Proposal for the Amendments to the ETC Specific Common Output Indicators

Background

In parallel to the DG REGIO Pilot Tests Initiative to establish result indicators in 23 regions / Operational Programmes across 15 Member States, also the European Territorial Cooperation (ETC) programme community was engaged in capturing the change and the results European Territorial Cooperation programmes deliver for the EU.

The conclusion from the exercise[1] is that the European Territorial Cooperation programmes typically deliver in three domains – apart from contributing to the socio-economic development of the regions involved in cooperation, these programmes promote European cohesion / integration and contribute to innovation and capacity building on individual and organisational levels. ETC stakeholders argue that the integration related effects of ETC programmes are even more important than the socio-economic ones, and this calls for a different approach to measuring what ETC delivers.

Capturing of the socio-economic change and related outputs is, to a certain extent, possible using the same approach as used in Convergence and Competitiveness programmes. However, the size of the ETC programmes is simply too small to deliver significant contribution to establishment of e.g. TEN networks or research and development infrastructure. Instead, the cross-border cooperation programmes support the European integration process by establishing cross-border infrastructure of a local or regional relevance, by coordinating or joining the delivery of services in cross-border areas, by promoting community integration across borders, by supporting cross-border SME cooperation and integration of labour markets, education and research networks etc. Transnational programmes collaborate to address common challenges faced by the cooperation area or to manage shared resources (seas and coastal areas, mountains, river basins, university and research networks etc.). Interregional cooperation programmes facilitate Europe-wide exchange of knowledge and capacity building.

Also the outputs of the ETC programmes differ from those delivered by Objective 1 and 2 programmes. The ETC specific outputs were collected during the ex post evaluation of INTERREG III. However, this evidence was not transferred into the legal drafts for the 2014-2020 programming period. Based on the available evidence, INTERACT has identified the most typical ETC programme activities which currently remain outside the list. They constitute quite a representative sample of what ETC programmes deliver – ca 10-20% of cross-border cooperation activities, 50% of transnational cooperation activities and 100% of interregional cooperation activities. Having no common indicators for these activities means it will be difficult to collect comparable data across ETC, for EU level evidence.

10-20% of cross-border actions

Between 10 and 20% of cross-border cooperation funds go to community cooperation and people-to-people activities. The main purpose of these activities is to encourage and sustain cooperation tradition and culture in the cross-border areas. The main results of these activities are positive changes in attitudes towards neighbours across the border and increased cross-border interaction and mobility. The main outputs – number of people involved in these activities and frequency of interaction / meeting possibilities, i.e. number of events and joint actions.

Why are such activities important? According to studies on Nordic cooperation history, cross-border cooperation is artificial. Unless continuously supported, the cooperation tradition and culture fades away. Without this tradition and culture, cooperation has no chance to mature and deliver other, more strategic results. The experience of the Peace programme also shows that persistent long-term effort is needed to bridge divided communities. There are still cross-border regions in Europe where communities have been estranged for a long time and remain divided.

50% of transnational cooperation actions and 100% of interregional cooperation actions

Around 50% of transnational cooperation funding and almost 100% of interregional cooperation, but also number of cross-border cooperation actions, deal withimprovements of regional development policies and territorial governance.The typical outputs of these activities are solutions developed and/or implemented by cross-border and transnational actors to address common / shared challenges faced by the cooperation area and to manage the common assets. Solutions can inter alia be technological solutions; concepts; strategies; policy recommendations; policies; political and/or administrative decisions; decision support tools; legislative acts and legal documents; action plans; prepared cross-border or transnational investment plans and projects; territorial governance platforms, networks and approaches; integrated / coordinated service provision and products; common standards; common branding; joint or coordinated education frameworks and products; joint or coordinated business support frameworks and products; etc.The result of these activities can be e.g. reduced flood risk or improved flood response systems, coordinated activities to save seas and mountains, increased competitiveness through R&D collaboration, improved access to services and labour market, etc.

