19/08/2020 The revised EUSBSR Action Plan has been approved by National Coordinators
National Coordinators of the EU Strategy for Baltic Sea Region have approved the revised Action Plan of the Strategy in their online Meeting on 29-30 June this year. The revised Action Plan will enter into force after completion of the Commission´s internal procedure and it will be published as a Commission Staff Working Document (SWD), it is expected to happen in the beginning of 2021.
The revised Action Plan is more focused, 14 Policy Areas cover 44 Actions, climate change and cooperation with neighbouring non-EU countries are mainstreamed as horizontal aspects in all policy areas. Also Horizontal Action “Spatial Planning” is transforming into a Policy Area. Functions of communication and capacity building are to be given to the Baltic Sea Strategy Point which is to be established. The 3 Objectives of the Strategy – Save the Sea, Connect the Region and Increase Prosperity – remain valid and in force. Policy Areas no longer are aligned with certain Objective but rather considered cross-sectoral and overarching.
The overall goal of the PA “Spatial Planning” is to increase territorial cohesion in the Baltic Sea Region. In 2030, the Region shall be a better-integrated and more coherent macro-region that has reduced socio-economic development divides between its individual parts and has turned global challenges into assets.
The current version of the revised EUSBSR Action plan for PA Spatial Planning has two actions.
Action 1: Strengthening territorial cohesion in the BSR through land-based spatial planning
Policy area supports the implementation of the VASAB Long-term Perspective within the EUSBSR and achieving coherent development of the Baltic Sea Region by:
- Contributing to better adaptation of strategies to different types of areas and propose specific approaches for a diverse urban pattern by ensuring pan-Baltic dialogue;
- Underlining the need to apply place-based approaches to territorial development policies as well as effective use of functional area’s concept and territorial impact assessment tools by acting as a platform for sharing knowledge and best practices, thereby contributing to the implementation of the Territorial Agenda for the EU from 2021 on;
- Observing the territorial development processes in the Region by using and advancing territorial development monitoring solutions, inter alia developed within projects of the ESPON Cooperation Programme;
- Encouraging transnational actions improving accessibility and connectivity of the Region using potential of TEN-T for regional development and observe regional effects of the European transport infrastructure development.
- Contributing to adaptation, mitigation and resilience to climate change in land-based spatial planning process.
Action 2: Ensuring coherent maritime spatial plans throughout the Baltic Sea
The Regional Baltic MSP Roadmap 2013-2020, along with VASAB LTP and HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan sets the framework for MSP cooperation and defines the necessary steps to achieve the goal to draw up and apply maritime spatial plans throughout the BSR which are coherent across borders and apply the ecosystem approach to contribute to reaching jointly agreed environmental and climate goals. Transboundary coherency of maritime spatial plans implies strengthening of cooperation with non-EU neighbouring countries and organizations.
The revised Action Plan approved by the National Coordinators is available here.
