Launch of PEACE PLUS - €1 billion fund for Northern Ireland and the border counties inaugurated
Today the European Commission Executive Vice-President for the European Green deal, Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight, Maroš Šefčovič, inaugurated the implementation of the PEACE PLUS programme 2021-2027 to support peace and prosperity across Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland.
The Executive Vice President was welcomed to Belfast by the UK’s Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris and joined by the Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, the head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service Jayne Brady, Gina McIntyre, the Chief Executive of the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), a cross-border body established under the Good Friday Agreement and the EU Ambassador to the UK Pedro Serrano.
The launch of this significant fund represents the continuation of the almost 35 year commitment of the EU to the support and protection of peace in Northern Ireland. In 1989, the EU first began its support of the grassroots work for peace by contributing to the International Fund for Ireland. Following the extraordinary work done in realising the Good Friday Agreement, the EU then launched the first EU PEACE Programme in 1995, which over the years directed more than 1.5 billion euro to the support, protect and safeguard peace in Northern Ireland.
Last year, the Commission adopted the PEACE PLUS programme, a new cross-border EU programme which builds on previous PEACE programmes. The aim of Peace Plus, like previous Peace Programmes, is to support peace and reconciliation and to promote social, economic and regional stability and cooperation in Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland. With EU funding of €235 million from the European Territorial Cooperation allocation of the European Regional Development Fund, together with the UK’s financial commitment from the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement and additional co-financing from Ireland and Northern Ireland, the programme will benefit from a total investment of €1.1 billion in peace and prosperity on the island of Ireland. Across six different thematic areas, the PEACE PLUS Programme will build further upon the experiences of past programmes and will be heavily driven by grassroot organizations of both communities and from both sides of the border.
The EU’s commitment to peace in Northern Ireland remains undiminished. EVP Šefčovič, said at the launch: "The Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement has provided a sustainable basis for peace in NI for the past 25yrs. It took great political courage from all sides to make it happen. We all have a duty to protect it, and the gains it has brought about. With an overall contribution of €1.14bn, we are - collectively - clearly demonstrating that we are doing just that".
