Border regions: lessons learnt from the covid-19 crisis and recommendations for the future

• Author: Rubio, Jean; Peyrony, Jean; Viaggi, Raffaele
• Pages: 130-146

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IV. CHAPTER 4:

BORDER REGIONS: LESSONS LEARNT FROM THE

COVID-19 CRISIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR

THE FUTURE

A. Introduction

This chapter aims at drawing lessons from an assessment of the impact the COVID-

19 measures along EU internal borders on cross-border communities at large

(businesses, workers, citizens) and at presenting recommendations for the future,

addressed to the European Commission on how the resilience of cross-border

regions could be improved in case further crises emerge.

The sanitary crisis has challenged all collective organizations (public authorities,

markets, civil societies). In particular, it has been a shock for cross-border

governance, which insufficiencies it has revealed. It has also highlighted our many

socio-economic or human interdependencies, not only at the global or European

level, but also at the local cross-border level. In the same time, it appears as an

opportunity to accelerate necessary changes, particularly in CB context. Following

recommendations are based on the lessons we can learn from the COVID 19 crisis,

in case of resurgence of the pandemics, but they also apply to the management of

other sorts of crises, and more generally to the management of borders and cross-

border regions, beyond the crisis. Most of these proposals were already on the

table before the crisis. Far from invalidating them, the crisis has made them even

more necessary.

These regions are at the heart of the European project. The recommendations we

will present now focus on them, even if they may concern all regions. National

borders are specific, but iconic of all administrative borders, which require

functional approaches vs exclusively institutional routines. Implementing them

would allow a more inclusive, sustainable and resilient development for

themselves, and for the whole Europe.

The section will successively address actions to be taken in favour of border

regions:

 at the level of these border regions (I);

 within the framework of a bottom up, multi-level governance (II);

 at the EU level (management of crises; cohesion policy and

particularly Interreg) (III).

In each case, actions will be based on lessons learnt during the crisis, allowing to

draw some principles for new border policies.

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B. Main lessons learnt from the Covid19 crisis:

At the level of border regions

Bottom-up / multilevel

EU level