19. December, 2025

1. Context: EUSAIR and StEP

The EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR) is one of the four Macro-Regional Strategies promoted by the European Union to foster development in “functional areas”. It brings together EU Member States and Western Balkans IPA countries. Its overarching goal is to promote sustainable growth, territorial cohesion, and EU integration across the Adriatic-Ionian area, focusing on five key pillars: Blue Economy, Connectivity, Environmental Quality, Sustainable Tourism and Social Cohesion.

In line with the EU “Three No’s” principle (no new legislation, no new institutions, no new funds), EUSAIR does not create a dedicated financial instrument.
Therefore, its priorities must be embedded into existing EU and national funding frameworks, such as Cohesion Policy funds, Territorial Cooperation programmes (Interreg), national/regional programmes, and—most importantly for pre-accession countries—the IPA III programmes.

This is where the StEP Project – EUSAIR Stakeholders Engagement Point comes into play. Its mission is to support the implementation of EUSAIR by reinforcing governance structures, promoting financial dialogue, and facilitating the embedding of the Strategy into mainstream programmes — particularly IPA III.

2. What is StEP and what does it aim to achieve

StEP is one of the three strategic projects funded under Priority Axis 4 of the Interreg IPA ADRION 2021–2027 Programme, dedicated to strengthening EUSAIR governance. The project runs from 2023 to 2027, with a total budget of EUR 2,160,000.00 (EUR 1,836,000.00 EU contribution and EUR 324,000.00 national co-financing).

Partnership

  • Lead Partner: Marche Region (Ancona, Italy)
  • Project Partners:
    • PP1 – Directorate for European Integration, Bosnia and Herzegovina (DEI)
    • PP2 – SASPAC – Central and Regional Programmes Administration of EU Financial Assistance, State Agency for Strategic Programming and Aid Coordination
  • Associated Partners:
    • Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation
    • Italian Department for Cohesion Policy – Presidency of the Council of Ministers

Main objectives

StEP’s action is structured around four strategic goals:

  1. Strengthen and upgrade the EUSAIR Stakeholder Platform (ESP) to become an advanced digital tool supporting data management, knowledge sharing, networking, and decision-making.
  2. Enhance structured stakeholder engagement (national/regional administrations, local authorities, universities, NGOs, private sector, financial institutions) to ensure real participation in EUSAIR-driven processes and initiatives.
  3. Support the financial dialogue among Managing Authorities and, crucially, involve major Financial Institutions (e.g. EIB, EBRD, World Bank) in mobilising investments for EUSAIR priority actions jointly defined by the ten participating countries.
  4. Enable effective embedding of EUSAIR priorities into funding programmes, particularly IPA III, so that the Strategy translates into concrete projects and measurable impacts.

3. Project structure: Work Packages

StEP is organised into a set of Work Packages (WPs), each addressing a specific area of intervention.

WP1 – Improvement & Management of ESP

Technical enhancement and day-to-day management of the EUSAIR Stakeholder Platform.
The goal is to provide a stable, user-friendly digital infrastructure capable of hosting:

  • stakeholder database
  • a data centre
  • sections dedicated to project pipelines and funding opportunities
  • interactive tools for collaboration and matchmaking

WP2 – Data & Knowledge Management

Development of a structured repository of knowledge and data: strategic documents, studies, indicators, project results, best practices.
The expected outcome is an EUSAIR Data Centre integrated within the ESP, supporting evidence-based policymaking.

WP3 – Stakeholders Involvement and Engagement

Design and delivery of a Joint Stakeholder Engagement Plan, including:

  • mapping and databasing key stakeholders in all participating countries
  • workshops, webinars, action labs, networking events
  • communication and dissemination activities
  • training paths (including online formats) on macro-regional governance, embedding, and cooperation
    The focus is on building an active community, rather than a passive institutional list.

