​The Parc européen Parco europeo Alpi Marittime – Mercantour EGTC results from a partnership between France and Italy.

 

The EGTC was established to facilitate and to promote cross-border cooperation between its members. It aims facilitate and promote the transfrontier cooperation on the territory of the two parks.

 

Following the specific competences of its members, the EGTC implements projects on biodiversity protections, protection of the transfrontier landscape and common natural and cultural heritage, environment education and bilingualism, sustainable agriculture, sustainable tourism and sustainable mobility

It defines an Action Plan every 5 years, and may realize specific intervention for restoration of the natural and cultural heritage.

 

It promotes and manages the inscription of the territory in the list of the UNESCO World Heritage. It can present and manage European financed projects.

Review of activities in 2016

Tasks
The objective of the EGTC is the facilitation and promotion of cooperation among its members in the protection, promotion, awareness and management of the natural, cultural and landscape heritage. Through its actions, the EGTC promotes coordination of cohesion policies in the Southern Alps region. In the cross-border cooperation programme ALCOTRA, the EGTC is considered as a project partner and has no role in structuring and monitoring projects.

In the remaining programming period, the grouping will participate in the elaboration of a territorial scope project (PITER) in the ALCOTRA cooperation programme.

Regarding the development of joint strategies, the EGTCs’ main purpose is to intervene in the field of joint sustainable management of natural areas of exceptional character. It will also contribute to the Alpine macro-regional strategy as part of the PITER application.

Challenges or issues
There have been issues since the EGTC foundation three years ago. It is currently in its full development phase. Another issue arises from the fact that the EGTC is regarded as having to apply the law of the state where it has its headquarters (impact on controls and the rate of financing, for example).

Budget
Approximately € 170,000.

Staff (in FTE)
The EGTC has no direct employees, in the sense that no remuneration is paid by the EGTC. For its management, the EGTC created two jobs (director and deputy director), occupied free of charge by the directors of its two founding members. In administrative support and project setup / follow-up, the EGTC relies on 2 indirect FTEs, from its two founding members.