Financial mechanism of the European Economic Area and Norwegian financial mechanism – general information

The common aims of the Financial mechanism of the European Economic Area and the Norwegian financial mechanism http://eeagrants.org/ are to contribute to the reduction of economic and social inequality in the European Economic Area and to improve the bilateral relations between the donor parties and the beneficiary state.

In 2007 Bulgaria became a beneficiary of the Financial mechanism of the European Economic Area and the Norwegian financial mechanism after joining the European Union and the European Economic Area. For the period 2007 – 2009 the country received 41.5 million euro used to fund projects for environmental and cultural heritage preservation, childcare, human resource development and others.

During financial period 2009 – 2014 the financial aid for Bulgaria amounted to 126.6 million euro from both financial mechanisms which were distributed to different priority sectors such as social development, protection and management of the environment, innovations in eco-industry, justice and internal peace, cultural heritage, civil society development and offering scholarships.

The establishment of partnerships between organizations based in the donor parties and the beneficiary parties is encouraged, especially in areas where the partnership is mutually beneficial, brings added value and could improve the quality of the programme or the project.

During the implementation of the Financial mechanism of the European Economic Area and the Norwegian financial mechanism the principles of transparency, effectiveness and efficiency of expenditures, as well as the principles of good management, sustainability, non-discrimination, including gender equality.