About the network

Organisation

The New Alpe Adria Network (NAAN) represents an association of Chambers in the Alps-Adriatic area focusing on economy, commerce, industry, craft and agriculture in order to enhance the cooperation and representation within this region.

Its headquarter is currently located in Carinthia since 2019. The presidency of the network rotates every three years.

The Presidents’ Conference is the strategic body of the network, which sets the goals and defines the guidelines for common activities. The Technical Working Group builds the executive body of the network and is responsible for the elaboration of the annual programme of common activities implemented in dedicated work packages, taking the shared economic priorities of the entire network area into consideration.

Members

• Austria
  • Economic Chamber of Carinthia
  • Economic Chamber of Styria – ICS Internationalisation Center Styria GmbH
• Italy
  • ARIES società consortile a r.l. – Venezia Giulia Chamber of commerce Trieste-Gorizia
  • Chamber of Commerce of Pordenone-Udine
  • Regional Association of the Chambers of Commerce of Veneto Region
  • Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Crafts and Agriculture of Bolzano
• Slovenia
  • Chamber of Craft and Small Business of Slovenia
  • Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia
• Croatia
  • CCE – Pula County Chamber

Purpose and strategic objectives

The Presidents’ Conference relaunched the New Alpe Adria Network and redefined the common goals on 1st February 2019 in Graz. The target is to deepen interregional collaboration in the Alps-Adriatic Region on a political and economic level with regard to the new programming period 2021 – 2027, focusing on new priority topics the presidents agreed on: 

Economic Development: Alps Adriatic Macro Region
Mobility: Infrastructure and Logistics
Tourism
Labour market, education, training
Digitisation and innovation

 Each region is in charge for different topics to work on operational level, depending on the individual interests, challenges and needs.

The primary objective of the network is to implement an EU funding programme, which enables common cross-border projects between three or more countries in the Alps Adriatic Region, besides the opportunity of bilateral Interreg-Projects.

Conferences and business meetings address companies of the NAAN area and are organised by the chambers. The Technical Working group and Expert Groups are responsible for creating an action plan and implementing measures.

Since its establishment in 2007, the Presidents ‘Conference and the Technical Working Group (TWG) have met in several sessions, in order to assess and implement the Network joint programme of activities defined every year.

History

The New Alpe Adria Network of Chambers, initially called “Network of Chambers of Euroregion”, has established in 2007, sealed with a Declaration of Intents. The economic cooperation between the regions should be strengthened with regard to political Euroregion, launched by the governors of Friuli Venezia Giulia, Veneto and Carinthia. The aim of the network was to strenghten cohesion and territorial competitiveness.

The Economic Chamber of Carinthia (Austria), Slovenia, Rijeka (Croatia), Pula (Croatia), Trieste (Italy) and the Regional Association of the Chambers of Veneto Region (Italy) have already a long tradition in cooperating and managing joint projects. These bodies have been playing an important role in the process of supporting and enhancing the establishment of the Euroregion. Slovenia, Istria and Rijeka County had also intended to join in order to become a coordination centre between the political and business world in this area.

The Chamber of Commerce of Pordenone – Udine and the Chamber of Economy of Styria joined the New Alpe Adria Network respectively in 2009 and 2015.

The Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Crafts and Agriculture of Bolzano joined the New Alpe Adria Network in 2021.

Cooperations