Euregio Graz-Maribor
The European Region Graz-Maribor was founded in 2001 and comprises the two metropolitan areas Graz and Maribor (Marburg an der Drau). The EUREGIO Graz-Maribor area is identical to the funding area for INTERREG IIIA and PHARE CBC . The region has around 830,000 inhabitants on the Austrian side and around 780,000 on the Slovenian side. Since 2002 it has been embedded in the wider European region Adria – Alpe – Pannonia (EU future region).
Motivation and participation
The federal state of Styria and Eastern Slovenia ( Lower Styria ) have always had a close cultural connection and were both part of the Duchy of Styria . The first bilateral agreement was a town twinning agreement between Graz and Maribor, signed in 1987.
Involved
- the Styrian districts of Deutschlandsberg , Graz , Graz-Umgebung , Hartberg-Fürstenfeld , Leibnitz , Southeast Styria , Voitsberg and Weiz
- and the Slovenian planning regions Koroška , Podravska , Pomurska and Savinjska
The urban centers of the region, the Styrian capital Graz, with approx. 291,000 inhabitants and the agglomeration of Maribor with approx. 170,000 people, have around a third of the region’s inhabitants, which represents its primarily rural character.
tasks and goals
The EUREGIO aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two countries and provide a common platform for cross-border projects and activities. The aim is to reduce obstacles to development in both areas and to build networks and relationships on an economic, cultural and social level. The main aim here is to act together in matters of economy, tourism, the environment, agriculture, telecommunications and spatial and transport planning. The EUREGIO is also involved in the Austrian-Slovenian regional planning conference. One wants to achieve sustainable location management through cooperation between spatial and transport planning. The bilateral structures are to be improved and expanded.