The Ministry of European Funds (MFE) organised on Tuesday, December 10, 2019, the kick-off meeting for the “Strategy for the transition from coal of the Jiu Valley”, financed by the Structural Reform Support Service within the European Commission (SRSS).
The consultant selected by EC for developing Jiu Valley Strategy for the transition from coal is PricewaterhouseCoopers Romania.
At the event chaired by the Minister of European Funds, Ioan Marcel Boloș, attended representatives of the European Commission (through video conference), the ministries that are part of the Steering Committee and the Working Group for Jiu Valley Initiative, the Institute of Statistics, local public authorities, who are also the final beneficiaries of this Strategy, as well as representatives of civil society in Jiu Valley. TRACER project team from Romania was invited to the event being part of the Working Group for Jiu Valley Initiative.
The participants discussed the future challenges and the expected results of this Strategy and the Action Plan for implementing the transition from coal in Jiu Valley. The Report will also contain proposals for the governance structure needed, endorsing the Strategy development, and for a portfolio of 10 projects, focused on economic, social and environmental development. The Strategy and Action Plan will be used as the reference document for future financing funds and mechanisms in Jiu Valley, during the programming period 2021-2027, based on an Integrated Territorial Instrument.
Ioan Marcel Boloș, the Minister of European Funds, stressed the special importance of this project for the successful economic and social reconversion of the micro-region, underlining the need to involve social partners and local authorities during the entire Strategy development process.
During Q&A session’s interventions, the Romanian TRACER team and Greenpeace representative stressed the need to combine efforts, synchronize EC funded initiatives and avoid overlaps, respectively EC assistance services accessed by all 6 Jiu Valley’s Mayors through START (Secretariat’s Technical Assistance to Regions in Transition) and the TRACER project funded by H2020, which will have as results, complementary project proposals mainly for the smart transition to a sustainable energy future.
For TRACER the event was a promoting opportunity, within face to face meetings with the central authorities of the new government (e.g. Ministry of Economy including the energy Department), the County Council and the 6 mayors of the Jiu Valley. Also participating in the informal meeting, organized after the event, it was an occasion to present TRACER to the project manager from PricewaterhouseCoopers Romania and their team from Slovakia (the good practice example from Upper Nitra – Strategy developed by the same Consultant with SRSS support).
Post-event press releases:
http://www.zvj.ro/articole-53806-Primarii+din+Valea+Jiului+nu++mai+vor+strategii+de+dezvoltare+uitate+in+sertarele+ministerelor+din+B.html
Primarii din Valea Jiului vor ca noua strategie să fie cât mai aproape de realitățile zonei