13 January 2026 – Today, the Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development hosted an expert discussion dedicated to the preparation of the Local Development Programme and the Public Health Programme within the framework of the EEA and Norway Grants 2021–2028. The purpose of the meeting was to harmonise the content of both programmes and to discuss the next steps in the programming process.
The meeting was opened by the State Secretary responsible for cohesion policy, Marko Koprivc, who emphasised in his introductory address the key role of donors and programme partners from the donor countries in preparing high-quality programmes and strengthening bilateral cooperation, which is one of the key added values of the financial mechanisms.
The expert consultation was attended by representatives of the Financial Mechanism Office in Brussels, programme partners from the donor countries, representatives of the Royal Norwegian Embassy, and Slovenian stakeholders. On the Slovenian side, participants included representatives of the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Energy; the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities; the Ministry of Culture; the Ministry of Health; the Ministry of Justice; and the Financial Mechanisms Division of the Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development.
The presence of a wide range of stakeholders at the expert discussion reflects a strong commitment to developing programmes that effectively respond to local needs while aligning with common European values and strategic priorities.
The shared objective of Slovenia and the donor countries is to harmonise the content of the programmes as soon as possible and to establish the conditions for signing the Memorandum of Understanding, which will enable the start of the 2021–2028 programming period.