The ESPON EGTC has been approached by TESIM (managed by DG REGIO) requesting a TIA on the Interreg NEXT programmes. After a discussion with TESIM representatives it was decided that the TIA shall focus on territorial impacts related to a subset of the Interreg NEXT Programmes:

• Poland-Ukraine Programme

• Hungary-Slovakia-Romania-Ukraine Programme

• Romania-Ukraine Programme

• Romania-Republic of Moldova Programme

• Black Sea Programme (excluding Georgia and Armenia due to data availability)

Given that there is no draft legislative proposal yet on the future of the INTERREG post 2027, the TIA analysis aimed to investigate potential territorial impacts of the programmes, using the following hypothetical scenario: “What would be the territorial impact, if the concerned cooperation programmes were not continued in the future?”.

The main objective of the TIA was to assess the potential territorial impact within the participating EU regions at NUTS3 level and outside the EU at regional level (the level of detail possible depends on the country and its statistical system). In addition, it aimed to identify: 1) the regional benefits of the cooperation programmes and 2) the territorial challenges that would arise in the event of a discontinuation. This assessment will help to understand the impacts and regional dependencies on these programmes, in order to inform both the potential improvements which could be implemented for future periods as well as how to strengthen the regions against the hypothetical scenario in question. The TIA was supported by one day in-person expert meeting in Bucharest (Romania) on 24 October 2024.