1) Background
The “Culture 2007” Programme will replace the current Culture 2000 Programme on 1st January 2007 and will run until 31st December 2013. It should ensure the continuity of the “Culture 2000” Programme although there are a number of changes within “Culture 2007”. After the agreement on the overall financial perspectives for 2007-2013, the negotiations concerning a final agreement on “Culture 2007” are to be closed shortly.
2) Summary
The new “Culture 2007” Programme aims at three specific objectives, which should be reached through three main funding strands. The programme should also contribute to the horizontal objectives of the EU such as freedom of expression, sustainable development, to promote mutual understanding and tolerance as well as the elimination of all discrimination.
The three specific objectives listed in the programme are:
a) To promote the trans-national mobility of people working in cultural sector;
b) To encourage the trans-national circulation of works, cultural and artistic products; and
c) To encourage intercultural dialogue.
The three main funding strands are (354 mio €):
a) Support for cultural actions (272.58 mio €)
o Cooperation centres, which aim at bringing together operators from one or several sectors from countries participating;
o Cooperation activities: at least three cultural operators from three different countries are required and the support, which may not exceed 50% of the project budget, will be granted for a maximum duration of two years; and
o Special actions: need to resonate strongly with the peoples of Europe.
b) Support for bodies active at European level in the field of culture (35.4mio €)
o Operating support to organisations which are engaged in promoting cultural cooperation and have acquired considerably expertise in this field; and
o Protection of the Nazi concentration camps as historical monuments. (an extension to include Communist prisons and camps is still under discussion)
c) Support for analyses and the collective and dissemination of information and for activities maximising the impact of projects in the field of European cultural cooperation and European cultural policy developments (17.7mio €)
o Support for analyses in the field of cultural cooperation;
o Support for the collection and dissemination of information on cultural cooperation; and
o Support for cultural contact points, which are operated on national levels in order to promote the programme.
Concerning the implementation of the programme, the European Commission decided to encourage structured durable cooperation via the cultural cooperation focal points instead of multi-annual cooperation programmes. All proposed projects could focus on one cultural sector or be cross-sectorral as funding strands are not divided into different cultural sectors.
The target groups of “Culture 2007” are organisations of all kinds involved in cultural activities, such could be cultural institutions (museums, schools, universities, etc.) or associations working for preservation of memorials. Financial support, especially long-term support, more information on issues related to cultural cooperation and increased exchange of good practice as well as a more flexible, more focused and more visible Community Programme are the main aspects of supporting these operators.
Criteria for the selection will be the expertise of co-organisers, their financial and operational capacity, the quality of the activities and the extent to which they meet the general and specific objectives.
Countries eligible to participate:
· 25 EU member states;
· Accession countries (Romania, Bulgaria);
· EFTA countries which are members of the EEA (Norway);
· Candidate countries benefiting from a pre-accession strategy (Croatia, Turkey); and
· Countries of the Western Balkans.
3) What’s new?
1. The size and structure of the funding. The programmes objectives will be achieved by the three main funding strands (see above).
2. The major significant change within the “Culture 2007” Programme is the reduction of the specific objectives from eight to the following three:
· Promotion of trans-national mobility of people working in the cultural sector;
· Trans-national circulation of works and cultural and artistic products; and
· To encourage intercultural dialogue.
3. Following the Commission’s proposal for the new “Culture 2007” framework programme there are no classifications of different cultural sectors. Projects can focus on one sector or can be cross-sectoral. Consequently the organisations wishing to apply can propose projects of their own choice without a classification of a specific sector as long as the proposed project fulfils the aim of at least two of the three specific objectives of the programme.
4) Next Steps
A Common Position of the Council of Ministers on the “Culture 2007” Programme was adopted and sent to the European Parliament for the Second Reading, which is due to finalise the adoption by the end of the year.
The first tenders for programmes under “Culture 2007” are expected for January 2007.