Project acronym: SA SKILLS
Programme priority: PA4 — A More Social South Adriatic Programme Area
Specific objective: S.O.4.1 — Improve equal access to inclusive, quality education, training, and lifelong learning through accessible infrastructure, including support for sustainable distance and online education and training.
Duration: 54 months (ends October 2027)
Lead Partner: University of Montenegro — Institute of Marine Biology
Partners
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Region Molise (Italy) — Service for the Competitiveness of Productive Systems
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State Agency for Strategic Programming and Aid Coordination (SASPAC), Albania
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Ministry of Economic Development and Tourism (Montenegro)
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Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
Budget
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Total project budget: EUR 4,799,677.12
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SASPAC total eligible budget: EUR 750,036.80 (100%)
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Interreg funds: EUR 637,531.28 (85%)
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Partner contribution: EUR 112,505.52 (15%)
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Project Summary
Regional competitiveness and innovation potential depend on a skilled workforce. South Adriatic regions face emigration and adverse demographic trends, leading to high inactivity even as employers report shortages of qualified workers. This mismatch is acute in the blue economy, whose socio-economic importance is growing across the South Adriatic (e.g., blue tourism, blue digitalisation, blue biotechnologies).
SA SKILLS aims to increase the availability of advanced, market-relevant skills as a lever for developing the South Adriatic’s key economic sectors, with a specific focus on the blue economy. Through a cross-border approach, the project addresses shortages, under-qualification, and skills mismatches in emerging blue sectors, notably blue biotechnology and blue tourism.
The project will:
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Establish a permanent cross-border dialogue among education, training, and professional actors to develop a common language, a harmonised qualifications system, and shared priorities for skills development and upskilling.
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Create new curricula and training pathways to introduce new/advanced professional profiles into the labour market and close identified skills gaps.
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Strengthen education–industry cooperation at multiple levels to reduce skills gaps between existing education offerings and labour-market needs.
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Boost the attractiveness of career opportunities and deploy tools that help enterprises manage human capital and worker well-being—supporting upskilling (valuing internal competences) and reskilling (successful occupational transitions).
Key instruments include a Blue Economy Training Centre, a Blue Growth Group, and a Digital Blue Economy Platform, designed to expand advanced training opportunities for industry and stimulate cross-border circulation of skills within a harmonised qualification system. In the long run, the project contributes to aligning institutional frameworks for education, training, and professions across the South Adriatic and raising the supply of advanced blue skills, underpinning inclusive economic growth.
SASPAC Role (key contributions and activities)
Work Package 4 — Pooling and sharing resources and tools between education/VET institutions and EU industry
Objectives (SMART orientation):
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Realistic and achievable by project end.
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Specific (who needs the WP results and in which territories).
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Measurable (show the intended change).
Specific objective:
Provide company-oriented tools that strengthen enterprises’ capacity to self-assess needs for new skills and to respond to emerging competence demands in the labour market.
Communication objective:
Raise companies’ awareness of the benefits of skilled human capital and the positive effects of activating VET initiatives within day-to-day business. Empower enterprises to use innovative tools that support skills development and foster economic growth.
Activities:
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4.1 Create tools that support long-term interaction among academia / VET providers / industry.
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4.2 Set up industry-facing tools to raise company awareness of skills and competence needs in human-resources management.
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4.3 Ensure vertical integration of project results towards companies, VET providers, and the VET system.
Project Management & Coordination Working Group
Order of the Director General No. 152 (03.06.2024), amended by Order No. 251 (07.10.2024), “On Project Management and Coordination.”
Members:
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Mr. Marjus Borokoçi — Director, Projects Directorate; SASPAC Legal Representative
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Mr. Arban Morina — Coordinator, Strategic Programming Directorate — Support Staff
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Ms. Lorela Deda — Specialist, Directorate for Administration of EU Financial Assistance
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Ms. Sidorela Qato — Coordinator, Strategic Programming Directorate — Support Staff
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Ms. Alda Duriçi — Specialist, Projects Directorate — Support Staff
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Mr. Kelvin Grei Strazimiri — Analyst, Strategic Programming Directorate — Support Staff
Progress & Activities to Date
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Project bank account opened at Credins Bank on 06.09.2024 (Ministry of Finance letter No. 8520/5 prot.); pre-financing transfer from the special account to the project account pending.
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Cancellation stamp produced; required documentation prepared for Period 2 reporting in JEMS.
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Five partner meetings held:
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Executive Committee #1: Kotor (Montenegro), 16–17 May 2024 — establishment of the Permanent Cross-Border Roundtable.
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Executive Committee #2: Europa House, Albania, 26 June 2024 — internal session with all partners and the Technical Secretariat.
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Skills Info Session: 27 June 2024, at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MBZHR) — all stakeholders convened; Intergovernmental Agreement for SA SKILLS signed by all partners and stakeholders.
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Panel & Executive Committee #3: Kotor, 2–3 October 2024 — Blue Economy panel for project visibility; Executive Committee met with the Technical Secretariat to plan upcoming activities.
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Cross-Border Roundtable: Bari, 4 October 2024 — stakeholder experience-sharing, next steps agreed, and chair of the joint roundtable designated.
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Challenges: A delayed project start, frequent internal staff changes, and limited staff capacity have caused slippages in implementing planned activities.
Reference Documents
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Application Form — SA SKILLS (June 2023)
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SA-0200142 — Partnership Agreement
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SA-0200142 — SA SKILLS — Subsidy Contract