Health conditions of CEE countries lag those of the more developed EU members. Life expectancy at birth in the EU (based on Eurostat’s 2015 data) is 83.3 and 77.9 years for women and men respectively, however in Hungary and Romania it is respectively only 79 and 78.7 for women and 72.3 and 71.5 for men. Cancer and cardiovascular diseases are the most prevalent causes of death in both countries. However, these illnesses could be prevented with early identification and prevention, and several other diseases could be filtered and effectively treated in infancy.The main overall objective of the project Development and Testing of Efficient Screening and Prevention Programs (DESP) is to mitigate the morbidity and mortality rates of cancer and circulatory diseases. Therefore, the project’s goal is to increase the efficiency of screening and to strengthen preventive healthcare and health awareness in the region. An efficient screening programme enables the early diagnosis and appropriate treatment of the different types of cancer, thus making a palpable contribution to the mitigation of mortality rates. The project also mitigates inequalities in health and social care infrastructure by improving access to health and social services (with a strong focus on people at risk of poverty and populations living in poorer areas). The project aims to make a significant investment in the development of infrastructure. Csongrád County Health Care Center — Hódmezővásárhely-Makó (CSMEK) has a very high reputation in terms of screening and prevention. However, as a result of screening there is a growing number of people needing treatment or even hospitalization and, at present, facilities are not adequate. To meet the increased demand, an extension is required, with two extra floors housing the Internal Medicine Department and Paediatrics. The Association of Vincentian Sisters of Charity (AVSC) specialise in the recovery and medical rehabilitation of people in need, but there is a huge demand for a Prevention Centre which can offer preventive and diagnostic services to the general public as well. Due to the constraints of available funding, the project does not aim at implementing large-scale infrastructure with regard to the János Hám Medical Center, instead it aims at improving the diagnostic and screening capacities of already existing facilities as well as preterm child care and screening in the Blessed János Scheffler Center. Another major disparity in the quality of health care services lies in the level of investment in equipment. The project aims to make a significant investment on both sides of the border to allow efficient screening, diagnostic, and curing activities. The estimated number of health-care departments affected by modernized equipment is altogether 13, while the population having access to improved health services is 1,139,644.Screening and prevention are becoming increasingly important in both countries. However, screening rates are lagging their targeted rates and therefore fail to palpably impact mortality rates. Lessons learnt during earlier screening programs show that such programs can be successful only if they are carefully planned and managed. Therefore, the project aims at the development and testing of efficient screening and prevention programs on both sides of the border. The project will develop an entirely new solution involving the elaboration of a joint monitoring and evaluation system (based on the findings of a Horizon2020 project) that will support researchers and policy makers to develop, implement, evaluate and monitor existing or future screening programs. Recommendations will be elaborated and the findings of the project will be widely publicized in both the border area and at a national level, making a strong impact on similar initiatives. In this way, DESP’s approach goes far beyond existing practice in the field, in the programme area, and in both participating countries. It is also important to highlight that CSMEK’s experience in this field is a valuable and unique asset, one that is entirely unavailable to other health institutions in either Hungary or Romania, and that AVSC can thus benefit from this by designing its own screening programs from scratch with the assistance of an experienced partner. DESP focuses on a complex approach targeting the development of screening and preventive tools, and the strong improvement of health consciousness of people living in the project area. Various screening programs will be run in both locations (but also with well-equipped screening buses and with the involvement of local GPs and other institutions in rural areas) to enlarge the proportion of the population that has been screened.As a new innovative element, screening will be extended to younger generations (i.e. preterm babies) in cooperation with local hospitals. Special therapies (e.g. DSGM — Dévény Special Manual Technique & Gymnastics Method, and PSMT — Planned Sensory Motor Therapies) will be applied to screen developmental abnormalities of preterm babies and to improve their health conditions.DESP wishes to improve health consciousness in the region and to make a difference in the lifestyle of populations in the region. Therefore, screenings will be complemented by a series of communication activities, covering a wide range of topics, tools and targeting different groups. The project will start in September 2019 and will be implemented in 36 months with a total budget of € 9 305 557.48. Implementation of the project will be a joint task. Although the Lead Partner (CSMEK) assumes responsibility for the entire project vis-à-vis the JS and the MA, both partners have their own tasks to be undertaken with due care and motivation, completing their activities as foreseen and communicated by the Lead Partner. Joint management will be provided by the Joint Project Management Team (JPMT), consisting of a Joint Project Manager (CSMEK), a Joint Financial Manager (AVSC) and a Joint Communication Manager (CSMEK). Activities of JPMT will be supported by External Financial Management expertise and IT tools (e.g. file sharing system, etc.). Further to JPMT, each partner will set up its own Internal Project Management Team (IPMT) consisting of specialized staff dealing with the given partner’s management tasks.