TÜRKİYE-AVRUPA BİRLİĞİ MALİ İŞBİRLİĞİ KAPSAMINDA BÖLGESEL KALKINMA PROGRAMLARININ ETKİNLİĞİ

European Union has begun to pay importance towards policies for reducing disparities between regions particularly with enlargement process. It also started to initiate aid its candidate and potential candidate countries, within the framework of regional development policies with Pre-Accession Financial Assistance Programme for the 2007-2013 period. For this purpose, the EU has started to implement Regional Development Programmes for Turkey since 2003. On the other hand in order to benefit from EU pre-accession funds, Turkey should prepare projects in accordance with EU norms. In this context, 5 Development Programs and 2Cross-Border Cooperation Programs covering 10 least developed regions within the NUTS 2 Regions which benefited from Pre-Accession Assistance Funds were initiated in Turkey. These programs are the Eastern Anatolia Development Program; TR82, TR83, TRA1 NUTS 2 Regional Development Programs; TRA2, TR72, TR52, TRB1 NUTS 2 Regional Development Programs; TR 90 NUTS 2 Regional Development Programs; the Turkey-Greece Cross-Border Cooperation Program and Turkey-Bulgaria Cross-Border Cooperation Program. The study first covers the content and objectives of regional development programs, then effectiveness of the results of the programs are focused.