Regional public

authority Saldus 9 30 39

*MC meeting in Tartu was held on 11 May 2012 ** WP is an abbreviation for “Written procedure”

WP1 – decision was taken via written procedure on 13 July 2012 WP2 – decision was taken via written procedure on 19 October 2012 WP3 – decision was taken via written procedure on 20 December 2012

49


List of supported projects in the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013

Project title/ short name direction

of support

ERDF funding

MC meeting

LP country

LP name LP type LP county/

district

Partners

EE LV Tota

l

1) Towards the Blue Flag on Baltic beaches / Beach Hopping

2.2. 1 626 891 Kuressaare,

2008 Latvia

Saulkrasti Municipality

Council


Saulkrasti 2 5 7

2) Increasing the attractiveness of Valga-Valka / IAVV

2.2. 1 970 465 Kuressaare,

2008 Estonia

Valga Town Government


Valga 1 1 2

3) Activating vital and healthy community by promoting winter sports in Aluksne-Haanja Uplands/Aluksne -Haanja Uplands (AHU)

3.1. 287 385 Kuressaare,

2008 Estonia

Haanja Rural Municipality


Võru 1 1 2

4)Towards cross-border sports communities / SPORTBORDER


2008 Latvia Ape Area Council


Ape 2 1 3

5)Increasing competitiveness of Estonian and Latvian food industry based on new and improved local fruit and berry product development / GoodFruit


2008 Estonia

Estonian University of Life

Sciences

Public equivalent

body Tartu 2 4 6

6) Continuous cultural cooperation on the Estonian-Latvian border-area / Cultural Cooperation for Intermediates/


2008 Latvia

Alūksne Local Municipality


Alūksne 2 3 5

50

7) Increasing Competitiveness of Estonian and Latvian Mechatronics sector through creation of Integrated Network of Product Development, Training and Testing Centres / Protolab Network

2.1. 913 750 Haapsalu,

2008 Estonia

Tartu Science Park

Public equivalent

body Tartu 1 2 3

8) Rising the Attractiveness and Competitiveness of Northern Kurzeme in Latvia and Saaremaa Island in Estonia / One Vacation - Two Countries

2.2. 713 895 Liepāja,

2009 Latvia

Ventspils City Council


Ventspils 1 2 3

9) Promotion of Local Communities of Stende and Võhma / Connecting Stende and Võhma

3.1. 275 665 Haapsalu,

2008 Latvia

Talsi Municipality Council


Talsi 1 1 2

10) Elaborating joint tools for environmental education as efficient mean of management of protected areas / Back to Nature

1.2. 554 760 Liepāja,

2009 Estonia

Foundation Tartu Environmental

Education Centre

Public equivalent

body Tartu 3 2 5

11) Unknown cultural heritage values in common natural and cultural space / Cultural heritage

1.2. 805 371 Liepāja,

2009 Estonia

State Forest Management

Centre

Public equivalent

body Harju 1 2 3

12) Awareness Rising of Voluntary Firemen Work and Safety Issues / FireSafe

3.2. 251 762 Liepāja,

2009 Latvia

State Fire and Rescue Service of

Latvia

National public

authority Rīga 1 4 5

13) Eliminating the infrastructure barriers on all-round development of border areas / Reconstruction of Karksi-Nuia - Koni road

1.1. 5 175 779 Liepāja,

2009 Estonia

The Road Administration of

the Western Region of Estonia

National public

authority Pärnu 1 1 2

14) Supporting the Song and Dance Festival Tradition in Estonian-Latvian Border Areas / SDF -Song and Dance Festivals

3.2. 107 277 Liepāja,

2009 Estonia

Euregio Pskov-Livonia, section

Estonia

Public equivalent

body Valga 1 1 2

15)Development of Cross-Border Choir Singing Culture / Singing Neighbours

3.2. 280 585 Liepāja,

2009 Estonia

Võru Parish Government


Võru 2 3 5

16) Go cycling through Vidzeme and Southern Estonia / ViSoEst by bike

2.2. 1 447 668 Liepāja,

2009 Latvia

Vidzeme Tourism Association

Public equivalent

body Cēsis 2 10 12

51

17) Promotion of the ball sports tradition in the border region through formation of a close cooperation network between ball sports fans of Estonia and Latvia / Cross Border Ball

3.1. 291 975 Liepāja,

2009 Latvia

Alūksne Municipality


Alūksne 3 2 5

18) Increasing the attractiveness of Madona and Polva territories through cooperation in active tourism and developing tourism marketing and skiing infrastructure / Active tourism- attractive feature of Madona and Põlva

