Local Authority Groupings
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North East Partnership NI: Welcome
Please browse the interactive map of the INTERREG IVA eligible area to view the member councils of the NEP and the other Partnerships. The above map also identifies by colour code the eleven new enlarged councils that are due to come into effect in Northern Ireland in 2015.
The North East
The North East is a distinct sub-region of Northern Ireland. The eight local authorities that comprise the NEP have a combined population of some 350,000 inhabitants (21% of the population of N Ireland). After 2011 these eight councils will be merged into three larger district councils: Antrim & Newtownabbey, Causeway Coast and Mid-Antrim.
The North East region is framed by a 30-mile section of Lough Neagh shoreline in the Antrim Borough. Lough Neagh is the UK’s largest freshwater lake, with the Lower Bann river corridor stretching some 40-miles between the villages of Toomebridge on Lough Neagh to Castlerock on the Atlantic coast. The region is surrounded by a significant maritime coastline stretching from Whiteabbey on Belfast Lough to Downhill on the Atlantic Coast in the Coleraine Borough. This coastline includes such well-known gems as the Antrim Coast Road, the Giants Causeway World Heritage Site, Carrickfergus Castle and the Mussenden Temple to name but a few.
The North East has close historic linkages with Scotland; the Port of Larne remains a significant seaport and gateway to the UK mainland, while there are also plans to re-establish the ferry link between Ballycastle and Campbelltown on the Mull of Kintyre. The International Airport at Aldergrove near Antrim acts as a transport hub for the whole of Northern Ireland, while key road and rail routes link the North East to the rest of the Province of Ulster and island of Ireland.
Agriculture remains an important but declining sector while the manufacturing organisations, centred in the main settlements, continue to face growing competition in an increasingly global marketplace. The service industries have expanded in recent decades and there is a strong tourism sector in the Causeway Coast region. Other notable features of the sub-region include the two University of Ulster campuses at Coleraine and Jordanstown and the main regional hospitals at Coleraine and Antrim.
For a direct link to the NEP member Council websites please click on logos below. The ERDF logo above provides a link to the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) website.
