The agreements, signed by Regional Policy Minister Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz and representatives of the three donor states, make Poland the project's largest beneficiary, securing about one‐quarter of the total EUR 3.27 billion available to 15 EU member states.
"We are first in the EU to conclude the new-period contracts and the biggest recipient," Pełczyńska-Nałęcz told a ceremony at Warsaw's Ujazdowski Castle, flanked by Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon and Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide.
Most of the money, some PLN 3.3 billion, will finance eight national programs covering green transition, local-government cooperation, R&D, culture and justice reform.
Key allocations include PLN 343 million for the National Center for Research and Development and PLN 257 million for the National Science Center.
Norway's Crown Prince Haakon said bilateral links "have never been stronger," praising Poland as "one of Ukraine’s key allies in Europe" and stressing the need for deeper European security cooperation as Russia’s war drags on.
Foreign Minister Eide added that Oslo aims to remain Warsaw’s partner in both renewable energy and gas.
Icelandic state secretary Martin Eyjólfsson highlighted the contribution of Poland’s diaspora, the largest foreign community in Iceland.
The Norway/EEA grants, 97 percent financed by Norway with smaller shares from Iceland and Liechtenstein, compensate for the donors' access to the EU single market and are intended to reduce social and economic disparities.
Poland has used previous rounds to retrofit public buildings, modernize forensic labs and restore historic sites such as Malbork Castle.
(jh/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP