The Brussels-based Commission adopted a programme in support of the “transnational zone of cooperation,” which it is calling Espace Caraïbes or “Caribbean Space”.

The principal objective of Caribbean Space is to favour cooperation in the region between France’s overseas territories, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, and Martinique and its neighbours in the Caribbean Basin. The programme aims to promote greater cohesion and economic, social and territorial integration, with a view to sustainable, harmonious and balanced development in the Space.

Caribbean Space will be financed by the European Community’s initiative known as Interreg III B. The cooperation programme is being funded to the amount of € 12 million by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The remaining € 12 million will come from national and regional budgets.

On behalf of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, and Martinique, the programme will be managed by the Regional Council of Guadeloupe, assisted by a common technical secretariat, located in Basse-Terre (Guadeloupe), with two contact points in Martinique and French Guiana.

About Interreg III
With a budget of €4,875 million for the period 2000-06, the Interreg III Community Initiative seeks to encourage interregional cooperation in the EU and its frontier regions. It is financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Interreg programmes finance cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation measures and joint projects intended to improve the economy, infrastructure, employment and the environment. The Commission adopts bilateral or multilateral programmes, which have to be proposed by the designated national and regional authorities. For further information on the Interreg III Community Initiative, please consult memo/01/280 of 25 July 2001 or the Commission's Inforegio website: http://www.inforegio.cec.eu.int/interreg3/