What we fund
Interreg NPA Programme is funding transnational cooperation projects that come with ideas and solutions how to make the Arctic and near-Arctic regions even better places to live, work and visit!
What is the aim of our projects?
The objective of the Interreg NPA Programme and its projects is to foster change within the Northern Periphery and Arctic communities. Projects are expected to deliver concrete, durable, and tangible results that bring positive changes in the Programme area. Each project should select the most appropriate priority and inside this, the most appropriate specific objective. The impacts of NPA projects lead to attitude change, an openness to new approaches, an improved entrepreneurial business environment, a change in awareness and public policy or an increased preparedness.
Projects with a thematic focus
Priority 1- INNOVATION CAPACITY
Projects in this priority help small companies become greener and more innovative, develop digital solutions to simplify the life of citizens, organisations, and SMEs.
Priority 2 - CLIMATE CHANGE and RESOURCE SUFFICIENCY
Projects in this priority help improve the way people use energy and reduce greenhouse gasses, or prepare communities better for climate change and disasters.
Priority 3- COOPERATION OPPORTUNITIES
Projects in this priority help strengthening cooperation skills and foster collaboration across communities and small organisations.
What kinds of projects are supported?
The Interreg NPA Programme supports different project types, which are described below. Please note that eligibility and selection criteria vary depending on the different project types. Besides this, additional expectations and requirements may be defined in each Call.
Main projects are the standard project type supported by the Interreg NPA programme to achieve the objectives of the programme. Main projects are expected to develop concrete project outputs, such as jointly developed solutions, which have a positive impact on the project’s target groups.
Main project structure
Main projects typically have a transnational partnership of between 5-7 partners, an average budget size of 1 500 000 EUR, and an implementation period of 3 years.
Partners should come from at least 3 programme partner countries, at least one of which from an EU Member State, to ensure that the partnership is clearly of a transnational character.
Calls for Main projects
The call for Main project proposals is open at regular intervals, normally once or twice a year in spring and autumn . The Call details and Terms of Reference will be announced on the News section of this website and a dedicated call webpage will be created for each call.
Decision process
Decisions on Main projects are made by the Monitoring Committee, after assessment by the Joint Secretariat and Regional Advisory Groups. The approval process takes approximately 3 months from submission.
Preparatory projects are an important tool for development of strong and well-balanced project partnerships in a dispersed geography where long distances and costs are obstacles for project development. Preparatory projects bring potential project partners together to generate high-quality main project applications. Experience from previous programme periods has shown that preparatory projects often result in more successful main project applications.
Projects structure
A preparatory project can choose to run for 6 months with a total budget of up to 50 000 EUR, or to run for 12 months with a total budget of up to 100 000 EUR.
Partners should come from at least 2 programme partner countries, at least one of which from an EU Member State.
Decision process
Decisions on preparatory projects are made by the Monitoring Committee, after assessment by the Joint Secretariat and Regional Contact Points. The approval process takes approximately 2 months from submission.
Preparatory projects can also be a tool for building up capacity and experience for representatives of specific underrepresented groups (e.g. young people, and indigenous peoples) in relation to the Interreg NPA programme.
On the one hand, the ambition is that partners shall become better suited for engagement in main projects as partners in the future. On the other hand, these smaller projects might complement main projects and support the Programme to foster changes that are of importance for people living in the programme area.
Project structure
Typically, a capacity building preparatory project has a total budget of up to 200 000 EUR, and runs for 6-18 months. Partners should come from at least 3 programme partner countries, at least one of which from an EU Member State.
Decision process
Decisions on this type of projects are made by the Monitoring Committee, after assessment by the Joint Secretariat and Regional Advisory Groups. The approval process takes approximately 3 months from submission.
Clustering projects are a means of diversifying and capitalising on outputs and results from two or more previously implemented or ongoing projects. Clustering projects are a tool to further integrate results as well as disseminate their impacts by reaching a wider group of stakeholders with project outputs, supplementary learning, and capacity building.
In the past, Clustering of projects has been used both for combinations of projects inside the programme, but also they have also allowed collaboration across programmes, in particular, Arctic clustering projects, in order to take advantage of synergies between projects funded by EU programmes in the Arctic.
Project structure
Typically, a clustering project has a total budget of up to 200 000 EUR, and runs for up to 12 months. Partners should come from at least 3 programme partner countries, at least one of which from an EU Member State.
Besides the small-scale projects described above, the Monitoring Committee may decide on additional small project types on a call-by-call basis, for example, to further capitalise on project results
Projects drive the change
Interreg NPA projects work starts from an idea which is developed together by the partners into new tools, solutions, practices, knowledge and skills that can be put into practice and thereby make change happen. We have funded more than 30 projects, take a look at what the future is going to look like.
Learn about our projectsFind the call to start your next project
Do you have an idea how to make the Northern Periphery and Arctic a better place to live, work, study, visit or invest? Then find out when the next call opens.
Check the call calendar
Photos on this page from Interreg NPA 2014-2020 projects: REGINA-Nordregio/Leneisja Jungsberg; CINE; Circular Ocean; and NPA in-person event.