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The biggest EU budget line for WB accession econimies comes from the IPA, which aims to support beneficiaries in adopting and implementing political, institutional, legal, administrative, social and economic reforms, thereby contributing to their stability, security and prosperity and bringing them closer to the EU.
Since 2007, WB countries have had access to three successive multiannual IPA programmes: IPA I (2007-2013), with a budget of €11.5 billion, IPA II (2014-2020), with a budget of €12.8 billion, and, currently, IPA III (2021-2027), with a budgetary envelope of €14.162 billion.
The current Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) operates with thematic allocations and no longer country allocations. It is implemented under the following windows:
- Window 1: Rule of law, fundamental rights and democracy
- Window 2: Good governance, EU acquis alignment, good neighbourly relations and strategic communication
- Window 3: Green agenda and sustainable connectivity
- Window 4: Competitiveness and inclusive growth
- Window 5: Territorial and cross-border cooperation
To maximise the impact of the assistance and ensure the most efficient use of available resources, IPA III can contribute to actions under other programmes, as long as the contributions do not cover the same costs.
IPA III is aligned with the flagship initiatives and priorities of the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans and the Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans (2020). The EIP is an essential component of the programming framework for IPA III, aiming to mobilise up to €9 billion from the IPA III package and attracting additional investments worth €20 billion from the European Investment
Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2024/760412/EPRS_BRI(2024)760412_EN.pdf