The PEACEPLUS Programme – managed by the Special EU Programmes Body – is a €1.4bn investment in the social, economic and environmental development of Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland. It builds on the work of the previous PEACE and INTERREG Programmes and its design reflects the importance of peace-building and activities that will contribute positively to the economy, building prosperity and adjusting to the new environment and challenges we face.
Consolidating the learning from previous EU-funded projects across a wide range of health and social care disciplines, CAWT partners are committed to securing further funding to deliver projects that support strategic cross-border health and social care co-operation.
At the end of 2022/beginning of 2023, SEUPB invited Expressions of Interest to capture high-level details of project ideas under Theme 4: Healthy & Inclusive Communities, Investment Area 4.1 Collaborative Health and Social Care. The key objective of this investment area is to: ‘ensure equal access to health care and foster resilience of health systems, including primary care and promoting the transition from institutional to family and community-based care.’
This investment area will result in an increase in the number of ‘episodes of care’ delivered on a cross-border basis. This will support positive health and wellbeing and the prevention of ill health, through an integrated approach designed to reduce health inequalities within the Programme Area. An indicative budget allocation has been set at €97m for this investment area.
During Feb 2023, a total of nine Project Concept Notes were submitted to the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) for feedback in terms of suitability to go forward as full PEACEPLUS applications/business plans. These Project Concept Notes presented a summary of the proposed projects in order to receive feedback from the SEUPB on how well the concept is aligned with the Fund’s objectives, policies and investment criteria. Guidance received on the Project Concept Notes is informing the work currently underway on detailed application development by the CAWT Strategy Groups, with the support of the CAWT Development Centre, whilst awaiting the targeted PEACEPLUS Investment Area to open for submissions in late 2023.