Assessing the Effectiveness of Cross‐Border Cooperation in Joint Provision of Public Services
Alina Badulescu, Daniel Badulescu and Catalin‐Adrian Bucur University of Oradea, Oradea, Romania abadulescu @ uoradea. ro daniel. badulescu @ gmail. com polbucur @ yahoo. com
Abstract: Cross‐border cooperation is an important mean to foster good neighbourhood relations between communities separated /( or better) linked by a political frontier. Even the beginnings of cross‐border cooperation date from the first post‐WWII years, by the twinning established among European local communities, these forms of cooperation have been progressively extended and developed. One of the results of this process was the creation of the euro‐regions, and also the issuing in 1966 of the first recommendation of the European Council. Political changes in the beginning of the last decade of the 20th century have re‐drawn Europe’ s map, and the accession of Central and Eastern European countries to the Council of Europe and after that to the European Union have considerably promoted cross‐border cooperation in the region. The settlement and development of more than 100 euro‐regions in last 50 years prove and confirm that the vision of the first promoters was correct. According to AEBR Association of European Border Regions, euro‐regions are crossborder constructions assuming various tasks and playing an active role in the management of INTERREG community initiative. The cooperation in public services at euro‐regional level creates various opportunities and advantages for local communities on both sides of the frontier and contributes not only to improving the quality and diversity of public services but also to acting as an innovative model of providing public services. In this framework our paper comes to emphasize the results and to analyse the effectiveness of the cooperation actions undertaken within a EU co‐financed project. The project was developed within the Bihor ‐ Hajdu‐Bihar Euro‐region, which is the most recently settled euro‐region in Romania, and covers two NUTS 3 units in Romania and Hungary. The actions undertaken within this project covered the joint provision of e‐government services, especially in the field of police and public order. The paper investigates, using a survey‐based research, the results, effects, limits, constraints and efficiency of the cross‐border cooperation actions, as from the perspective of the experts questioned, i. e. police managers and public order management staff. The paper also draws conclusions and provides further recommendation for ensuring the sustainability and enhancing the effectiveness of future cross‐border cooperation programs.
Keywords: public services, cross‐border cooperation, police and public order, Bihor – Hajdu‐Bihar Euroregion
1. Introduction: The origins of cross‐border cooperation and Euroregions
Cross‐border cooperation refers to establishing neighbourly relations between communities and local authorities on both sides of a border. This simple definition denotes a complex reality of the past 50 years, inseparably related to historical and political developments in Europe( Council of Europe, 2006). Euroregions are usually created to promote common interests across borders and cooperation for the mutual welfare of peoples in the border area( Landesinstitut für Gesundheit und Arbeit Nordrhein‐Westfalen, 2007).
The beginnings of cross‐border cooperation, as were later formalized in the Madrid Convention( Council of Europe, 1980), date immediately after the Second World War in the form of so‐called " twinnings ", settled between different municipalities and communities in Europe( Perkmann, 2007, p. 3).
The first " Euroregion " in the modern sense was founded in 1958 along the German‐Dutch border and, consequently, the first recommendations on cross‐border cooperation from the Council of Europe go back in 1966( Council of Europe, 2006). Political changes of the early 1990s have redrawn the map of Europe, and the admission of Central and Eastern European countries in the Council of Europe( and later in the European Union) have given new impetus to cooperation.
Creation and development of various Euroregions( or Euregio)( over 100 now), in a relatively short time, is a good confirmation of the first European foresighted, and a highly suggestive image of contemporary realities.
According to most recent approaches, " euregios are cross‐border structures with their own legal identity, a variety of tasks and comprehensive resources which often play a central role for the development and management of the INTERREG Community Initiative "( Association of European Border Regions; European Commission, 2000) and( Perkmann, 2007).
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