Novi Sad, 4th September - President of the Assembly of AP Vojvodina, Bálint Juhász, attended today the ceremonial opening of the project “Feeding the Future: Empowering Food Science Professionals through Lifelong Learning for Bridging Borders” (Feeding Future), which is implemented within the Interreg VI-A IPA 2021-2027 Cross-Border Cooperation Programme Hungary - Serbia.
The aim of the project is to train personnel who would then be qualified to respond to the requirements of modern food production and the service industry, and the project is created in cooperation between the Faculty of Technology of the Novi Sad University and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Csongrád-Csanád from Szeged, with the support of the Chamber of Commerce of Vojvodina, Europe student centre - hall of residence, and the Ecopanonia Cluster.
Welcoming the attendees, President Juhász emphasized that the multiannual successful cooperation between Serbia and Hungary had resulted in numerous projects that significantly contributed to the development of Serbia, Vojvodina and the entire region, and Feeding Future was one of those projects.
“From the point of view of an ordinary citizen, the IPA cross-border cooperation programme may seem abstract; it may create an impression that it is the privilege of a small number of people, that it does not concern them and their life. However, it is a fact that, from 2007 to 2013, 204 projects worth around 50.1 million euros were implemented via Hungary - Serbia IPA cross-border cooperation programme. The implementation of these projects has encompassed 335,604 individuals, 34 kms of bicycle paths were built, 11 actions were taken in the field of flood protection and 66 events were organised with a view to improving economic cooperation. More than 181,000 people visited the events, and the programmes covered 287 settlements”, said Juhász.
As he stated, one of the projects from that period was the construction of a road between Ásotthalom and Bački Vinogradi; at the same time the regional and cross-border railway Subotica - Szeged was being designed, which was also built in the meantime; and then, there was also the project of establishing Hungarian-Serbian river border crossings at the Tisza river with a view to building infrastructure facilities on both sides, which was necessary for securing the river border crossing and the accommodation for the service providers.
“In the following 2014 - 2020 European Union budget cycle, 76,616,470.00 euros were allocated within the Interreg IPA cross-border cooperation programme Hungary-Serbia. Some of the projects from that period were the development of the cross-border road Kübekháza - Rabe, the complex improvement of the water management areas of the Baja-Bezdan canal, water supply and development of water infrastructure in the bordering catchment areas by means of purchasing a mobile dam and constructing a treatment plant in Kanjiža”, said the president of the provincial assembly.
He emphasized that the European Union supported the Feeding Future project with 185,000 euros, and that budget, supplemented by the partners own funds, would enable the development of a strategy and the renovation of faculty laboratories in Novi Sad, which would provide modern and up-to-date equipment for future generations of students.
“The training that will be conducted within the project is intended for students and entrepreneurs, aiming to produce professionals in the bordering region, who will meet the requirements of modern food production and the service industry”, said President Juhász.
The Hungarian embassy attaché for agriculture and environmental protection, Klára Szilvia Szekér, undersecretary for economy and tourism, Slavoljub Arsenijević, president of the Chamber of Commerce of Vojvodina, Boško Vučurević, participants and project holders, as well as experts in the field of health and education, also spoke to the participants.