The annual meeting of The European Regions Network for the Application of Communications Technology, november 26th-28th 2013, Derry, Northern Ireland

The second meeting of the Interregional Management Committee of ERNACT took place on November 26th-28th 2013 in Derry, Northern Ireland.

Derry's current status as the United Kingdom's first City of Culture provided an opportunity for the ERNACT regions to see how the year - long program is being used to help stimulate the development of a credible digital media sector in the city.

The meeting followed a very successful event in West Region Romania, the main purpose of which was to agree actions to follow-up on the ERNACT at 21st celebrations held in Brussels in late 2012.

The meeting focused on actions designed to position the ERNACT regions to advance the identification of new Digital Agenda and Smart Specialization projects.

The purpose of the meeting was to launch the next phase of actions of the ERNACT network in preparation for the new Territorial Cooperation programming period 2014-2020.

The agenda also contained the following objectives:

• Launch, in cooperation with the Commission of Peripheral and Maritime Regions (CPMR), the Atlantic Area Digital Agenda consultation
• Initiate feasibility study to establish mutual benefits of cooperating with Atlantic Canada on the theme of the Digital Agenda
• Discuss linkages between Smart Specialization and Digital Agenda
• Review project progress and agree action plan and budgets for 2014 in the context of the new funding programs 2014 - 2020

West Region is a member of the ERNACT (An European network established in 1990 and consisting of local and regional authorities in seven European regions of the Czech Republic, Ireland, Romania, Spain and Sweden) as of January 1st, 2012.

The Network aims to promote the economy based on knowledge and the information society in the partner regions, especially by developing and implementing cross-border, inter-regional and transnational projects for helping to define regional development models based on ICT.

So far, ERNACT implemented over 20 projects in ICT. The implemented projects aimed for the developing of the following areas: e-governance, development of the online public consultation, e-procurement, telecommunication technology, high - speed broadband, e-business and cooperation networks for small and medium enterprises.

Videos within the meeting here...

More information about ERNACT on www.ernact.net