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Knowledge and Expertise in European Programmes (KEEP)
INTERACT is developing an exciting new tool which will provide more comprehensive information on European Territorial Cooperation than ever before.
What is KEEP?
KEEP is an online tool and internet portal containing comprehensive information on all European Territorial Cooperation projects. It will allow users to view and analyse the workings of cooperation on a much wider scale and with greater depth than has ever been possible before.
As a Europe-wide and inter-programme process that involves the capturing, documenting, processing and transferring of information into knowledge, KEEP will enable all bodies involved in cooperation to capitalise on the vast experience gained throughout the European Union.
Why KEEP?
Cooperation is more important than ever. As the recent Green Paper on territorial cohesion produced by DG Regio in 2008 outlines:
"Many of the problems faced by territories cut across sectors and effective solutions require an integrated approach and cooperation between the various authorities and stakeholders involved. In this respect, the concept of territorial cohesion builds bridges between economic effectiveness, social cohesion and ecological balance, putting sustainable development at the heart of policy design."
KEEP can play an important role in the coming years by helping to answer the following questions:
- How does Territorial Cooperation help Europe?
- What are the projects working on and are they making a difference?
- Could we have better projects if we knew more about what was happening elsewhere in Europe and in other programmes?
- How can we help regions get the best value from their projects?
- Why should Member States continue to support cooperation?
Furthermore, KEEP will act to support European Territorial Cooperation programmes by:
- Increasing the efficiency of implementation;
- Giving programmes tools with which to be more effective;
- Improving the channels through which information can be exchanged;
- Facilitating a greater exchange of experiences;
- Improving the dissemination of good practice examples.
KEEP is about making cooperation easier by creating a platform for sharing ideas and developments as inputs to new and existing projects. This will improve the exchange of knowledge between regions and make sure that every new project can build strongly on the lessons of past programmes and the latest knowledge
How will KEEP work?
By integrating the results of all European Territorial Cooperation programmes, presenting them in a coherent and accessible way and transparently communicating European-wide effects, KEEP will demonstrate the added value of cooperation. Emphasising projects of exceptional quality will provide users with a bigger picture, which until now has been lacking given the focus on programme results. Therefore KEEP will provide something genuinely new, by enabling different users to harness state of the art tools, focusing on their different needs and putting Territorial Cooperation at the innovative heart of Europe.
This mechanism will capture and compare information on approved projects and interlink all cooperation projects, across strands, themes and programming periods, enabling a wider picture to emerge. The KEEP communication system will analyse results and identify real Territorial Cooperation knowledge, generating a process which is not only essential for Monitoring and Evaluation, Communication, Financial Overviews and Capitalisation, but also one which will lead to the development of new projects and partnerships based on an overview of regional strengths and weaknesses. KEEP will demonstrate that cooperation results are an important element in achieving the Lisbon and Gothenburg objectives.
This is a challenge we need to face if we are going to provide balanced input about the potential role of European Territorial Cooperation programmes in the future programming period.
For more information please contact our Quality Assurance and Knowledge Manager Saverio Liguori (firstname.lastname@interact-eu.net).
