The Management Committee of the Operational Programme - INTERREG V-A Madeira - Azores-Canaries (MAC) approved today the funding of 50 cooperation projects involving Azorean public and private entities in the amount of 5.6 million Euros.
 
These projects comprise the development of actions for research and technological development, support to the growth capacity of small and medium companies, risk prevention, adaptation to climate change, and environmental conservation and protection.
 
During the first meeting, the members of the Management Committee approved several projects developed in the area of resource efficiency and reinforcement of the institutional capacity in public administration among the 119 proposals submitted to all axes of the programme that runs until 2020. The Azores are represented at this body by the Vice-Presidency of the Government. 
 
These approvals reflect the investment priorities set out in INTERREG VA and the involvement of a significant diversity of regional promoters, namely the Regional Government departments, municipalities, public companies, business associations, the University of the Azores and entities of the regional scientific system. Moreover, they also include organisations representing several economic and social sectors, from tourism to local development.
 
In addition to the Government of the Azores and government officials from Madeira and the Canary Islands, the meeting was also attended by representatives of the governments of Portugal, Spain, Cape Verde, Mauritania and Senegal.
 
With an allocation over 11 million Euros for the participating regional authorities, INTERREG VA MAC provides for the participation of neighbouring countries, including Cape Verde, Senegal and Mauritania, with the aim of creating regional markets and strengthen sustained and sustainable development .
 
In this regard, the allocation of financial resources for territorial cooperation projects between these European island regions that border the European extracontinental space is intended to contribute to the opening and internationalisation of economies as well as to the creation of new cooperation networks in various fields.