Personal Peace Journeys and Practical Impact of PEACE Funding Told in New Publication to be Launched During PEACEPLUS Brussels Event

‘Weaving a Lattice of Peace: The Impact of PEACE Funding on our Citizens and Communities’ charts the journey from the first PEACE programme through the delivery of the suite of funding programmes, right through to the present day and beyond.

The booklet, produced by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) provides a snapshot of the vast range of projects resulting from PEACE funding throughout the past 30 years, laying out the impact on lives, livelihoods and communities throughout the programme area.

It also sets out how insights from delivering PEACE and INTERREG funding in Northern Ireland and the border counties, which could be used as a framework for other countries emerging from conflict.

More than two million people have been involved in the programmes to date, with approximately €3.39bn of support provided by the European Union, the Government of Ireland, and the Northern Ireland Executive (1995-2023) to deliver more than 22,000 transformational projects.

These projects covered a wide range of key areas of need across a post-conflict society, including economic growth and prosperity, addressing the legacy of the past, transforming local areas, promoting positive relations, changing attitudes, realising our young people’s potential, and facilitating cross-community and cross-border collaboration.

The booklet details first-hand accounts from citizens and organisations, and outlines how various interventions transformed their lives and those of their neighbours, including providing vital services within their communities and breaking down previous sectarian barriers.

Weaving a Lattice of Peace also details how SEUPB’s current programme, PEACEPLUS, builds on the legacy of its predecessor Programmes, protecting and preserving the hard-won and, at times, fragile peace while offering the opportunity for a better future for the current generation and those who will follow.

Speaking ahead of the booklet’s launch, which will take place as part of EU Regions Week in Brussels, SEUPB Chief Executive Gina McIntyre said: “This year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the North-South Bodies, including the Special EU Programmes Body.

“This booklet reflects on that milestone, capturing the journey of practical peacebuilding. Across the pages, you will see the impact of PEACE funding on communities and lives throughout Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland.

“None of this would have been possible without the brave pioneers of peace who, throughout the past 25 years, have taken risks for peace, extended the hand of friendship, and carved friendships where there may previously have been mistrust and fear.”

PEACEPLUS will deliver €1.14bn of investment in areas assessed as having the greatest need, delivering real change and impact to an estimated 625,000 citizens. Through a partnership approach at the grassroots level, it will empower communities, embed peacebuilding and create transformational change.

PEACEPLUS was made possible by the European Commission, the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Government of Ireland, and the Northern Ireland Executive.

To read Weaving a Lattice of Peace, click here.

The publication will be launched at a special PEACEPLUS event co-hosted by the SEUPB, the UK Mission to the EU, the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the EU, the European Commission, and the Office of the Northern Ireland Executive in Brussels.