2.2. 404 592 Liepāja,

2009 Latvia

Madona Municipality


Madona 1 1 2

19) Sustainable use of local natural resources and cultural heritage for business development in Setomaa and Ape regions / BUY LOCAL

2.1. 408 708 Dikļi, 2009 Estonia The Union of

Setomaa Rural Municipalities

Public equivalent

body Põlva 1 1 2

20) Development of Latvian-Estonian network for demonstration of environmentally friendly farming practices/DEMO FARM

1.2. 755 271 Dikļi, 2009 Latvia Latvian Rural Advisory and

Training Centre

Public equivalent

body Rīga 1 2 3

21) Cross-border transmission of best special teaching, knowledge and social protection / Easy together

3.2. 42 441 Dikļi, 2009 Estonia Võru Järve

School

Public equivalent

body Võru 1 1 2

22) Small Innovative Business Promotion Network/SIB Net

2.1. 477 520 Rīga, 2009 Latvia Riga Planning

Region

Regional public


23) Boosting Cross-border Entrepreneurship in Life Sciences & Medicine related to Biotechnology and Medical ICT between Estonia and Latvia / Boost BioBusiness

2.1. 279 081 Rīga, 2009 Estonia

Entrepreneurship Development

Centre for Biotechnology and Medicine

Non profit oriented

organisation Tartu 3 3 6

24) Baltic small harbours network / BayLink 1.1. 1 360 805 Rīga, 2009 Latvia Mērsrags Port

Authority

Public equivalent

body Mērsags 1 3 4

25) Mentally disabled child among us / TOLERANCE 3.2. 200 512 Rīga, 2009 Estonia NGO Anni

Playground

Non profit oriented


26) Promotion of the use of sustainable and low energy buildings and constructions in Latvia and Estonia / Active through Passive!

1.2. 289 524 Rīga, 2009 Estonia Valga Town

Government Local public

authority Valga 2 4 6

52

27) Development of Cross-Border Co-operation Among the Grassroots for Development of Sustainable Latvia - Estonia Borderland Communities / Still active

3.2. 184 997 Rīga, 2009 Latvia

Latvian Community

Initiative Foundation

Non profit oriented

organisation Rīga 4 5 9

28) Valga-Valka Joint Rescue Capacity / VV JRC 1.2. 1 991 935 Rīga, 2009 Estonia Estonian Rescue

Board

National public


29) Unified ICT Network for Innovations / ICT DCNet 1.1 537 481

Pärnu, 2010 Latvia

Riga Technical University

National public


30) Gulf of Riga as a resource for Wind Energy / GORWIND

1.2 1 227 920 Pärnu, 2010 Estonia

Marine Systems Institute at

Tallinn University of Technology

Public equivalent

body Tallinn 4 3 7

31) Developing Estonian-Latvian Medical Area / DELMA

1.2 1 522 237 Pärnu, 2010 Estonia University of

Tartu

Public equivalent

body Tartu 4 2 6

32) Increasing Competitivenss of Estonian and Latvian Mechatronics Sector / Skills Centre

2.3 475 600 Pärnu, 2010 Latvia Ogre Business

and Innovation incubator

Non profit oriented

organisation Ogre 1 2 3

33) Improving Sustainability and Vitality of Local Communities by Developing Co-operation in Youth Amateur MotoCross / MOTO

3.2 135 151 Pärnu, 2010 Estonia Motorcycle Club

K&K NGO

Non profit oriented

organisation Valga 1 1 2

34) Festival "Friendship Through Football" / FFF 3.2 50 596 Pärnu, 2010 Estonia NPO FC Santos Non profit oriented


35) Media Literacy - 21st Century Approach to Education / MLEDU

3.2 49 943 Pärnu, 2010 Estonia Tartu

Municipality Local public

authority Tartu 1 1 2

36) Cooperation of Young Sailors and Coaches of Estonia and Latvia / Young sailors

3.2 129 626 Pärnu, 2010 Latvia Laser class association

Latvia

Non profit oriented


37) Improving Sustainability and Vitality of Orienteering on a Local Level / Est-O-Lat league

3.2 141 358 Pärnu, 2010 Estonia Estonian

Orienteering Federation

Non profit oriented

organisation Tallinn 1 1 2

53

38) Eliminating the infrastructure barriers in Estonian-Latvian border areas / Reconstruction of the road Kilingi-Nõmme - Mazsalaca

1.1 2 626 802 Jūrmala,

2011 Estonia

Western region of Estonian Road Administration

National public

authority Pärnu 1 1 2

39) Bringing Estonia and Latvia Together on Emergency Ambulatory Medical Services / BEST TEAMS

