The ALTO ADRIATICO project has made possible the creation of a model of governance for the entire area to develop the fisheries sector, taking into account economic, tourist, transport and environmental factors, with the ultimate aim of benefiting consumers directly by certifying and thus guaranteeing the safety of fisheries food products.

Following the agreement signed in Venice and with the support of the Governments involved, the Upper Adriatic Pilot Project was launched, in which a trial area was designated and a fisheries district set up.

The Upper Adriatic programme came into being in 2001 when the Italian regions of Emilia-Romagna, Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia, together with the Croatian regions of Istria and Primorsko – Goranska  and the municipality of Izola in Slovenia, initiated a dialogue aimed at promoting the sustainable development of the fisheries and related sectors in the Upper Adriatic area.  This project produced a three-year investment plan, amounting to 69 million euro, with focussing on 4 fields of action: the Environment, Production and Business activities, Research and Technical Assistance, which in turn gave rise to the individual sub-projects listed on the right.