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Last week, Schuman Associates was delighted to participate in the latest ‘Future of EU Communications’ event hosted by Indiepics. We moderated the event which looked at how European social and visual communications are changing, what the latest trends are and how we can get the most out of our communication budgets.

The first post-Brexit budget focuses on innovation, digitization, climate change, support for young people, but also on security and migration.

Schuman Associates was invited this week to present its main elements and its impact for Spain at a breakfast-conference organized by the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Brussels. 

This new budget contains several novelties with respect to current financial framework. One example is the effort towards simplification moving from current fifty-eight funding programs to thirty-seven, multiplying the investment in digitalization, Erasmus program and security and defense programs, as well as border control.

In a few days, Bulgaria will be passing on the Presidency of the European Union to Austria. We take this opportunity to look back at some of the key issues that the Bulgarian Presidency has put forward in these 6 months and to present our office in Sofia.

At the helm of the EU for the first time, 10 years after the accession to the European Union, the Bulgarian Presidency  placed particular emphasis on strengthening the stability and security in Europe with the Western Balkans and the relations with Turkey..

Security has become of the main topics for EU policy makers, ranking high on the list of concern of EU citizens. During the Bulgarian Presidency, the European PNR rules became applicable and an informal agreement was reached with the European Parliament on three regulations on the use of the Schengen Information System in the fields of:

(1) police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters;

(2) border checks and

(3) return of illegally staying third-country nationals.

The motto for the EU presidency is 'A Europe that protects'.

On 1^st July 2018, Austria has assumed the Presidency of the Council of the EU for the third time. The Austrian Presidency will put emphasis on three areas where the EU has a particular protective role: Security and fight against illegal migration; securing prosperity and competitiveness through digitalisation and stability in the neighbourhood – rapprochement of the Western Balkans/South-Eastern Europe to the EU.

The fifth edition of the Berlin Process Summit was held on 9-10 July in London (UK), gathering heads and ministers of governments of the Western Balkans six (WB6) as well as several EU Member States with high interest in fostering further cooperation with the region.

The focus of the Summit in London was on economic development and connectivity, cooperation in security matters and good neighbourly relations.

Italy is one of the top recipients of EU funds just behind Poland and Romania.

Through 75 national and regional programmes, Italy has been allocated EUR 42.77 billion from European Structural and Investment Funds over the period 2014-2020. With a national contribution of EUR 30.96 billion, Italy has a total budget of  EUR 73.73 billion to be invested in various areas, from jobs and growth to boosting research and innovation as well as protecting the environment and increasing labour market participation.  

Our ‘Country Digest’ special edition on Western Balkans continues. Next one in the series – Montenegro.

The European Commission adopted a decision to update the Horizon 2020 Work Programme 2018-2020. The revision concerns different parts of the Work Programme for 2019 (topics, dates, budget)that have been updated.

In this month’s edition of "Country Digest" we focus on Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Western Balkans London Summit held as part of the Berlin process on 9-10 July 2018, reaffirmed the European future of Western Balkans and highlighted EU’s commitment to advance cooperation with the region.  At the summit, the EU launched a new instrument, the Western Balkans Guarantee, under the Western Balkans Investments Framework. This new instrument will attract and facilitate private investments in a broad range of sectors, such as start-ups and SMEs, climate finance and infrastructure investments, as well as digital and social sectors. The EU has committed 150 MEUR for 2019-2020 to support the Western Balkans Guarantee which aims to leverage investments up to 1 BEUR.

Schuman Associates is the leading consultancy in Brussels working on European funding and project financing. Delivering added-value and relevant content to our clients has always been a priority for us. Our experienced colleagues in Schuman local offices provide a hands-on support to local and international companies in accessing business opportunities arising from EU funding. Schuman Associates has launched its monthly ‘Country Digest’ to capture facts and other EU funding and relevant highlights. We are delighted to continue the series with Greece.

OpenPM² is a project management methodology designed by the European Commission. Its purpose is to enable project teams to manage their projects effectively, and to deliver solutions and benefits to their organisations and stakeholders. While OpenPM² is suitable for any type of project, it is ideal for projects related to the public sector, or EU programmes and grants. Our colleagues Ruth Estrada and Isane Aparicio attended the two days conference on #OpenPM2 organised by the European Commission in Brussels the 1st and 2nd of February. If you want to know more about this open methodology, do not hesitate to contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  

The Commission adopted today  a Strategy for 'A credible enlargement perspective for and enhanced EU engagement with the Western Balkans', reaffirming the European perspective for countries in the region and encouraging them to continue with comprehensive reforms needed to fulfill the technical condition of EU membership. In addition, it announced 6 flagship initiatives in areas of rule of law, security and migration, transport and energy, digital agenda, socio-economic development and good neighbourly relations. The initiatives will be supported by providing additional resources and funding under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA).

Schuman Associates is delighted to be part of the ‘Winning Business in Africa’ initiative supported by the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. Together with Ibec we have built a portal of opportunities totalling 8.5 BEUR of EU funding projects in Africa. The web portal provides information on the opportunities available. Accompanying advice and networking opportunities will allow Irish companies to form clusters and get involved in projects.

Schuman Associates has created an overview of some key events and announcements for the coming year. Whether you are interested in the Future of the EU after Brexit, Artificial Intelligence or the progress of Member States in terms of economic, fiscal and social policies, there is something for everyone.

The World Bank Group has launched a preparation process for its new partnership framework with Poland. The process involves consultations with different stakeholders, including the government, international financial institutions, civil society and private sector, to exchange views on the country’s development opportunities and how the World Bank Group can help address them.

The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) is an independent EU body contributing to the objectives set out in Horizon 2020, in particular by addressing societal challenges in a manner that is complementary to other initiatives in these areas. EIT brings together the "knowledge triangle" of business (including SMEs), education and research to form dynamic cross-border partnerships, the so-called Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs).  These KICs strengthen cooperation among European innovators and entrepreneurs, and they create favourable environments for creative ideas and new solutions to emerge. Since 2010 six KICs have been launched: EIT Climate-KIC; EIT Digital; EIT InnoEnergy; EIT Health; EIT Raw Materials and EIT Food. In 2018 EIT is launching two new KICs: 1) EIT Manufacturing strengthening and increasing the competitiveness of Europeกฏs manufacturing industryHigh value or added-value manufacturingProduct and service innovationProcess excellenceHigh brand recognitionEnvironmentally friendly solutionsSustainability2) EIT Urban Mobility smart, green and integrated urban transportGreener, more inclusive, safer, smarterNew mobility conceptsTransport...

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) hosted a Western Balkans Investment Summit in London on Monday, 26 February. A number of high level public officials, including all six Prime Ministers from the region gathered in EBRD's London headquarters to present their countries' potential in attracting private investment at the same time addressing bottlenecks in front of representatives from the private sector.

EU FUNDING STAGIAIRE VACANCY

Brussels Office

with 1-2 years of experience

Deadline: 20th March 2018

Following the Foreign Affairs Council that took place in Brussels on 6 March 2018, the Council adopted a roadmap for the implementation of the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) including a list of projects in the areas of common training and exercises, operational domains and joint and enabling capabilities. These projects will be implemented by participating Member States excluding Denmark, the UK and Malta.