piątek, 18 maja 2012
The Association > The Pomerania Euroregion > Euroregions in Europe and Poland
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Euroregions in Europe

 The idea of creating euroregions began in Western Europe after the Second World War with the aim of bringing closer these communities which were not in good relations because of nationalistic and political problems. The name "euroregion" derives from the oldest form of cross-border cooperation - "Euroregio" at the Dutch-German border (1958).

The pivot of euroregions is the Council of Europe, which compiles the model statutes, but does not dictate any given solutions. The most important legal act is the Madrid Convention (1980).

The direct results of the convention are four principles defining the ways of performing a function:

  • the principle of consensus - common agreement is reached by conversations and negotiations;
  • the principle of parity - in all governing bodies every side has one vote and there is the same number of members;
  • the principle of rotation - meetings and consultations are held by every member of a euroregion in turn;
  • the principle of voluntary participation - every municipality decides independently about joining the euroegional structures.


Another pivotal law act is the European Charter of Self-Government stating among others: the right of local communities to cooperate with another countries under precise terms and conditions.

Euroregions in Poland

Polish border cities and municipalities belong to 16 euroregions situated around the land borders and along the Baltic coastline:

The legal framework

The direct document constituting a euroregion is an agreement concluded between neighbouring border regions. The documents resolved by the Council of Europe had played a key role in the establishment of transnational legal framework for cross-border cooperation:

  • European Framework Convention of Cross-border Cooperation between Communities and Local Authorities - so called the Madrid Convention (dated 21.05.1980),
  • European Charter of Local Self-Government (accepted by the Council of Europe on 15.10.1985, in force since 1.09.1989).
  • European Charter of the Border and Cross-Border Regions (dated 20.11.1981), extended by the General Meeting of the Association of European Border Regions and accepted on 1.12.1995 in the head office of the Euroregion Pomerania in Szczecin.

Polish-German relations in the border area are also based on bilateral agreements, among others on: "Treaty between the Republic of Poland and the Federal Republic of Germany to acknowledge the border existence between them" (dated 14.11.1990), "Treaty between the Republic of Poland and the Federal Republic of Germany about good neighbourliness and friendly cooperation" as well as on the "Agreement between the Governments of Republic of Poland and Federal Republic of Germany on regional and cross-border cooperation" (both documents dated 17.06.1991).

The methods of financing cross-border cooperation are clearly stated in the euroregional statutes. According to the Agreement between the cooperating sides, members of the Euroregion are obliged to contribute financial sources to support its activities to the amount and in the form agreed upon. The financial means are collected on separate bank accounts and the sources are: membership fees paid by the partners of the euroregional agreement and by supporting members, donations, subventions from the higher level administration units (including regional and central), aid funds from the European Union (especially from the Phare Cross-Border Cooperation Programme).


Stowarzyszenie Gmin Polskich Euroregionu Pomerania | Al. Wojska Polskiego 164, 71-335 Szczecin | tel. +91 486 07 38 | e-mail: biuro@pomerania.org.pl