Regional Policy in European Union

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Regional Policy in European Union

• All regions in the world do not benefit from
  strong economic and social conditions,they dont
  have the same technology or geographical
  advantages.
• Regional policy transfers resources from
  affluent to poorer regions. It is both an
  instrument of financial solidarity and a powerful
  force for economic integration.

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• The European Union was created as an urgent
  duty of the nations of Europe to create an
  economic and political union in order to assure
  security and social progressso as to secure
  common political and economic action for the
  integration and proper development of their
  common resources.

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• Legislation led to the creation of a Regional
  Policy, that attempts to aid the most
  disadvantaged regions through community based
  assistance.
• The current Regional Policy is focused on
  solidarity between the Member States and the
  results are tangible.

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• Solidarity and Cohesion
• The two words, solidarity and cohesion sum up the
  values behind regional policy in the EU
• Solidarity because the policy aims to benefit
  citizens and regions that are economically and
  socially deprived compared to EU averages.
• Cohesion because there are positive benefits for
  all in narrowing the gaps of income and wealth
  between the poorer countries and regions and
  those which are better off.

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THE CURRENT REGIONAL POLICY

• Europes Regional Policy is premised on financial
  solidarity for all Union Member States.
• The goal is to reduce disparities of regions and
  countries through the funding of tangible
  projects.
• The programme attempts to decrease unemployment
  rates, increase mobility, increase technology and
  education and assist rural and fishing areas in
  modernization and environmental preservation.
• The Union Commission aspires to have all regions
  equally competitive in terms of a single market.

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Structural Funds

• There are four structural funds.
• 1-European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
• 2-European Social Fund (ESF)
• 3-European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee
  Fund (EAGGF, Guidance Section)
• 4-Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance
  (FIFG)

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A special Solidarity Fund

• Cohesion Fund , helps finance projects relating
  to the environment and transport networks in
  those Member States whose GDP is below 90 of the
  EU average, namely Spain, Greece, Ireland and
  Portugal.

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STRUCTURAL FUNDS

• The European Regional Development Fund
• Two main objectives
• 1-The development and structural adjustment of
  regions whose development is lagging behind.
• 2-The economic redevelopment and development of
  areas with structural problems, urban areas in
  difficulty, crisis-hit areas dependent on
  fisheries and areas heavily dependent on
  services.

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• This fund gives money in support of
  financing infrastructure, job creation measures,
  local development projects and aid for small
  firms.

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The European Social Fun(ESF)

• Two basic roles
• Assist employees for adjusting to industrial
  changes through vocational and retraining
  initiatives and increasing mobility, this
  programme promotes improving employment
  opportunities and job creation.
• It is anticipated that these changes will both
  raise the standard of living (Art. 146) and
  contribute to strengthening economic and social
  cohesion in the Community (Art. 159)
• This fund therefore assists projects focused on
  promoting the return of the unemployed and groups
  that face discrimination to the workforce.

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The European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee
Fund(EAGGF)

• It designed to take into account the Common
  Agricultural Policy (CAP) and rural development
  initiatives.

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The Financial Instrument for Fisheries
Guidance(FIFG)

• It contributes to the provisions of the Regional
  Development Policy and the Common Fisheries
  Policy.
• Aim of this fund is to provide support in order
  to promote the modernisation and restructuring of
  the fishing sector, while supporting objectives
  of the common fisheries policy.
• The goal is to reach a sustainable balance
  between fisheries resources and their
  exploitation

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THE COHESION FUND

• It is unique as it was created specially to
  assist those member states whose per capita GNP
  is less than 90 of the community average.
• It may assist with environmental projects and
  transport infrastructure projects.
• Aim of the fund is to reduce disparities in the
  poorest countries as quickly as possible.

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THE REGIONAL AND COMMUNITY OBJECTIVESThree main
objectives

• Objective 1 focuses on regions whose development
  is lagging behind.
• The purpose of this objective is to close the
  development gap between the regions. As a result
  funding for this objective is generally directed
  toward building a stronger basic infrastructure
  in terms of transportation, energy, waste
  treatment, telecommunications, health and
  education.
• Funding is only granted to those areas in which
  the development level (GDP) is less than 75 of
  the Community average. Fifty regions are
  currently assisted and they receive 70 of the
  funding obtainable through the four Structural
  Funds. Objective 1 benefits 22 of the Unions
  population.

