The International Forum of the Territories is an NGO dedicated to promoting the exchange of information, experiences and opinions about the development of the territories on all aspects: land management, urban and rural development, competitiveness, sustainable development, cultural policies ...and many others. These exchanges will be useful for all stakeholders of territorial development: officials preparing a regional or local strategy, academics interested for publications or for their research, students seeking information or an opportunity for the internship, international experts who are candidates for a program of cooperation ...
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News
The decentralization of the structural funds in France by Patrick FAUCHEUR
The French government has decided for the programming period 2014-2020 of the EU cohesion policy to decentralize the function of Managing Authority by transfering the competency to the regional Councils in the context of a new step of the decentralization in France. the ERDF will be totally transfered and the ESF partially. During the previous programming period , the regional Councils were stronghly involved in the implementation of the structural funds as intermediary bodies and as active partner of the Prefect of region.
After the submission of the Partnership Agreement by the French authorities to the Commission and the breakdown of the amount of the structural funds in each Operational Programme, the regional Councils, as Managing Authority, are currently preparing the regional Operational Programme which combines for most of them the ERDF and the ESF. The objective is to send to the Commission the projects of Operational Programmes before the end of March.
The starting of the macro regional strategy of the EU for the alpes area, by Patrick FAUCHEUR
The European Council has decided in Last December to set up a macro regional strstrategy of the EU for the Alpes area, following the macro regional strategies for the Baltic sea regions and for the Danube. All the Member states taking part in the Alps area have signed a white paper inviting the European institutions to take into considération such strategy. the European Council has open the way for this strategy by inviting the Commission to prepare an action plan . In the same time the Member states and the regions concerned are in charge to prepare the strategy. The objective is to approve the strategy and the action plan in the second semester of 2014.
The strategy will be based on three main issues, the economic development, the management of the natural ressources and the mobility.
Patrick Faucheur is an independant international consultant, and former advisor of the General Secretary for European Affairs in France
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A very important European Twinning was closed last 28th January in Chisinau (Moldova). See the report
We are all very concerned by the protests in Ukraine. So we publish an article drafted by an ukrainian expert, Tetyana Kornieieva whos presents the situation in a way as objective as possible. As this is a forum, you have the possibility to sent comments and opinions about this article. See Tetyana analysis.
New information has been included in the page "events", about the 9th European Rendez-vous in Strasbourg (FRANCE) organised by ENA, INET, IEP, Strasbourg, University , CUS and Alsace within the European Network of Public Administration ( PEAP) which will take place from 3rd to 5th February 2014 , in partnership with the European Parliament, a conference, "Cities of the Future" being organized by the European Commission next February in Brussels, NADO conference next March, the conference on the politics of resilience in Urban and Regional Development , to be held in Berlin on 27 and 28 March , and the conference organized in information systems for local governments, organized by the ECOTER mission next February in Paris.
See also " territorial contracts " where new information are provided about policies for share of responsibilities between the State and local authorities in several countries.
Step by step, the Forum is growing and will quickly become an international source of information and exchange.
To do this, we will welcome your input. So do not hesitate to propose contributions in English, French or Spanish language at xavier.givelet @ wp.pl
We are waiting for contributions about cross border cooperation and also about evolution of territorial policies in Serbia. They will be published in the following days.
Xavier Givelet
Former Advisor for International Affairs in DATAR (France )