EU Funds to Help Welsh Businesses

A £36 million investment plan, which will help create thousands of jobs and new businesses, has been given the go-ahead

The new Wales business Start Up project will create 10,000 jobs and over 8,000 businesses. It is to receive £17 million from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the 2007-2013 Structural Funds programmes.

The project will provide advice and support to entrepreneurs seeking to establish a business in Wales.

Deputy First Minister, Ieuan Wyn Jones, announced the go-ahead before visiting, Fluid Power Solutions (Wales) Ltd, a new business start up.

The company received Start Up support under the 2000-2006 Structural Funds programmes.

New Guidance

New guidance on Sponsorship, Partnership, Procurement and Grants is now available. The guidance offers advice to prospective sponsors, match funders and interested stakeholders so that they have a clear understanding of the role of the project sponsor in the 2007-2013 programmes. It also describes the role of joint sponsor, the importance of procurement, the distribution of grants to other organisations and an overview of state aid implications.

WEFO Online goes live

The new service which will allow projects to apply for European funding online has gone live.
Once registered, organisations will be able to use WEFO Online, to apply, view and manage their grants securely.

Progress on 2007-2013 programmes

As at 30th April 2008, a total of 241 projects have registered their 'Expression of Interest' with WEFO and are under development by project sponsors; 122 of these have been submitted and are under assessment by WEFO, whilst 11 projects have been approved.

A breakdown of such details at Programme and Strategic Framework level are available in the attached table 'Current projects in the Pipeline'.