The following table contains the proposals developed by the ETC programme community during 2011 and 2012. The table is based on the list included in the latest version of DG REGIO’s Concepts and Recommendations Paper[2];the proposed additions arehighlighted green. We understand that the solutions are not ideal and would welcome very much the help of the Evaluation Network and the experts of the DG REGIO Evaluation Unit to improve them.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact Ieva Kalnina at INTERACT, , Tel: +45 2962 9316

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Proposed Amendments to the Core Output Indicators for the European Territorial Cooperation Objective

Unit / Name / Comments
Productive investment / enterprises / Number of enterprises receiving support
enterprises / Number of enterprises receiving grants
enterprises / Number of enterprises receiving financial support other than grants
enterprises / Number of enterprises receiving non-financial support
Enterprises / Number of new enterprises supported
EUR / Private investment matching public support to enterprises (grants)
EUR / Private investment matching public support to enterprises (non-grants)
Full time equivalents / Employment increase in supported enterprises
Sustainable Tourism / visits / Increase in expected number of visits at supported sites of cultural or natural heritage and attraction
ICT Infrastructure / Households / Additional householdswith broadband access of at least 30 Mbps
Users / Additional users of e-services / Accessibility of services is a particular challenge in number of peripheral (border) areas of Member States and in the peripheries of the EU. E-services provide potential for improving accessibility to e.g. health and education. Furthermore, e-services contribute to increased innovation capacity of the enterprises in the cooperation areas
Transport
Railway / Km / Total length of new railway line
of which TEN-T
Km / Total length of reconstructed of upgraded railway line
of which TEN-T
Roads / Km / Total length of newly built roads
of which TEN-T
Km / Total length of reconstructed or upgraded roads
Of which TEN-T
Urban transport / Km / Total length of new or improved tram and metro lines
Inland waterways / Km / Total length of improved or created inland waterways
Environment
Solid waste / Tonnes/year / Additional waste recycling capacity
Water supply / Persons / Additional population served by improved water supply
Wastewater treatment / Populationequivalent / Additional population served by improved wastewater treatment
Risk prevention and management / Persons / Population benefiting from flood protection measures
Persons / Population benefiting from forest fire protection measures
Persons / Population benefiting from risk prevention and management measures other than flood and forest fire protection / In case of cross-border and transnational cooperation, the risk management has also traditionally extended into areas of efficient and secure borders, traffic safety, coordination between emergency services (police, ambulance), combating cross-border crime and alike.
Land rehabilitation / Hectares / Total surface area of rehabilitated land
Nature and biodiversity / Hectares / Surface of habitats supported to attain a better conservation status
Pollution / Persons / Population benefitting from reduced air, land and water pollution / Air, land and water pollutionare not covered by current indicators. A more comprehensive indicator is proposed to cover also, e.g., air pollution not resulting in climate change, water pollution not related to waste water treatment, etc.
Research, Innovation / FTE / Number of new researchers in supported entities
FTE / Number of researchers working in improved research infrastructure facilities
Enterprises / Number of enterprises cooperating with supported research institutions
EUR / Private investment matching public support in innovation or R&D projects
Enterprises / Number of enterprises supported to introduce new to the market products
Enterprises / Number of enterprises supported to introduce new to the firm products
Energy and Climate change
Renewables / MW / Additional capacity of renewable energy production
Energy efficiency / Households / Number of households with improved energy consumption classification
kWh/year / Decrease of primary energy consumption of public buildings
Users / Number of additional energy users connected to smart grids
GHG reduction / tonnes of CO2eq / Estimated decrease of GHG
Social infrastructure
Childcare & education / persons / Service capacity of supported childcare or education infrastructure
Health / persons / Population expected to use improved health services
Social care / persons / Capacity of supported social services / Considering the effects of the demographic change on border and peripheral areas, social care is as important intervention area as health, childcare and education
Urban development specific indicators / Persons / Population living in areas with integrated urban development strategies
Square meters / Open space created or rehabilitated in urban areas
Square meters / Public or commercial buildings newly built or renovated in urban areas
Square meters / Rehabilitated housing in urban areas
ETC specific indicators
Productive investment / Enterprises / Number of enterprises participating in cross-border, transnational or interregional research projects
Organisations / Number of research institutions participating in crossborder, transnational or interregional research projects
Labour market and training / persons / Number of participants in cross-borderlabour mobility initiatives
persons / Number of participants in joint local employment initiatives and joint training
persons / Number of participants in projects promoting gender equality, equal opportunities and social inclusion across borders
persons / Number of participants in joint education and training schemes to support youth employment, educational andlife-long learningopportunities and higher and vocational education across borders / “Life-long learning” was explicitly stated in draft ETC Regulation
Institutional and Administrative Capacity / number / Number of projects developed and implemented to support the implementation of macro-regional strategies and sea basin strategies / This indicator was originally proposed but appears to be removed from the latest list. In principle, such data may be useful in order to establish to which extent have ETC programmes contributed to the delivery of strategies
Number or organisations? / Number of regions (or organisations?) that developed new or improved mechanisms to reinforce effectiveness of cohesion policy as a result of interregional cooperation / The term “mechanism” refers to a solution or combination of solutions developed and/or implemented by interregional projects. Solutions can inter alia be technological solutions; concepts; strategies; policy recommendations; policies; political and/or administrative decisions; decision support tools; legislative acts and legal documents; action plans; investment project documentation; territorial governance platforms, networks and approaches; products and services; management tools, procedures and methods; standards; branding; education, training and knowledge transfer; awareness raising, etc.
Areas in which mechanisms can be developed:
-productive investment, innovation and internationalisation of businesses
-accessibility (transport, ICT)
-research and innovation infrastructure
-environment
-energy and climate change
-risk prevention and management
-demographic change
-urban development
-governance and management of cohesion policy financed programmes
Number or organisations? / Number of regions (or organisations?) that developed and implemented new or improved mechanisms to reinforce effectiveness of cohesion policy as a result of interregional cooperation
Number or organisations? / Number of regions (or organisations?) that developed new or improved mechanisms to reinforce effectiveness of regional policy instruments outside cohesion policy as a result ofinterregional cooperation
Number or organisations? / Number of regions (or organisations?) that developed and implemented new or improved mechanisms to reinforce effectiveness of regional policy instruments outside cohesion policy as a result ofinterregional cooperation
Community integration, common cross-border / transnational identity / number / Joint cross-border / transnational cultural, educational, recreational and other type community events and actions
persons / Participants in joint cross-border / transnationalcultural, educational, recreational and other type community events and actions
Cross-border and transnational territorial governance / Number / Cross-border / transnational mechanisms to ensure joint management of common assets and/or address common / shared challenges of the cross-border / transnational cooperation area
OR
Number of cross/border / transnational assets and / or challenges addressed through cross-border / transnational cooperation / The term “mechanism” refers to a solution or combination of solutions developed and/or implemented by cross-border and transnational projects to address common / shared challenges faced by the cooperation areas and to manage the common assets. Solutions can inter alia be technological solutions; concepts; strategies; policy recommendations; policies; political and/or administrative decisions; decision support tools; legislative acts and legal documents; action plans; investment projects prepared; territorial governance platforms, networks and approaches; integrated / coordinated service provision and products;common standards; common branding; joint or coordinated education frameworks and products; joint or coordinated business support frameworks and products; awareness raising, etc.
Areas in which mechanisms can be developed:
-productive investment, innovation and internationalisation of businesses
-accessibility (transport, ICT)
-research and innovation infrastructure
-environment
-energy and climate change
-risk prevention and management
-demographic change
-urban development
-governance
Number or organisations? / Regions (or organisations?) that have implemented cross-border / transnational mechanisms to ensure joint management of common assets and/or address common / shared challenges of the cross-border / transnational cooperation area
Number or organisations? / Municipalities (or organisations?) that have implemented cross-border mechanisms to ensure joint management of common assets and/or address common / shared challenges of the cross-border cooperation area

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[1]See „European Territorial Cooperation Programmes Delivering and Capturing Change. Final Report summarising the outcomes of the follow-up exercise to the ex post evaluation of INTERREG III”, INTERACT, 30 January 2013, available here: last accessed on 5 March 2013

[2]The Programming Period 2014-2020. Guidance Document on Monitoring and Evaluation, European Regional Development Fund and Cohesion Fund, Concepts and Recommendations, DG Regional and Urban Policy, Evaluation and European semester, December 2012