Expansion of the AgriCO network in the cross-border region Oravita - Bela Crkva

The common challenge from this project: the cross-border area is characterized by similar agricultural and economic assets, especially by lack of competitiveness that includes entrepreneurship and business activity and by a reduced cooperation and contacts between local communities on both side of the border, and development potential in this area also. Both partners don’t have an appropriate economic public infrastructure where the 36 farmers and small producers from Oravita and the 1.707 farms, processing companies, small producers from Bela Crkva can sell agricultural products and other large consumer goods, even if the consumer population of Oravita City resumes 11.382 inhabitants and Bela Crkva Municipality, 17.367 inhabitants.The both existing markets have opened places, poor quality and quantity structuring places far less than the needs of the area it serves, without a clear tie between sections, without heating, cooling and ventilation, without storage and cold warehouses, without sanitary facilities, administrative spaces and spaces for household and indusThere is no communication port between the two localities across borders also, even if in these two areas about 34.000 Romanian and Serbian cross the border to purchase various agricultural products and goods from Oravita and Bela Crkva.trial products sales etc. The AgriCO 2 project aims to improve the small farmers and producers and cross border consumer population access to a modern, appropriate, efficient and European quality standards of economic public infrastructures for basic selling services like food and goods marketplace, especially in the cross-border area where the AgriCO network is active and has potential to grow (overall objective of the project). For this reason, the project provides creation the Green Market in Bela Crkva Municipality and improving the existing marketplace from Oravita City and developing the existing AgriCo public services across border, that will promote and stimulate the competitiveness of the cross border economy by adding value to the economic activities for at least 1.743 small and local farmers and goods sellers, for the purpose of more sustainable and balanced economy in the Romanian-Serbian region. In these two physical infrastructures it will sell agricultural products and large consumer goods at a cross border level. The project will increase the cross border contacts between municipalities for a common support for economic diversification and between people from both areas, through existing cross border agricultural network named AgriCO. About 28.749 inhabitants across border of which about 34.000 visitors will benefit from a 2 modern, quality standard and efficient economic public utilities infrastructures.

The main project output results are: a) 1 modern, efficient, sustainable and at European quality standards economic public utilities infrastructure in Oravita city, Caras-Severin county; b) 1 modern, efficient, sustainable and at European quality standards economic public utilities infrastructure in Bela Crkva Municipality, South Banat District; c) expansions of the public services of 1 existing joint agricultural network – AgriCO with 2 new members; d) 5 common actions for improving the public services of the AgriCO network at cross border level. The programme result indicators that the project result indicators will contribute are the following: - primary: “Population experiencing improved access to public utilities and services, based on innovative solutions shared across the border”. Project result indicator description: about 28.749 inhabitants, of which 34.000 visitors from 2.4 million citizens that living in the cross border Romania-Serbia region will benefit from the 2 new, modern and efficient food and good markets from Bela Crkva and Oravita city. That means 17 villages and 2 cities from these 2 partner localities, without taking into account the surrounding villages. It is an innovative solution across the border because the 2 public utilities infrastructures become part of a larger cross border public network – AgriCO, which provides public services in the agricultural sector, dedicated to small producers, farmers and other companies at cross border level through 5 members already. - secondary: “Creation of the improved accessibility to state-of-the-art and efficient public utilities (access to internet, utilities: waste, water, energy) in the light of technological options, economic constraints, environmental requirements and demographic changes”. Project result indicator description: the technical solutions for construction and operation both marketplaces from Bela Crkva and Oravita will improve not only the access of 1.743 producers, small farmers, agricultural companies and other goods sellers of a modern, efficient and quality European standards of the public utilities infrastructures for economic constraints, but it will improve the environmental requirements instead of actual situations. For example, the public market from Oravita contributes to sustaining production and consumption of local agricultural products also by improving the existing open and closed marketplace with only inappropriate 235 places, with new sections (meat, fish, goods sections), large sections and new spaces (veterinary office, storage spaces, administrative office, life animals and birds section, cloakrooms and toilets for traders and buyers, 18 parking area and green spaces) – totally 5.972 mp aria of intervention, 1.550 mp of build area and 274 places for selling. Municipality of Bela Crkva will construct a new marketplace – Green Market about 1.422 mp, offering 11 selling zones, 1 closed area with 64 places, 1 closed area with removable walls with 18 places, 7 separate area for selling meat, fish, organics products, flowers, home-made sweets, hand-made bakery products and similar products, 1 separate area for flowers with 6 places, 18 cooling cabinets, toilets, technical room, offices, laboratory and storages, 9 parking places for trucks and 1.722 mp of concrete tiling surroundings for temporary parking and 362.80 mp green and recreational spaces. In total will be about 113 selling places. Both public utilities infrastructures will have all the public utilities recordation (heating and cooling, ventilation, thermic agent, water, sanitary instalations, the buildings being modernized/constructed so can offer modern, efficient, sustainable public services, in accordance with the principles of sustainable development and environmental protection. The technical solutions regarding environmental protection determine a positive impact of sustainable development: wastewater from meat, fish and dairy sectors will pass first through a fat separator and then into a treatment plant and will be flush in a drainage canal, the collected rainwater will first go through a mild liquid separation plant, then to the canal, implementing a system of natural ventilation, interior lighting using LED technology, heating is provided pellet heating system, which is a renewable source of energy, 1.121 mp are green spaces, selective waste collection. The other activities included in this project have no negative impact over the environment.