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6 Projects Boosting Cooperation between Spain, France and Andorra

  • 02 April 2025
6 Projects Boosting Cooperation between Spain, France and Andorra

14.8 M€ from the funds of the INTERREG POCTEFA program to finance key cross-border cooperation projects in the areas of employment, mobility, and multilingualism to strengthen development and cohesion in the territories of the Western Functional Area (AFOMEF) of POCTEFA program.

This morning in Pamplona, AFOMEF governance announced the six selected projects—LANEAN, MUGAZIKLO, TRANSFERMUGI, SAREBIDE, EUSGUNEAK, and HEZHI—under the AFOMEF POCTEFA 2021-2027 call. These initiatives will receive €14.8 million from the European Regional Development Fund, leveraging a total investment of approximately €23 million. The INTERREG POCTEFA program fosters cross-border cooperation, reinforcing ERDF funds under Political Objective 5: “Europe closer to its citizens” to support local initiatives in functional areas, which serve as innovation hubs to enhance regional cohesion and improve citizens’ quality of life.

The selected projects align with AFOMEF’s three strategic axes—employment, mobility, and multilingualism—and POCTEFA’s objective for a Europe closer to citizens. The AFOMEF Integrated Territorial Strategy, officially launched in December 2023, was co-developed through a participatory process involving over 200 citizens and stakeholders. This bottom-up approach ensures alignment with local priorities, fostering commitment to sustainable development and regional cooperation.

Over the next four years, these projects will implement actions across Euskadi, Navarra, and Nouvelle-Aquitaine. LANEAN addresses legal, tax, and linguistic barriers to create an integrated cross-border labor market (€2.7M). TRANSFERMUGI and MUGAZIKLO improve transport interoperability and promote sustainable mobility (€5.95M and €5.98M). SAREBIDE advances digital transformation for Basque-language media (€2.59M), while EUSGUNEAK strengthens Basque language education, impacting 25,000 people (€2.56M). HEZHI fosters plurilingual education through exchanges and teacher training (€3.09M).

 The EGTC Euroregion Nouvelle-Aquitaine Euskadi Navarra coordinates AFOMEF. As the transboundary entity responsible for driving development in the Western Functional Area, the EGTC ensures that cross-border initiatives align with local needs, fostering regional collaboration and acting as a catalyst for territorial dynamism.