Key information about the programme
- The programme is operated by: Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic (SK).
- The Donor Programme Partner in this programme are: Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB NO), Norwegian Environment Agency (NEA NO), Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE NO).
- The programme objective is: Climate change mitigated and vulnerability to climate change reduced.
- The programme funding amounts to €18.2 million and is funded by both the EEA and Norway Grants.
Why is the programme needed?
Global climate change influences the sustainability of societies, the potential for economic growth, the state of ecosystems and the peoples ‘quality of life in every country differently. Therefore, deciding which challenges in climate change mitigation and adaptation that are to be addressed by the Programme, requires making priorities. While respecting the principles of result-based management, the Programme aims to meet the challenges in climate change mitigation and adaptation at the local level, to foster awareness raising on climate change issues, to strengthen the adaptation ability of ecosystems on local level and to create tools for decision-making processes in order to reduce GHGs emissions and adapt to climate change.
As underlined in the Synthesis Report of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report, many adaptation and mitigation options can help address climate change, but no single option is sufficient by itself; effective implementation can be enhanced through integrated responses that link mitigation and adaptation with other societal objectives.
The SR fulfils its international obligations and European legislation in the area of climate change mitigation and adaptation1. Slovakia has reduced its emissions by around 9% between 2005 and 2014 (based on estimates). According to 2015 projections, Slovakia is on track to overachieve 2020 target (with a 17% margin between the projected emissions and its target, as compared to 2005 (Second Biennial Report, Slovak Republic, 2015). But there are still challenges to be met on national/local level. As stated in the Report on the state of play of fulfilling the international commitments of the Slovak Republic, in the field of climate change policy for 2016 one of the significant challenges is the drafting of the Low-carbon Strategy of the Slovak Republic. This Strategy will be based on the Study on low-carbon growth of the SR by the year 2030 with the perspective to the year 2050, currently being prepared in co-operation with the World Bank. The aim of the Adaptation Strategy of the Slovak Republic on Adverse Impacts of Climate Change (SR Adaptation Strategy) is to ‘draw attention to the fact that climate change is an urgent issue that requires an integrated and comprehensive approach’. The currently updated SR Adaptation Strategy defines a set of targets, inter alia promoting adaptation at all levels of governance, strengthening the adaptation process at regional and local level, promoting synergies between adaptation and mitigation measures and using an ecosystem approach when implementing adaptation measures where relevant.
What will the programme achieve and who are the beneficiaries?
Impacts such as improved quality of life in local communities (e. g. reduced GHGs emissions, increased preparedness to extreme weather events), raised level of awareness on climate change mitigation and adaptation (e.g. increased level of knowledge, informational availability etc.). Sustainability is expressed by the character of particular outputs, they create a basing for follow-up continuation, e.g. cities shall continue to fulfil their action plans beyond the funding; educational entities shall continue the awareness-raising, DEM and orthoimaginery data shall be reused and used in practise etc will be supported through the following outcomes:
1) Increased climate change resilience and responsiveness within targeted areas
2) Enhanced ability of targeted ecosystems to adapt to climate change
3) Improved tools for decision-making process for natural risks prevention and civil protection in place
How will the programme strengthen bilateral relations?
Bilateral cooperation activities will be encouraged throughout Programme implementation. Exchange of information and know-how between institutions from Slovakia and Donor States will be built on past partnerships and best practices, while the establishment of new partnerships will also be explored. The bilateral ambitions of this Programme are to contribute to one of the overall objectives of the EEA and Norwegian grants – to strengthen the bilateral relations between Slovakia and the Donor States. In order to meet this objective, bilateral cooperation will be actively fostered at three levels:
- Strategic (political) level - cooperation between the PO, the DPPs, the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Bratislava and other relevant state entities focusing on long-term cooperation, beyond the scope of the Programme. Cooperation may build on previous activities (mainly those implemented during the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the EU) within the area of circular economy. It will also cover further climate-change related topics of mutual interest (e. g. Zero-waste strategies, low-emissions strategies, customer behaviour, carbon capture and storage, clean transport etc.).
- Programme level - managed by the PO in close cooperation with the DPPs. Their main focus will be on contributing to maintain and establish bilateral institutional cooperation between organizations in Slovakia and in the Donors states. This includes bringing together experts, researchers, and other relevant stakeholders via workshops, trainings, study trips with aim of strengthening mutual capacity building and exchange of experience. For these above-mentioned activities open calls are envisaged.
- Project level - Project promoters will be encouraged to create partnerships with Donor State entities. Information campaigns will be carried out in the SR and Donor States after launching a call. The DPPs will support partnership promotion for example through identifying and bringing in potential Donor partners, creation of databases of potential project partners etc. Project partners search shall support every call (open calls).
- Travel Support to entities from Beneficiary State and Donor State for partner search, networking, sharing and transfer of knowledge, technology, experience and best practices, prior to and during the projects’ implementation period.
Availability of funding through open calls
There are currently no open calls in the programme.
More information about the programme here.