The European Commission session on strategies for the implementation of Structural Funds in the Czech Republic for the biennium 2004-2006 was successfully concluded on December 18.
These funds will address priority issues for the country's social and economic development and will be available from 1 January 2004. Projects must comply with community legislation and relate to regional policy issues, environmental conservation and financial control.
The programs will be officially approved after the Czech Republic's entry into the European Union on May 1, 2004.
The funds amount to a total of 1.525 billion euros, to which another 936 million from the Cohesion Funds will be added.
Michel Barnier, Commissioner for Regional Policy and Institutional Reform, stressed that the agreement presupposes that the funds will be concentrated on relevant issues that help achieve strategic objectives, such as increasing GDP and reducing unemployment.




