Belarus and Poland will continue to develop cross-border cooperation
On April 2, the sub-commission on interregional cooperation of the Belarusian-Polish intergovernmental coordination commission on cross-border cooperation chaired by the deputy chairman of the Grodno regional executive committee Helena Bubenchik and the vice-marshal of the Podlaskie region Dariush Stefanjuk, was given a meeting in the agro-tourist complex Garadzensky Majentak Karobchytsy.
During the meeting a wide range of issues in various fields of activity, including economic and cultural cooperation, social issues and the implementation of cross-border cooperation projects was discussed. According to the results of the first competitive selection of projects of the Cross-border Cooperation Programme Poland-Belarus-Ukraine 2014–2020, 14 projects worth over 11 million euros were recommended for funding in the fields of education, health, culture, tourism and the development of road and border infrastructure. Two large infrastructure projects worth 8.6 million euros will also be implemented.
On the agenda of the meeting of the subcommittee discussed the development of small business on both sides and cooperation in this direction between the regions. A separate topic was highlighted tourism. Today, this area is interesting for both the Belarusian and Polish sides, especially within the framework of the visa-free regime in Grodno and Brest, which not only increased the flow of tourists and their stay in our region, but also simplified the exchange of business delegations.
During the period of the visa-free regime, Park Augustow Canal and Grodno region were visited by more than 140,000 visa-free tourists, 30 percent of whom were residents of Poland.