This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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European Objective 3 awards
04/10/2001
A new "rolling programme" of European funding awards
will benefit equal opportunities, rural inclusion and
lifelong learning.
Minister for Finance and Local Government, Angus MacKay
today congratulated organisations that had been successful
in obtaining awards for priorities within the Objective 3
European funding programme.
A total of 27 projects have been approved across lowland
Scotland. Examples include a Scottish Further Education
Unit project that will identify and promote best practice
in working with drug users and a Heriot Watt University
project that aims to encourage women into the engineering
profession.
Announcing the awards worth £2.8 million, Mr MacKay
said:
"I am delighted that a whole raft of organisations have
taken advantage of the more flexible funding opportunities
now offered by the Objective 3 programme. The awards made
today cover rural inclusion, equal opportunities and
lifelong learning - all key policy priorities of this
Executive.
"We want to encourage the maximum number of high quality
applications in these areas, and I hope the fact that
applications can be made at any time will encourage even
more organisations with good ideas to come forward for
funding."
BACKGROUND
1. The 2000-2006 Objective 3 Programme, which focuses on
training and skills needs of both the labour market and the
economy, is worth 498m Euro (approximately £310m).
2. The allocation of funding is divided between five
separate priorities. While there is normally an annual
funding call, under the first call, funding allocations
dealing with rural exclusion, lifelong learning and equal
opportunities were substantially underbid. A rolling
programme has therefore been introduced to encourage
applications in these areas.
3. Under the rolling programme, applications can be
submitted at any time and project applicants can expect to
hear of the outcome of their application within eight
weeks.
5. Approvals are made by Scottish Ministers and formal
grant offer letters for these projects have been issued by
the Programme Management Executive, from whom further
information on the Objective 3 Programme and the approved
projects can be obtained by contacting:
Objective 3 Programme Management Executive
Caithness House
127 St Vincent Street
Glasgow
Tel: 0141 400 9820
Fax: 0141 400 1830
6. For a list of projects, please contact Chris Bergin
at the Scottish Executive Press Office: 0131 244 2967