IQ-Net partners, together with representatives of DG REGIO and DG EMPLOI of the European Commission, met at the 33rd IQ-Net conference in Krems, Lower Austria, on 28-30 November 2012. The conference was hosted by the Land Government of Lower Austria and chaired by EPRC.
The conference opened with a welcome and introduction from the hosts, given by Florian Riess, Head of Division of the Department for Economic Affairs, Tourism and Technology. The main focus of the conference was on IQ-Net partners' views on the increased focus on performance and results in the forthcoming 2014-20 programme period.
Discussions were supported by a research paper prepared by Carlos Mendez, Stefan Kah and John Bachtler of EPRC. Veronica Gaffey of DG REGIO and Ines Hartwig of DG EMPLOI provided overviews of current thinking about the performance of Cohesion policy from a Commission perspective. Discussions also covered current programme implementation issues, with a focus on the future, specifically the IQ-Net programme authorities' preparations for 2014-20, supported by a presentation by Rona Michie of EPRC. Stefan Kah, IQ-Net Network Manager, provided an overview of future network developments.
During the conference, partners viewed two projects which have benefited from European funding: a medium-sized regional enterprise specialising in galvanising and anodising, and a wine-based tourism project.