Nineteen of the 56 regional development projects selected at a contest in 2010 are being financed and the necessary purchases are now made to start the works, said division head at the Ministry of Regional Development and Construction Valentina Plesca. Fourteen projects will benefit from financing from the National Regional Development Fund, while five projects will be funded by the Technical Assistance Agency of Germany, Info-Prim Neo reports. The projects are designed to restore infrastructure facilities, protect the environment, recycle waste and stimulate the development of the private sector. Valentina Plesca said that special attention is paid to the cooperation between the local public authorities in devising regional development projects that benefit several territorial-administrative units. A new contest to select regional development projects will be held in summer, most probably after the local elections. A number of 135 projects to the value of over 2 billion lei competed in the first contest. The financing from the Regional Development Fund, to which 1% of the annual revenues of the medium-term budget is transferred, will not exceed 500 million lei. The rest of the money will be attracted from foreign and national funds. The funds for crossborder cooperation may also contribute money. The Governments of a number of EU member states expressed readiness to provide financing. Romania for example will disburse €100 million. There is also the Ecological Fund and other national funds.