Brussels, 30/11/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 30 November, the European Commission adopted the new EU Programme for Peace and Reconciliation (PEACE IV) with €229 million coming from the European Regional Development Fund, for projects in Northern Ireland and the border region of Ireland. In total funding stands at almost €270 million.
Four areas of action have been defined for the future: €84.5 million has been earmarked for the creation of new shared services and spaces. The programme will support, for example, interventions for victims and survivors of the conflict;- €44 million will be used to support local projects that will build mutual trust and understanding, involving sports, arts and culture as ways of facilitating interaction and mobility between residents from divided neighbourhoods and €30 million will be provided for shared cross border education projects.
The programme has existed for 20 years and almost €1.5 billion has been spent by the EU since it began. Nonetheless, the Commissioned indicated that more than €2.2 billion will have been invested by the end of the 2014-2020 programming period in the region to help promote peace keeping and reconciliation between the two communities. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)