The Interreg Baltic Sea Region 2021-2027 Programme is one of the transnational Interreg programmes designed to foster cooperation and territorial development across the Baltic Sea Region. It supports green, digital, and just transitions and operates with a strong focus on customer-oriented services. The Programme covers nine countries: eight EU Member States (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden) and one non-EU country (Norway).

The purpose of the mid-term performance evaluation is to assess the Programme’s performance and draw evidence-based lessons that could be used in view of the post-2027 period. The evaluation service comprises six tasks to assess:

1. Relevance of the 2021-2027 Programme objectives’ thematic focus.

2. Long-term effects of the interventions from the previous programming period (2014-2020).

3. 2021-2027 Programme new features for projects.

4. Support to the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) governance and communication and EUSBSR Policy Area Coordinators support to projects.

5. Programme implementation procedures and tools.

6. 2021-2027 Programme communication strategy and its implementation.

The evaluation applies the criteria of Relevance, Coherence, Effectiveness, Efficiency, and EU added value.

A mix of quantitative and qualitative methods is used to ensure a comprehensive assessment. This methodological combination captures both measurable outcomes and stakeholders’ perspectives. Beyond gathering information on results and outputs, the evaluation explores why and how these results have been achieved and identifies aspects that may hinder implementation.

The evaluation service is led by Spatial Foresight, in consortium with t33.