1.2 95 450 Jūrmala,

2011 Estonia

Estonian Health Board

National public

authority Tallinn 2 2 4

40) Eagles cross borders / Eagles 1.2 299 217 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

Latvian Fund for Nature

Non profit oriented


41) Towards joint management of the transboundary Gauja/Koiva river basin district / Gauja/Koiva

1.2 718 435 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

Latvian Institute of Aquatic

Ecology

Public equivalent

body Rīga 3 4 7

42) Tuned nature management in transboundary area of Estonia and Latvia / Green Corridor

1.2 274 776 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

Nature Conservation

Agency

National public

authority Salacgrīva 1 1 2

43) Smart Botanic Gardens / SmartGardens 1.2 399 487 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

National Botanic Garden of Latvia

National public

authority Salaspils 2 2 4

44) Baltic Organic Potato for the World Markets / BALTORGPOTATO

2.1 254 488 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

Ltd. "Aloja Starkelsen"

Private partner

Limbaži 2 5 7

45) INTEGRATED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT IN SOUTH ESTONIA AND NORTH LATVIA/ DELBI

2.1 229 979 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

Estonian Business

Chamber in Latvia

Non profit oriented


46) Promotion of cross-border partnership between Estonia and Latvia for development of antiviral drugs / EstLat Pharma

2.1 139 900 Jūrmala,

2011 Estonia TBD-Biodiscovery

Private partner

Tartu 1 1 2

47) Developing rural food businesses competitivness by cross-border artisan food networking /FOODART

2.1 314 700 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

Sigulda Municipality


Sigulda 2 2 4

48) Local Artists for Regional Development/ Artists for Development

3.2 116 514 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

Municipal agency "Cesis Culture and Tourism

center"

Public equivalent

body Cēsis 1 2 3

49) Improving Estonian-Latvian citizen education and urban development / Est-Lat urban activists

3.2 48 493 Jūrmala,

2011 Estonia

Estonian Urban Lab

Non profit oriented

organisation Tallinn 1 1 2

54

50) Development of cooperation between Estonian-Latvian youth hobby modelists/Hobby slot car racing

3.2 28 875 Jūrmala,

2011 Estonia

Sindi Town Government


Pärnu 1 1 2

51) Support to West Estonian-Latvian youth initiatives and co-operation. / Youth initiatives and co-operation

3.2 149 996 Jūrmala,

2011 Latvia

NGO Ventspils Youth Council

Non profit oriented

organisation Ventspils 1 1 2

52) Development of Valka Art School as common cross-border cultural education centre / Art School "Walk"

3.1 122 430 Sigulda,

2011 Latvia

Valka Municipality

Council

Regional public

authority Valka 1 1 2

53) Promoting Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems in Estonia-Latvia cross-border area to improve the environment for active and sustainable communities / (D)rain for life

3.1 97 631 Sigulda,

2011 Latvia

Latvian Association of

Spatial Planners

Non profit oriented


54) House of Sounds - renovation of instrumental music traditions in Vidzeme and South Estonia / House of Sounds

3.1 113 824 Sigulda,

2011 Latvia

Pārdaugava Folk Music Society

Non profit oriented


55) Developing of cross border trade network / Idea on the border

3.2 73 041 Sigulda,

2011 Latvia

Apes municipality


Ape 1 1 2

56) Promotion of youth involvement in professional classical music performance / Radio Classics

3.2 94 415 Sigulda,

2011 Latvia Latvian Radio

Public equivalent

body Rīga 1 1 2

57) Vital Communities by Promotion of Youth Skills and Involvement / Young Active Creative

3.2 117 071 Sigulda,

2011 Estonia

Põlva Town Government


Põlva 2 3 5

58) Renovation of Valga-Valka railway station / WRS 1.1 399 999 Tartu, 2012

Estonia Valga Town

Government Local public

authority Valga 1 1 2

59) Improvement of traffic conditions on Ape-Mõniste connection road between Riga-Pskov and Võru-Valga-Valmiera transport corridors / Reconstruction of Road Ape-Mõniste

1.1 4 200 000 Tartu, 2012

Estonia Estonian Road Administration

National public


60) Coastal and maritime spatial planning in Pärnu Bay area in Estonia and coastal municipalities of Latvia / Coastal and maritime spatial planning

1.2 430 000 Tartu, 2012

Estonia Estonian Ministry

of the Interior

National public


61) Development of Estonian – Latvian and Latvian – Estonian dictionary / DICTIONARY

