Capacity4MSP

Knowledge collected by Interreg, Horizon and other EU-funded projects helped maritime spatial planners review the implementation of national maritime spatial plans and set baselines for a coherent MSP across the Baltic Sea.

The challenge

Why Capacity4MSP?

In the last decade, a significant progress has been made in building cooperation networks and creating a strong policy background for maritime spatial planning (MSP) in the Baltic Sea region. Currently, nearly all countries around the Baltic Sea work on their maritime plans, which makes our region a front-runner in Europe and the world. The challenge, however, remains to harmonise national maritime spatial plans, implement, monitor and to evaluate them.

What's the platform about?

Capacity4MSP created a practically oriented and interactive collaboration platform for knowledge exchange and an intensified dialogue between MSP practitioners, policy- and decision makers and other stakeholders. Capacity4MSP built on the results of the current and recently completed MSP projects and ongoing MSP processes in the Baltic Sea region. It increased the visibility and impact of projects and built up on potential synergies. The platform deepened and widened the gained know-how across various sectors and governance levels by synthesising, amplifying and transferring the project outcomes to new practical solutions.

Projects represented in the platform:

Interreg Baltic Sea Region: Baltic LINes | Baltic RIM | Baltic InteGrid | Baltic Blue Growth | Land-Sea-Act | Blue Platform
Horizon 2020: MUSES
BONUS: BASMATI | BaltSpace
European Maritime and Fisheries Fund: Baltic SCOPE & Pan Baltic Scope
Interreg South Baltic: SeaPlanSpace

details

Budgets

Capacity4MSP
in numbers

1.09

Million

Total
0.73

Million

Erdf
0.15

Million

Eni + Russia
0.00

Million

Norway

Achievements

Gathering the know-how in one place

The Capacity4MSP platform synthesised the knowledge gained in a dozen of maritime spatial planning (MSP) projects and practices within and beyond the Baltic Sea Region (BSR) co-funded by Interreg, Horizon 2020 and European Maritime and Fisheries Fund. Based on this synthesis, the partners produced a report in order to inform and help national MSP decision- and policy-makers review the implementation of the existing MSP frameworks. The report proposed synergies between recurring important themes, but also criteria and indicators to assess the process, content and performance of the maritime spatial plans.

Speaking with one voice about maritime spatial planning

Moreover, the partners brought together MSP authorities, planners and actors from specific thematic sectors using the marine space to help harmonise MSP in the region. Together, they developed joint policy messages.

Complementarily to already existing HELCOM – VASAB working group, Capacity4MSP established a lasting mechanism to support more informal exchange among maritime spatial planners in the region through the Planners Forum. The Planners Forum will now regularly be held at least twice a year.

Impact on pan-Baltic cooperation

The project platform results helped shape new strategic policy documents of VASAB and HELCOM-VASAB cooperation. These materials also feed into the work and inspired the policy area Spatial Planning within the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea region, that is led by the Secretariats of pan-Baltic organisations VASAB and HELCOM. Project results contributed to setting the future agenda for the MSP in the region, particularly, to the new Regional Maritime Spatial Planning Roadmap 2021-2030, the HELCOM-VASAB MSP working group work plan 2022-2024, as well as update of the VASAB Long Term Perspective.

Outputs

Report on the experience from maritime spatial planning (MSP) projects in the Baltic Sea region

This report synthesises the knowledge gained from various MSP projects and practices within and beyond the Baltic Sea region. It screens and analyses the good practices in the themes important for the future of MSP in the Baltic Sea region. Based on this, it proposes synergies between themes, a list of activities of key importance for the development of BSR MSP (gaps in good practices, needs for further transnational co-operation), criteria and indicators for the process, content and performance of MSP. This report synthesises the knowledge gained from various MSP projects and practices within and beyond the Baltic Sea region. It screens and analyses the good practices in the themes important for the future of MSP in the Baltic Sea region. Based on this, it proposes synergies between themes, a list of activities of key importance for the development of BSR MSP (gaps in good practices, needs for further transnational co-operation), criteria and indicators for the process, content and performance of MSP. Link Full report: https://vasab.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Capacity4MSP_Synthesis_report.pdf A shorter version of this report in the format of as a policy brief addresses policy-makers. It emphasises the topics which require public support at the current stage of the MSP development in the Baltic Sea region (finalisation and adoption of marine plans). It focuses on issues which need to be improved and gaps with regard to shared common understanding and refers to supporting tools for practitioners in enhancing the development of MSP.

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Report on Implementation and Monitoring & Evaluation Mechanisms of MSPs

The report on identified support mechanisms for the implementation of MSP was prepared based on analysis of MSPs in the region and interviews with all Baltic Sea region MSP planning authorities. The report contains research-based analysis, experiences and practical examples of implementation and support mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation of MSP. It highlights some good practices, lessons to be learned as well as challenges and obstacles in the practice of MSP implementation.

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Report on MSP stakeholder involvement and engagement in maritime spatial planning

Capacity4MSP analysed key aspects of stakeholder involvement and engagement in MSP. It supports public authorities responsible for maritime spatial planning in ensuring the participatory process during all stages of the MSP. This report presents the research-based analysis, experiences and practical examples of stakeholder involvement approaches and methods in MSP.

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