WP4 – Financial Dialogue & Embedding into Cohesion Programmes

This component addresses cooperation with Managing Authorities of Cohesion Policy and Territorial Cooperation programmes, in order to:

  • identify concrete synergies with EUSAIR priorities
  • promote explicit references to EUSAIR within Operational Programmes
  • align procedures, selection criteria, timing, and intervention logics
  • facilitate the generation of projects responding to both local needs and macro-regional objectives

WP5 – Supporting EUSAIR Embedding into IPA III Programmes

The most IPA-focused component, aiming to:

  • review and analyse IPA III programmes (past, ongoing, upcoming) in EUSAIR partner countries
  • identify where and how to integrate EUSAIR priorities and flagship initiatives
  • establish structured cooperation channels with national IPA coordination structures (NIPACs) and relevant ministries
  • propose specific actions and measures aligned with both IPA goals (pre-accession) and the EUSAIR macro-regional agenda
  • design a shared monitoring and evaluation framework for IPA-funded EUSAIR-relevant projects

4. What “embedding” means, and why IPA III is essential

The European Commission defines embedding as the process of aligning national and regional EU funding programmes 2021-2027 with the priorities of relevant Macro-Regional Strategies (MRS).

The embedding process covers all phases of the programme cycle:
programming → implementation → monitoring → evaluation → capitalisation.
Strong synergies and coordination are key to effective embedding.

For example, when EUSAIR identifies a Green Corridor or a Blue Economy flagship:

  • Cohesion Policy funds (ERDF, ESF+, etc.) should include supporting measures
  • Interreg programmes (transnational, cross-border) should finance coherent cooperation initiatives
  • IPA III programmes in pre-accession countries should mirror the same goals

IPA III is crucial because it:

  • can activate EUSAIR priorities in non-EU countries, strengthening the Strategy’s transnational dimension
  • supports EU integration by aligning pre-accession actions with EU macro-regional objectives

Through WP5, StEP enables systematic dialogue between EUSAIR and IPA III, ensuring that IPA-funded projects directly contribute to the agreed macro-regional priorities.

5. Activities launched and initial achievements

Since its launch (late 2023), StEP has been deployed along three main operational lines:

1️. Partnership governance and project setup

  • Establishment of the Project Management Team within Marche Region
  • Appointment of contact points in all partner organisations
  • Coordination with the other IPA ADRION strategic projects to ensure complementarity and maximise synergies

2️. ESP upgrade and activation of Technical Assistance

  • Technical Assistance contracted to support platform enhancement, stakeholder engagement, communication, and event organisation
  • Needs assessment of stakeholders to guide ESP evolution (data modules, funding pathways, financial dialogue tools)

3️. Kick-starting the embedding into IPA III

  • Organisation of dedicated events, including the Launch Event of WP5 in Sarajevo
  • Start of the desk review of IPA III programming documents to map synergies with EUSAIR Flagships
  • Structured engagement with NIPACs, relevant ministries, EU Delegations and Financial Institutions

These wide-ranging efforts have already increased the visibility of EUSAIR embedding within various institutional communication channels, such as the dedicated page on the Italian Cohesion Policy portal.

6. Main challenges

Despite its strong strategic value, StEP must address several operational challenges:

Multilevel coordination
Need for alignment across EU, national, regional and local levels, and among diverse funding instruments (Cohesion, Interreg, IPA III).

Capacity gaps
Different experience and administrative capacity between EU and IPA countries in managing EU funds.

Strategic coherence
National priorities do not always match macro-regional ones → negotiation required to find win-win solutions.

Effective stakeholder participation
The risk of formal rather than proactive involvement; engagement must reach beyond central authorities.

Long-term sustainability
Embedding mechanisms and financial dialogue must continue beyond the project’s lifetime.

7. Expected impacts for the Macro-Region

If StEP achieves its objectives, several significant benefits are foreseen:

For the Adriatic-Ionian Region

  • Stronger alignment between policies and investments
  • More robust and better-funded transnational projects
  • Deeper cooperation between EU and IPA countries
  • Progress towards a sustainable, integrated, competitive macro-region

For IPA Countries

  • Strategic use of IPA III resources
  • Enhanced alignment with EU standards and priorities
  • Improved administrative and governance capacity

8. Publicly available reference documents

Further information and documentation on StEP and EUSAIR embedding can be found at: