JOINT OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME for the Estonia-Russia Cross
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ANNEX 1 JOINT OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME of Estonia-Russia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2014-2020 Table of Contents JOINT OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME of Estonia-Russia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2014-2020........................................................................................................................ 3 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................... 3 1. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROGRAMME AREA.......................................................................... 6 1.1 Programme area map........................................................................................................... 6 1.2 Core regions .............................................................................................................................. 7 1.3. Adjoining regions................................................................................................................ 7 1.4. Participation of the adjoining regions in Finland and Latvia ................................................... 8 2. PROGRAMME STRATEGY ....................................................................................................... 10 2.1 Strategic and thematic objectives and priorities...................................................................... 10 2.2 A justification of the chosen strategy .......................................................................................... 13 2.2.1 Socio-Economic and environmental analysis of the programme area.................................. 13 2.2.1.1 Business and SME development ....................................................................................... 20 2.2.1.2 Promotion of border management and border security, mobility and migration management .................................................................................................................................. 29 2.2.1.3 Environmental protection, climate change mitigation and adaptation .......................... 33 2.2.1.4 Support for local & regional good governance ................................................................. 40 2.2.2 Lessons learned from previous experiences in Cross Border Programmes.......................... 44 2.2.3 Coherence with other EU, national and regional strategies and EU financial instruments.. 46 2.2.4 Risk Analysis and Mitigating Measures............................................................................... 49 2.3 Description of ‘Objectively Verifiable Indicators’ (OVI)........................................................... 54 2.3.1 Expected result for each priority .......................................................................................... 54 2.4 Cross-cutting Issues................................................................................................................. 69 3. STRUCTURES AND APPOINTMENT OF THE COMPETENT AUTHORITIES AND MANAGEMENT BODIES............................................................................................................... 71 3.1. The composition of the Joint Monitoring Committee and its tasks........................................ 72 3.2. Managing Authority and its designation process ................................................................... 73 3.3. National Authorities ............................................................................................................... 77 3.4 Control contact points ............................................................................................................. 78 3.5. The procedure for setting up the Joint Technical Secretariat, and branch offices and tasks.. 79 3.6. The audit authority and members of the group of auditors .................................................... 81 4. PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION......................................................................................... 84 4.1 A summary description of the management and control systems ........................................... 84 1 4.2 Timeframe for Programme implementation............................................................................ 86 4.2.1 The basic principles for project beneficiaries....................................................................... 87 4.3 A description of the project selection procedure......................................................................... 89 4.4 A description of types of support per priority (a list of projects to be selected through direct procedures) ........................................................................................................................................ 92 4.5 A description of the planned use of Technical Assistance and applicable contract award procedures ....................................................................................................................................... 103 4.6 A description of monitoring and evaluation systems, together with an indicative monitoring and evaluation plan for the whole duration of the Programme (Annexe 1) ........................................... 104 4.7 Communications strategy for the whole programme period and an indicative information and communications plan for the first year (Annexe 2)......................................................................... 104 4.8 Information of fulfilment of SEA requirements (Annexe 4)..................................................... 108 4.9 An indicative financial plan ...................................................................................................... 110 4.10 Rules on the eligibility of expenditure .................................................................................... 114 4.11 The apportionment of liabilities amongst participating countries ........................................... 115 4.12 The rules for the transfer, use, and monitoring of co-financing.............................................. 116 4.13 A description of IT systems for the reporting and exchange of computerised data between the MA and the Commission................................................................................................................. 117 4.14 Language adopted by the Programme ..................................................................................... 117 Annexe 1 Indicative monitoring and control plan ........................................................................... 118 Annexe 2 Media plan and communication and visibility guidelines............................................... 121 Annexe 3 List of Acronyms ............................................................................................................ 129 2 JOINT OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME of Estonia-Russia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2014-2020 INTRODUCTION The Estonia – Russia Cross-Border Cooperation (CBC) Programme 2014–2020 (hereinafter referred to as The Programme) is co-financed by the European Union under the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI), the Republic of Estonia and the Russian Federation. The Programme has been developed as a joint effort between representatives of Estonia and Russia. The representatives of both countries who were involved in the Programme’s preparation process have been also actively involved in the implementation of the ENPI Estonia-Latvia-Russia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2007-2013 (which hereinafter is referred to as EstLatRus), and it is foreseen that they will be involved in the work of the Programme’s Joint Monitoring Committee (JMC) in the future. Continuity between preparation and implementation contributes to effective management and the Programme’s result-orientated implementation. The Programme will complement overall European Union - Russia relations, focusing on the eligible border regions on both sides of the border. The Programme has been prepared in accordance with: - Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 966/2012 on the Financial Regulation that is applicable to the general budget for the European Communities; - Common Implementing regulation (CIR) (Reg 236/2014); - Regulation (EC) No 232/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2014 (ENI Regulation); - CBC Implementing Rules (Reg 897/2014); - ENI CBC Programming Document 2014-2020, with indicative programme 2014-2017 (Commission Implementing Decision C (2014)7172)); - The Concept for the Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation (adopted by the President of the Russian Federation on February 12th, 2013); - The Strategy of the Social and Economic Development of the North-West Region of the Russian Federation till 2020 approved with the Government Executive Order of the Russian Federation № 2074-р of November 18th, 2011; - Federal law on procurement № 44-FZ of April 5th, 2013; - Tax Code of the Russian Federation; - Related decrees of the President of the Russian Federation and the Russian Government The Concept of Cross-Border Cooperation of the Russian Federation; - The Concept of the Long-term Social and Economic Development of the Russian Federation through to 2020; 3 - 2014-2020 Structural Assistance Act of Estonia, which will be in force during the 2015. The applicable European Union rules on State aid will be taken into account during the implementation of the programme in the territory of the European Union. If need be relevant Russian legislation on competition will be applied in the territory of the Russian Federation. The Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Estonia and the Ministry