European Union Macroregional Strategies: Overview on the Adriatic-Ionian Region Seaports

The European Union’s macro-regional strategies unite territories and stakeholders with shared interests and geographic proximity. They guide the involved territories and incentivize growth and cooperation. The EU Strategy for the Adriatic-Ionian region includes non-EU countries with common goals and challenges. Given its focus on the Adriatic-Ionian Sea, seaports play a critical role in the strategy’s implementation. This paper examines the Adriatic-Ionian Region, particularly in terms of seaports’ cooperation and cohesion. It provides an overview of their primary activities and analyses the impact of Macro-Regional Strategies on their participation in initiatives and projects. The findings highlight the EU Strategy’s role in enhancing competitiveness and cohesion among ports in the region. As these ports are primarily complementary, increased cooperation will improve their performance.