1.1 349 995 Via written procedure,

2012 Estonia

The Institute of the Estonian

Language

National public


62) Building Cross-border Capacity to Perform Joint Activities in Tough Environment/ JATE

1.2 1 199 735 Via written procedure,

Latvia State Fire and

Rescue Service of National

public Rīga 1 1 2

55

2012 the Republic of Latvia

authority

63) Development of water tourism as nature and active tourism component in Latvia and Estonia / Riverways

2.2. 1 800 000

000,00

Via written procedure,

2012 Latvia

Kurzeme Planning Region

Regional public

authority Saldus 9 30 39

TOTALS

EE lead partners 31 Partners

EE LV Total

LV lead partners 32 106 162 268

56


Projects contributing to the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region in the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013

No Project number and title

Relation to the Priority Area (PA)of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region

Description of the project Lead Partner (LP)/partners (P)

ERDF funding /EUR

National Co-financing /EUR

1. EU 30086 Eliminating the infrastructure barriers on development of the border areas /Reconstruction of road Karksi-Nuia – Seda river

PA 11: To improve internal and external transport links

Reconstruction of cross-border road from Karksi-Nuia (EE) to Rūjiena (LV). The reconstruction is aiming at re-establishing proper transport link between Central Estonia and Latvia to facilitate economic development and increase tourism potential.

LP: Estonian Road Administration P: Ministry of Transport of the Republic of Latvia

2 715 568,61 479 217,99

2. EU31404 Baltic Small Harbours Network / BayLink

PA 11: To improve internal and external transport links

Improvement of internal and external connectivity of the Programme area and reduction of hindrances of the existing maritime border. New maritime connections through development of small harbours infrastructure are created. It will open new cross-border business opportunities, employment facilities and international passenger flow.

LP: Mersrags Port Authority (LV); P: Kurland Ltd (LV), AS Saarte Liinid (EE), ADA Ltd (LV)

1 360 804,70 Public: 185 256,30 Private: 311 019

57

3. EU34711 Gulf of Riga as a resource for wind energy (GORWIND)

PA 10: To improve the access to, and the efficiency and security of the energy markets

Fostering more efficient use of the

wind energy by providing decision

makers and potential developers of

wind parks in the Gulf of Riga with

reliable marine wind information from

high resolution remote sensing data.

Research institutes of both countries

carrying out the project plan to

complement the technical data and

wind measurements with the

information on wintering and habitat

area for seals, migrating and breeding

birds.

LP: Marine Systems

Institute at Tallinn

University of

Technology (EE); P:

University of Tartu

(EE), Estonian

University of Life

Sciences (EE), Latvian

University, Latvian

Institute of Aquatic

Ecology.

1 227 919,99 216 691,76

4. EU29881 Increasing competitiveness of Estonian and Latvian food industry based on new and improved local fruit and berry product development/ GoodFruit

PA 8: Implementing the Small Business Act: to promote entrepreneurship, strengthen SMEs and increase the efficient use of resources.

Raising the general competitiveness of

the local fruit and berry businesses that

form an important agricultural industry

in both countries. The project will set up

and develop Estonian-Latvian Fruit and

Berry Product Development

Competence Centre to ensure the

producers’ accessibility to and raise the

competitiveness of their production in

the market. The project will introduce

novel storage methodologies and

provide upgraded infrastructure and

know-how for product development for

both Estonian and Latvian companies.

LP: The Estonian University of Life Sciences; P: Pūre Horticultural Research Center (LV), Association Partnership of Kandava, farm Piladzi, (LV) farm „Lāses", and Berry Farming LLC (EE)

720 500 EUR Public: 94 500 Private: 185 000

58

6. EU31398 Small Innovative Business Promotion Network /SIB Net

PA 8: Implementing the Small Business Act: to promote entrepreneurship, strengthen SMEs and increase the efficient use of resources.

Promotion of new innovative high

growth firms by encouraging

entrepreneurial creativity, providing

needed knowledge and evaluating the

needs for early stage finance to cover

“death valley” between academic and

educational world and business

incubators in the regions; to create

efficient matching mechanisms for

investors and idea holders in two

investor forums and team building

event

LP: Riga Planning Region (LV); P: Ventspils University College (LV); Ventspils High technology Park (LV); Stockholm School of Economics in Riga (LV), Tartu Science Park (EE); Institute of Baltic Studies (EE)

477 519,80 84 268,20

7. EU29852 Towards the blue flag on Baltic Beaches / Beach hopping

PA 12: To maintain and reinforce attractiveness of the Baltic Sea Region in particular through education, youth, tourism, culture and health

Improvement of the overall

attractiveness, environment and safety

of the beaches along the coast of the

Gulf of Rīga by (1) raising the standards

of the beaches in partner municipalities

using Blue Flag as a benchmark,

focusing on lifeguarding and beach

safety; (2) increasing the awareness of

visitors about the partner

municipalities as attractive tourism

destinations.

