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Cross-border
economic
development 25
Practical guide : promoting projects
Point of
focus
Efforts must be
made to:
• highlight
advantages for each
party and ensure that
there are no marked
disparities, in order
to create a climate of
trust and a win-win
environment.
• regularly update
information to avoid
disseminating out-of-
date or incorrect data.
What type of information should economic players be provided with?
Support structures play an important role in the dissemination of basic information on cross-border
economic activities:
• principles of access to neighbouring markets, the European market or international markets in general;
• characteristics of the economic fabric on each side of the border (sectors, higher education and
research institutions, competitiveness hubs, clusters, etc.);
• arguments in favour of cross-border activities (exports or provision of services, sub-contracting,
bi‑location, etc.);
• specific features and advantages on each side of the border with respect to a series of criteria (taxes,
labour laws, business assistance, real estate, labour and skills, economic fabric, etc.);
• guidelines for exporting or provision of services (VAT, competition);
• procedures for setting-up in the other country.
What means should be used to raise awareness
among economic players?
Awareness may be raised among project developers via general or special interest web portals, practical guides,
events designed to draw on previous experiences (testimonials from project developers), videos, etc. It is crucial
to combine several tools and ensure that they are accessible to the target audience.
General interest
web portals
E x a m p l e :
The European Commission’s
“Your Europe – Business”
portal is designed for businesses
that wish to develop within the
European Union’s internal market.
This portal contains general
information on how to develop a
business, VAT, foreign trade, human
resources, financing methods and
public procurement rules.
business/index_en.htm
Websites devoted to
promoting cross-border
territories
E x a m p l e :
The “Invest in Eurometropolis”
website highlights the assets
of the Lille-Kortrijk-Tournai
Eurometropolis for investors
(clusters, sites of excellence,
research centres, logistics, business
parks and business tourism). It also
helps to locate these structures.
Practical guides
E x a m p l e :
The guide on doing business in
Germany designed for French
companies “La pratique
des affaires en Allemagne
à l’usage des entreprises
françaises pour faire des
affaires en Allemagne” (and
the equivalent guide for German
companies) reviews the economic
fabric, the legal framework for
business activities, investment
incentives, company law, human
resources, taxes, accounting rules
and controls.
http://www.ey.com/Publication/
vwLUAssets/Pratique_des_affaires_
en_Allemagne/$FILE/La-pratique-
des-affaires-en-Allemagne-FR. pdf