Bilateral Initiative 2024 - 2025 - Project Overview
Continuation of bilateral cooperation between Polish, Norwegian and Icelandic local governments as an example of developing lasting relations after Local Development projects and expanding cooperation in preparation of the next financial perspective.
Billateral Initiative
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Funding sources: Bilateral Cooperation Fund, European Economic Area Financial Mechanism and Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2021.

The intention of the project is to support the continuation of cooperation between interested Norwegian/Icelandic cities/municipalities and 53 Polish cities that participated in Phases II and III of the Local Development Program under the EEA and Norway Grants 2014-2021. Activities under the Initiative are also a bridge that leads to the new financial perspective of the EEA and the Norway Grants.

Activities planned within the framework of the project:

  • grants for cities to enable the continuation of bilateral cooperation established during the Local Development Program. The amount of the grant is equivalent to €60,000.
  • study visits in Norway for Polish local government officials and in Poland for representatives of Norwegian and Icelandic municipalities
  • internships in Norway/Iceland for Polish cities and in Poland for Norwegian/Icelandic local government officials
  • workshops and conferences: a total of 5 events in Norway, Latvia, Brussels during the Municipalities and Regions Open Days 2024 and a conference to summarise the Local Development Project in Warsaw
  • organization of online educational seminars of the Local Development Forum
  • organization of meetings of the four Experience Exchange Networks with experts from Norway/Iceland:

- Citizens' City - civic participation, methods of participatory management, methods and experiences of migrant integration, etc.;
- Accessible and Equitable City - social and senior citizen policies, silver economy, social inclusion, social assistance in civil protection systems, etc.;
- Entrepreneurial City - support for local entrepreneurship, sub-regional development with active participation of the private sector, use of public and private partnerships for local economic development;
- Human Resource Management - Effective City - effective methods of human resource (HR) development and personnel management to support the implementation of city development policies, etc.

Partners: Association of Polish Cities, Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (KS).

Implementation period: April 1, 2024 - February 28, 2025