WYG International led a consortium in this project to develop the capacity of all 16 Polish regions to manage Structural Funds in the post-accession period. The implementation of the project increased the capabilities of the 16 new Voivodships in the area of developing and implementing Regional Operational programmes, through disseminating best-practice models and experiences from the European Union, as well as sharing Polish experiences from the regions encompassed by the Phare Social and Economic Cohesion Programme and the SPP Programme. The project was realised by the WYG International-led consortium through the following activities:

• Assessment of current practice in regional operational programming in 16 regions;
• Selection of 4 trainers from each region to participate in Training for Trainers programme (staff from Marshal’s offices as well as other regional institutions)
• preparation of a training programme on the development and implementation of regional operational programmes; including modules “Partnership in Regional Development” and “Monitoring and Evaluation”
• conducting the training programme in 4 locations for a selected group of 64 trainers from 16 Voivodships;
• providing training to the institutions and organisations involved in the process of programming regional development;
• preparation of a manual presenting best-practice models and experiences in preparing and implementing operational programmes.

The implementation of the project resulted in the following :

• A comparative analysis of the experience of the different regions and the issues encountered in the programming process in the framework of Phare Social and Economic Cohesion programmes identified and analysed;
• 64 trainers from 16 Voivodships were familiarised with the materials and trained in the delivery of this training programme (4 trainers per Voivodship);
• the trainers conducted pilot training for 550 persons in 16 Voivodships; the trainees in this pilot training included employees of Marshal’s Offices and selected regional players involved in the process of regional development, NGOs and other institutions and organisations included in the programming process;
• a handbook, or manual for institutions responsible for programming regional development was prepared and distributed to regional institutions.