INOGATE Annual Meeting – Brussels, 22 October 2014

Objective

Organized by the European Commission, with support from the INOGATE Technical Secretariat, the INOGATE Annual Meeting took place yesterday in Brussels to adopt a new strategy that better reflects the needs of the Partner Countries in view of the latest geopolitical developments both in the region and in the EU. Energy security featured high on the agenda as countries exchanged their views on this very important topic, as the winter season arrives. The meeting was organized on the eve of the Eastern Partnership Platform III meeting on Energy Security.

The Annual Meeting focused on the progress made in the past year within the INOGATE Programme, the results achieved and the plans for the future. The European Commission announced that the INOGATE Technical Secretariat project - which was to end in January 2015 - will be extended up to April 2016, in order to ensure uninterrupted support to the Partner Countries until new instruments and assistance are in place.

Translating the newly agreed strategy into actions, the INOGATE Secretariat is working with the Partner Countries to finalise Regional and Country Work Plans by the end of November 2014. These work plans will then form the ‘Programme of Work 2015-2016’ for the extension period, effectively eliminating the need for any further submissions of Ad Hoc Expert Facility (AHEF) applications by beneficiaries.

The 56 participants included representatives from the European Commission, EU Delegations, the Energy Community Secretariat, the International Energy Agency, the INOGATE Technical Secretariat and all Partner Countries with the exception of Turkmenistan.  For the first time, the event was livestreamed to allow additional key participants from Partner Countries, the opportunity to participate in the discussion.