What do we mean by

European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC for short)?

EGTC is an independent legal entity ensuring the most developed institutional framework for the cross-border cooperation activities of European local and regional authorities.

According to the EU Regulation, Member States, regional and local authorities, bodies governed by public law under the effect of the Directive on public procurement and undertakings entrusted with operation of services of general economic interest as well as the associations of the above may establish an EGTC subject to that the partners have their seats in two EU member countries or one member state and a third country.

What is the general aim of

European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation as a European Union legal instrument?

The very mission of the EGTC tool consists of promoting institutionalised cross-border, transnational or interregional territorial cooperation.

The EGTC tool has been created especially for the effective and sustainable utilisation of European Union funds: to manage projects and programmes, as well as, to maintain the results of these projects and programmes. EGTC may also be set up to deliver cross-border public services in order to decrease the territorial inequalities within the EU. The ultimate goal is to enhance European territorial, economic and social cohesion.

The EGTC

as the most developed tool of institutionalised cross-border cooperation

The creation of the EGTC tool cannot be separated from the history of gradual institutionalisation of cross-border cooperation. This process can be divided into three periods.

Informal level of cooperation
The first, informal level of cooperation used to be initiated by local actors (mayors, civil society leaders, teachers, heads of different institutions, ordinary citizens) and the cooperation itself is defined by geographic proximity and/or common natural/historic heritage. At this starting period, cooperation is rather spontaneous and flexible, it has no fixed agenda nor steady institutional background.
Functional-territorial level of cooperation
Thanks to the proliferating encounters and exchanges, many local cooperating actors may recognise the complementary advantages of the two neighbouring border areas; and the potential benefits of stronger collaboration, the share of burdens and fruits, and the positive impacts of economies of scale. This second level of cooperation can be defined as functional-territorial, since, unlike the informal level, the actors are working together according to a clear territorially-based agenda along different functional fields. The subject of functions can range from information provision, cultural, or sports activities through joint nature protection, employment services or tourist management to shared transport or health service provision. However, in each above case, sooner or later, the stakeholders will confront serious legal and administrative bottlenecks stemming from different national legislative systems. This crisis arrives as soon as the partners start cooperating in a more integrated manner.

Functional-territorial level of cooperation
Normative level of cooperation
Accordingly, the evolution of cooperation will result in the rise of the normative level, the level of institutionalised and regulated cross-border cooperation. It is not a coincidence that the representatives of borderlands and embryonic CBC structures have always lobbied for a Community level solution that can ensure their long-term sustainability, stabilise their operation and create a favourable and predictable environment for their daily work. Here, the bottom-up initiatives inevitably need top-down intervention: the assistance of national and Community level legislation enabling the creation and operation of real cross-border institutions.
This is the EGTC tool.
This is the EGTC tool.

Brief history of

the EGTC legislation

1950’s
The history of institutional cross-border cooperation started in the second half of the 1950s. It was in 1958 when the first structure, the German-Dutch EUREGIO was established.
1970’s
The 1970s brought along the renaissance of cross-border cooperation. Numerous structures emerged applying diverse institutional solutions like the committee (e.g. East Border Region Committee between Ireland and the UK – 1976), the council (e.g. Finnish-Swedish-Norwegian North Calotte Council – 1971), the working community (e.g. Arbeitsgemeinschaft Alpenländer – 1972), the euroregion (e.g. Dutch-Belgian-German Meuse-Rhine Euroregion – 1976).

1970’s
1980’s
In 1980 the Council of Europe legally defined the term of cross-border cooperation and provided models through the so-called Madrid Convention for the establishment of such structures.
1990’s
In the 1990s, thanks to the Madrid Outline Convention several bi- and multilateral agreements were concluded enabling the emergence of new cooperation forms. At the millennium there were some 200 operating cross-border regional organisations in Europe – missing legal capacity in each of the concerned countries.

1990’s
2004
In 2004, based on the initiative taken by the European Committee of the Regions and the Association of European Border Regions (AEBR) under the coordination of then President of the European Commission, Michel Barnier the development of the legal background of a new sort of European territorial cooperation started.
2006
On 5 July, 2006 the new EU-law based institution, the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC) was created by the Regulation (EC) 1082/2006 which has an own legal entity in every country concerned.

2006
2007
On 25 June, 2007, the Hungarian Parliament adopts the Act XCIX. of 2007 on the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation as the first national legislation.
2008
In January of 2008, the first ever EGTC was established between France and Belgium.

On 12 November, 2008 the Committee of the Regions announced the first EGTC with Hungarian participation, which was the second grouping registered in the EU.

2008
2013
In 2013 the European Council and the European Parliament amended the EGTC Regulation (Regulation (EU) 1302/2013). The service providing and territorial development aspects of the legal tool have been boosted.
2014
December 2014: the Hungarian act LXXV. of 2014 on the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (the EGTC law) was published.

2014
2020
At the end of 2020 the quantity of EGTCs reaches 77. Hungary is interested in 24 groupings altogether from among which 21 seats are registered in Hungary.

What do we mean by

What is the general aim of

The EGTC

Informal level of cooperation

Functional-territorial level of cooperation

Functional-territorial level of cooperation

Normative level of cooperation

This is the EGTC tool.

This is the EGTC tool.

Brief history of

1950’s

1970’s

1970’s

1980’s

1990’s

1990’s

2004

2006

2006

2007

2008

2008

2013

2014

2014

2020