LP: Saulkrasti Regional Council (LV); P: Audru Municipality (EE), Carnikava Municipality (LV), Häädemeeste Municipality (EE), Jūrmala City Council (LV), Salacgrīva Regional Council (LV)

1 626 890,65 287 098,35

8. EU29904 Raising the attractiveness and competitiveness of Northern Kurzeme in Latvia and Saaremaa Island in Estonia by

PA 12: To maintain and reinforce attractiveness of the Baltic Sea Region in particular through education, youth, tourism, culture and health

Raising attractiveness and

competitiveness of North Kurzeme in

Latvia and Saaremaa Island in Estonia

by improving its tourism potential,

using the natural advantages of the

coastal municipalities. The aim is to

LP: Ventspils City Council (LV); P: Kuressaare City Government (EE), Talsi Region Tourism Information Centre (LV)

713 894,60 125 981,40

http://www.estlat.eu/supported-projects/?partner=7















59

improving tourism environment and its offer using the natural advantages of coastal municipalities /One Vacation Two Countries

achieve Blue Flag certificates for the

beaches of Ventspils and Kuressaare

municipalities and to ensure joint

visibility of the North Kurzeme region

and Saaremaa Island as an attractive

tourism destination for a broader

target audience.

9. Eliminating the infrastructure barriers in Estonian-Latvian border areas/ Reconstruction of the road Kilingi-Nõmme - Mazsalaca

PA11: “To improve internal and external transport links”

To improve the road conditions

between Kilingi-Nõmme and Maszalaca

towns in order to satisfy the local

needs and turn the region more

attractive and accessible place for

transport and tourism

LP: Estonian Road Administration; P: Ministry of Transport of the Republic of Latvia

2 626 802,27 538 019,75

10. Towards joint management of the transboundary Gauja/Koiva river basin district / Gauja/Koiva

PA3: “To reduce the use and impact of hazardous substances”

To enhance the management of shared

surface and groundwater resources by

development of a joint river basin

management plan for the

transboundary Gauja/Koiva river basin

district. More specifically: to get unified

boundaries of transboundary water

bodies; to clarify and set common

water quality objectives for the basin

district; to harmonise the approaches

and methods for the key aspects of

river basin management plans; select

cost efficient measures for

improvement of water status; provide

LP: Latvian Institute of Aquatic Ecology; P: Ministry of the Environmental Protection and Regional Development of Latvia; University of Latvia, Institute of Biology; Baltic Environmental Forum Latvia; Baltic Environmental Forum Estonia, Tallinn University of Technology; Estonian University of Life Sciences

718 435,26 147 149,39

60

information and public involvement in

water management

11 Coastal and maritime spatial planning in Pärnu Bay area in Estonia and coastal municipalities of Latvia / Coastal and maritime spatial planning*

1) PA Agri - Reinforcing

sustainability of agriculture,

forestry and fisheries;

2) PA Bio – Preserving

natural zones and

biodiversity, including

fisheries

3) PA Energy – Improving the

access to, and the efficiency

and security of the energy

markets

4) PA Ship – Becoming a

model region for clean

shipping

5) PA SME – Promote

entrepreneurship and

strengthen the growth of

SMEs

6) PA Transport – Improving

internal and external

transport links

Preparation of a maritime spatial plan

and a strategic environmental

assessment in Pärnu Bay area in

Estonia;

Preparation of a maritime spatial

planning methodology;

Preparation of of the methodology on

functional linkage between marine and

coastal territories; Preparation of

guidelines for minimization of coastal

erosion impacts in Latvia;

Preparation of management plans for

the Natura 2000 areas – nature

reserves “Ovīši” and “Užava”; Pilots in

Pāvilosta, Roja and Engure

municipalities.

LP: Estonian Ministry of the Interior; P: Engure Minicipality Council (LV) Kurzeme planning region (LV) Pärnu County Government (EE) Pāvilosta Municipality Self-Government (LV)Roja Municipality Council (LV)

430 000 88 072,29

*The labelling was done pursuant to the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region ACTION PLAN, February 2013 version.















Estonia - Latvia Programme 2007-2013 EstLat/Annual...4 The Operational Programme (hereinafter also referred to as the “OP”) for the Estonia – Latvia Programme 2007-2013 was approved

Documents