Whether it is attending meetings, giving comments on documents, delivering training, facilitating events, or providing advice on project development, RCBI support is delivered by a dedicated team of experts with good knowledge of the subject matter and the relevant regions.

Made up of experts who will be in place for the duration of the project, and assisted by others who come on board for a particular task, the team includes EU based experts working in partnership with experts based in the partner countries themselves.

A key feature of RCBI assistance is flexibility. Each ENPI CBC programme is different from the others, and the level of experience of the partner countries also varies. Co-ordinated by Veronica Vann, RCBI will work closely with the partner countries, the Joint Management Authorities and the EC to ensure that its assistance is tailor made to the needs of each programme and each country at any particular time.

The long term RCBI team includes four experts dedicated to support the countries of the ENPI East and South.

Colm Dunne (ENPI East) and Albert Sorrosal (ENPI South) advise on how to ensure the management and control structures outlined in the programmes comply with the ENPI CBC Implementing Rules and PraG (the EC's practical guide to external contracts).

Karine Leroy and Klaas-Jan Reincke (both ENPI East and South), together with short term experts, are supporting the development of the strategic content of the programmes. Their assistance includes comments on programme documents, helping people in the relevant regions to give input to the programmes and the public consultation process required under Strategic Environmental Assessments.

These four experts will later deliver training on programme management for the partner country representatives in the Joint Managing Autorities (JMA), Joint Technical Secretariats (JTS) and their branch offices, National Contact Points and Joint Monitoring Committees (JMC). For each programme, RCBI proposes to bring these people to JMA and to jointly cover topics such as the key functions of the JTS, the role of the JMC, project selection, budget monitoring and communication.

Helping with raising awareness, project preparation, finding partners and project management are Anna Ososinska (ENPI East) and Pam van de Bunt (ENPI South). Actual activities will be agreed with the programme partners, and will be delivered in partnership with the programme management. Activities could include holding information events on the regional development opportunities offered by the ENPI CBC, project identification and development workshops and partner search forums. New events on offer include information on how to be a lead partner and project management training for lead partners and partners. All events will be held in eligible regions in the partner countries.

Providing on-the-ground, country-specific information and support are Sergey Balanev (Russia), Georgui Baranets (Belarus), Irina Sukhy (Belarus), Anatoliy Pavelko (Ukraine), Rodica Iordanov Iordanca (Republic of Moldova), Ecaterina Melnicenco (Moldova), Lia Todua (Georgia), Erik Gyulazyan (Armenia) for ENPI East, Khaled Shorman (Jordan), Raghda Jaber (Lebanon), Walid Batrawi (Palestinian Authority), Melhem Mansour (Syria), Nader al Sayed (Egypt), Rafik Halouani (Tunisia), Dan Wollner (Israel) for ENPI South.

For the team contact details, please click here.

To see the location of RCBI offices, please click here.