Interreg NPA 2021-2027 First call for preparatory projects Pre-announcement

The first call for preparatory projects is planned to open on 29th August and close on 19th September 2022 12:00 (noon) CET. The Monitoring Committee will decide the successful project applications on 23rd November 2022. (Decision date subject to approval by NPA Monitoring committee at its September meeting).

Would you like to apply to the Interreg NPA programme, but feel inexperienced to run a main project? Then check out the Call for Preparatory projects!

The Northern Periphery and Arctic Programme 2014-2020 was successfully implemented and has led to continued commitment to developing a new successor programme that is expected to run until 2027. Preparations are now complete for the new Programme, and the priorities and objectives of the Interreg Northern Periphery and Arctic 2021 – 2027 Programme (Interreg NPA) are established.

Terms of Reference

In order to ensure that the new NPA Programme begins its implementation pro-actively, the Monitoring Committee of Interreg NPA would like to announce and encourage preparatory project applicants to start to develop their preparatory project ideas, explore potential partnership and investigate match funding sources for main project application calls.

The experience from previous years has shown that preparatory projects are an important tool for development of strong and well-balanced project partnership. Both, experienced and inexperienced project partners are encouraged to apply and use the preparatory projects for establishing new connections and discussing the project ideas.

The Monitoring Committee is looking to fund projects in the following Priorities:

PRIORITY 1: Strengthening the innovation capacity for resilient and attractive NPA communities

PRIORITY 2: Strengthening the capacity for climate change adaptation, and resource sufficiency in NPA communities

Project Structure

Interreg NPA is funding two types of preparatory projects:

1. Up to 50.000 EUR for a 6-months long preparatory project

2. Up to 100.000 EUR for a 12-months long preparatory project

The support to the beneficiaries will be handled as a lump sum based on a draft budget. In case of approval, the draft budget will be converted to a lump sum budget in Jems. The NPA eligibility rules and intervention rates outlined in the Programme Manual apply.

Preparatory projects involve partners from at least 2 programme partner countries, at least one of which from an EU Member States. Partnerships are recommended to include at least 2 of the 3 geographical zones of the programme area: Finland-Sweden-Norway; Ireland; Faroe Islands-Greenland-Iceland.

Lead Partners must be public organisations based in the NPA Programme area (unless they have a national remit that covers the Programme area). Project partners can be either public or private.

Expected outcomes

Preparatory projects applicants are expected to address their chosen specific objective with actions such as:

feasibility studies
stakeholders mapping
and recommendations with the purpose of developing project ideas

Ideally, the projects will conclude with the presentation of a main project application addressing the Third or Fourth Call for main project proposals.

Project Development Support

Terms of Reference and the Programme Manual can be downloaded at the bottom of this webpage. Watch the call pre-announcement video here.

General information about the Interreg NPA 2021-2027 can be found at this link.

Further information

If you are interested in applying, we recommend that you are in touch with the Regional Contact Point in your region. Alternatively, you can contact Christopher Parker at the Programme Secretariat at christopher.parker{at}interreg-npa.eu.