Do you know the regions supported by the Interreg NEXT Programme Poland \u2013 Ukraine 2021-2027 well? If not, there will be a great opportunity to get to know them, and if you do, you will certainly find out interesting facts you did not know. We are starting a new series of articles about the 10 regions of our Programme. We look forward to reading!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As the first area of support, we would like to present the Mazowieckie Voivodeship, located in the heart of Poland, which, although it participates in the Programme only partially (the eastern Ostro\u0142\u0119ka and Siedlce subregions), as a whole has many \u2018the best of-….\u2019. It is the largest Polish voivodeship in terms of area and population. It has the largest airport and several regional airports, and the most important road and rail routes intersect here. In terms of GDP and population, it surpasses many European countries and is one of the fastest growing European regions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nearly one in five businesses in Poland is based in Mazowieckie. Almost 300,000 students are educated at the region’s higher education institutions \u2013 the highest number of any voivodeships. The region’s capital is Warsaw, Poland’s most populous city with a population of almost 2 million. The most recognisable attractions of the region are, above all, the historical buildings: the palace in Wilan\u00f3w, Royal Baths Park and the Warsaw Old Town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The region’s landscape is predominantly lowland, divided by the valleys of large rivers, including Poland’s longest, the Vistula. Mazowieckie also has places of natural value: Kampinoski National Park, 9 landscape parks, 189 nature reserves and 62 protected landscape areas. In the midst of such nature, agriculture and agri-food processing have developed well, including mainly horticulture, dairy and meat industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As can be seen, Mazowieckie is not a homogenous region. Apart from the capital city, it also has areas with a much lower GDP. The eastern periphery of the region, covered by the PL-UA Programme, lies partly in Podlasie, close to the external border of the European Union, and is subject to the same phenomena as the entire so-called \u2018eastern wall\u2019 of Poland, which are: outflow of young people and flight of capital to big cities, ageing population, less accessibility to services, weak industry, communication exclusion and many other challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Population: 5.5 million people (including Ostro\u0142\u0119ka and Siedlce subregions: 0.7 million)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Mazowieckie Voivodeship is effectively reaching out for Programme funds. In the 2014-2020 perspective alone, institutions from the Ostro\u0142\u0119ka-Siedlce subregion (at that time it was one common subregion) implemented 11 cross-border projects with a total Programme funding of around 20 MEUR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The region is vast, so efficient and safe transport plays an important role. Thanks to 2 projects from the previous programme: DW698<\/em><\/a> and FasterSafer<\/em><\/a>, you will be able to move more easily around \u0141osice and Bielany (Soko\u0142owski district). Modern information and communication technologies will be introduced to the former railway station in Ostro\u0142\u0119ka thanks to the ICTCompet<\/em><\/a> project. <\/p>\n\n\n\n From the outset, the Programme has placed great importance on addressing safety in its broadest sense. In this area, the PBU Programme 2014-2020 has funded 3 health projects, supporting hospitals in Siedlce (RUOK<\/em><\/a> project), Ostro\u0142\u0119ka (HCS<\/em><\/a>) and \u0141osice (BAMS<\/em><\/a>), as well as a project on firefighting and emergency services (COORDINATION<\/em><\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n After the new, safer roads of Mazovia, we can set off on a journey through the province’s attractions supported by the Programme. To start with, it is worth visiting the church and monastery in W\u0119gr\u00f3w, which were thoroughly renovated as part of the TwinMonasteries<\/em><\/a> project. The nearby churches in Mokobody and Ho\u0142ubia are also worth a look, especially after the completion of the CBCPilgrim<\/em><\/a> project. Then you can head north to discover the rich culture of the Kurpie region, enriched by the PROFolk<\/em><\/a> project, carried out with a Ukrainian partner by the cultural centre in Myszyniec.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, it is worth mentioning that the University of Warsaw has an important stake in the PIMReC<\/em><\/a> project. It concerns the adaptation of the former observatory on Mount Pop Ivan in the Carpathian Mountains for a training centre for mountain rescue services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For more information on all projects funded under the PBU Programme 2014-2020, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the current edition of the Programme, i.e. Interreg NEXT Poland \u2013 Ukraine 2021-2027, partners from Ostro\u0142\u0119ka and Siedlce subregions of the Mazowieckie Voivodeship are participating in 4 health projects (entities from Ostro\u0142\u0119ka, \u0141osice and two from Siedlce) and 8 environmental projects (including Garwolin, Siedlce, \u0141osice).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last year, a ceremonial signing of a grant contract for the InsideImaging<\/em><\/a> project took place in Siedlce. Konrad Wojnarowski, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy, signing the agreement on behalf of the Managing Authority, emphasised:<\/p>\n\n\n\n