IPA I. PERIOD (2007-2013)
The assistance provided by the EU through pre-accession funds to support countries in the process of preparing for EU accession was gathered under a single instrument and legal framework called Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA) in 2007, and, in this context, the “Component Approach” was adopted in the first IPA period by making significant structural arrangements compared to the pre-IPA period.
IPA I period consists of the five different components as follows:
- Transition period and institutionalisation assistance
- Cross-border cooperation (together with the EU Member States and other IPA-eligible countries);
- Regional development (transport, environment, regional and economic development),
- Human resources (empowerment of human capital and combatting exclusion),
- Rural development.
The budget of IPA I from 2007 to 2013 was nearly EUR 11.5 billion. EUR 4.8 billion of this sum was allocated to Türkiye, while EUR 650 million thereof to the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization.
Pre-accession funds are solid investments for the future of both enlargement countries and the EU. While assisting the beneficiaries in the implementation of political and economic reforms, these funds prepare them for the relevant rights and obligations that the EU membership brings along. Pre-accession funds also help the achievement of the EU’s own goals such as sustainable economic recovery, energy supply, transport, environment, climate change, etc.
The legal framework for Operational Programme is addressed by means of a series of Regulations, Agreements, and planning documents as follows: