Strategic Planning and Preparation of Projects for Accessing Structural Funds for 2021-2027. Lessons Learned or History Repeating?

The papers makes an analysis, with a focus on the North-East Region of Romania, of the stage of the drafting of strategic documents at national level and their correlation with regional and county planning documents, at the end of 2022. The analysis is carried out both in terms of the regional and local strategic documents, correlated with the national ones, as well as in terms of the perception held by some of the most important regional actors. The questions that the article pursues in its research approach are: How do we evaluate the preparation of projects for the new programming period 2021-2027 from the point of view of strategic planning and correlation with the documents adopted at the national/regional/local level? and . How do local actors perceive the influence on the absorption of European funds the drafting and adoption of strategic documents at national and regional level after the start of the programming period? The conclusions of the research: after two programming periods, there are still difficulties in connecting the priorities of the strategies and the preparation of local projects for accessing European funds based on the national and regional strategic documents.