EPRC Seminar: Territorial Cohesion in Slovakia in 2014-2020

On Wednesday 12 August EPRC hosted a seminar by Igor Jasurek, from the section Central Coordination Authority, Government Office of the Slovak Republic. The seminar was set in the context of the EU's territorial agenda in Cohesion policy. Attempts have been made to embed territoriality in the reformed Cohesion Policy; it has been translated into the territorial instruments and the 5% ERDF allocation for sustainable urban development. However, surprisingly enough and despite these measures, territoriality cannot be seen to be among the prevalent features of reformed Cohesion policy. Rather, it can be seen to have been strongly shaped by the Europe 2020 ten-year growth strategy and its strong focus on competitiveness. In this context, Slovakia has planned to deliver Cohesion policy through making strong use of territorial instruments; namely Integrated Territorial Investment (ITI) and Community-led Local Development (CLLD). In this way Slovakia is seeking to maintain a strong territorial dimension in Cohesion policy, whilst also delivering targeted interventions which support SMEs and innovation in order to address rural and urban development needs. Presentation slides can be seen http://www.eprc.strath.ac.uk/news/Teritorial Cohesion Slovakia.pdf