Thirteen grant contracts have been signed under the 1st Call for Proposals of the Cross-border Cooperation Programme Serbia – Bosnia and Herzegovina 2021–2027, funded under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III).
The total value of the contracted projects is EUR 6,753,162.64. The EU contribution amounts to EUR 5,713,165.02, and the project partners provide the remainder themselves. The funds come from the 2022 and 2024 allocations. The contracts were signed by the Department for Contracting and Financing of EU Funded Programmes (CFCU) of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Serbia, which is also the Contracting Authority of the Programme.
Nine projects, worth a total of EUR 4.7 million in EU funds, focus on sustainable tourism development and the preservation of cultural and natural heritage.
The tourism organisations of Tara-Drina, Višegrad and Užice are joining forces in the project “Magic Tourism Ring: Bridging Borders for a Sustainable Future”. Bajina Bašta and Srebrenica are developing youth tourism through “#Drina4Youth – Fostering Youth Tourism in Destination Drina”. Tuzla and Western Serbia are designing events that will attract visitors through “Four-Season Events as a tool for cross-border tourism development – CROSS EVENT”. Vlasenica and Užice are preparing “Motor ride experience through centuries of Podrinje region – #DrinaMotorRide”, a motorcycle tour through the history of the Podrinje region.
Within the project “Experience Roman Heritage on Drina and Sava – Roman Emperors Route 2.0”, the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments Sremska Mitrovica and the Archaeological Museum “Rimski Municipium” in Skelani continue to connect the ancient heritage of the two countries. Through the project “Entrepreneurial Museums”, the museums in Prijepolje and Tuzla will become entrepreneurial museums. In the project “Promotion of Rural Sustainable Tourism through Traditional Handicrafts, Shepherd Trails and Local Food – PASTiR”, Sirogojno, Užice and Sarajevo are reviving traditional handicrafts and local food. Rajac, Bobovac and Srebrenik are getting a new tourism offer through “Lights, Games & History: A New Tourism Experience in Rajac, Bobovac & Srebrenik”. Sremska Mitrovica, Irig and Brčko District are developing a rural tourism offer accessible to all within “TOUR de RurALL – Rural TOURism CBC offer improved and diversified for ALL”.
Four projects, worth almost EUR 1 million in EU funds, are dedicated to youth employment and inclusion.
Petnica Science Center and schools from Milići and Kosjerić will help young people develop the skills the labour market needs through “Skills 4 jobs – Increasing employability of youth of Municipalities Milici, Kosjeric and their surroundings”. The Red Cross of Vojvodina and the Red Cross of the Federation of BiH, together with medical schools from Sremska Mitrovica and Sarajevo, are building an inclusive network of young volunteers within “Inclusive Youth Volunteer Network – IYVN”. The projects “YouthInitiative – Empowering Local Careers Across Borders” and “Youth Impact Hub” bring together provincial secretariats, cantonal and federal ministries and civil society organisations. Their aim is to help young people find jobs more easily and find their place in local communities.
Municipalities and cities, museums, schools, tourism organisations, development agencies and associations from both sides of the border are taking part in the projects.
Additional contracts under the 1st Call for Proposals are expected to be signed in the coming period.