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• Objective 2 is concerned with regions undergoing
  economic and social conversion.
• It is focused on areas that are facing industrial
  decline, high unemployment and in which rural,
  urban and fishery areas are suffering structural
  difficulties.
• Funding is granted for activities that produce
  alternatives to the traditional economic
  activities that exist in these regions. Objective
  2 currently assists 18 of the population with
  10.5 of total funding used for this purpose.

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• Objective 3 is aimed at improving Human
  Resources.
• This objective applies to all European Member
  States and it supports adaptation and
  modernisation of the education and training
  systems and employment and promotion policies. It
  also searches for the creation of employment,
  attempts to combat the social exclusion and
  promote equal opportunities for all employees.
• Projects under Objective 3 are financed with
  11.3 of the funding which is provided totally by
  the ESF.

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Six Basic Rulescreated to determine how funding
will be distributed.

• 1-Concentration the distributed resources should
  be concentrated geographically.
• 2-Programme planning resources are given as part
  of a programme previously approved by the Member
  states and the Commission.
• 3-Additionality the Community will finance
  programmes only partially, contributing to the
  national measures.

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• 4-Partnership in the intervention, all of the
  parts must cooperate as partners.
• 5-Monitoring and evaluation the Community will
  make a continuous monitoring of the development
  of projects to make sure projects are under
  control and are meeting the main objectives.
• 6-Consistency and complementaritys with other
  policies the decisions and measures taken must
  by consistent with conditions established by the
  EC treaty and with other Community policies.

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Community Initiatives

• The Community Initiatives are comprised of four
  programmes focused on resolving problems, which
  are of main concern to the whole Union. Each
  special programme is resourced by only one Fund,
  and the four initiatives absorb 5.35 of the
  Structural Budget.
• Each project will focus on a unique aspect so as
  to help the diverse regions improve in areas
  where they are lagging behind.

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The Interreg II project

• It concentrates on improvements to the national
  and inter-state cooperation and cross-border
  issues.
• It promotes the elaboration of common strategies
  for establishing authentic cross-border areas of
  economic activity making in this way, relations
  between regions more flexible and profitable.
• This programme is fully financed by the ERDF.

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The Urban II

• It focuses on aiding areas affected by high
  unemployment, inadequate social networks, poor
  housing and ruined buildings.
• Regeneration of constructions can be achieved and
  declining of urban areas can be slowed down.
• This assistance tries to introduce new strategies
  to achieve economic and social re-creation and is
  totally resourced by the ERDF.

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Leader

• It aims to integrate the active rural societies
  and the economies with strategies directed toward
  sustainable improvement.
• This objective includes investment in
  agricultural companies and helping to promote
  their local products.
• The EAGGF Guidance section finances the Leader
  programme.

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Equal,

• It tries to diminish possible situations that can
  lead to inequalities and discrimination in the
  work place.
• There are people that because of gender, race,
  religion, age, ethnic origin or any other
  characteristics are excluded from a job or
  position.
• In order to promote a globalised, modern economy
  this initiative attempts to combat these factors
  and promotes the integration of different and new
  ways to surpass discrimination.

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Innovative Actions

• The Commission is looking forward to supporting
  new innovative ideas to improve the development
  of regional policies. The intent of this
  programme is to encourage experimentation within
  regions in order to reach a higher level of
  competition in their economies and to meet the
  information society challenges.

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• The Commission, under the ERDF, has established
  three basic topics for innovative actions in
  2000-2006
• Regional economies based on knowledge and
  technological innovation
• e-EuropeRegio/ the information society at the
  service of regional development
• Regional identity and sustainable development

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• With 0.5 of the Structural Funds budget the
  programmes of Innovative Actions are resourced so
  as to elaborate new strategies and the
  experimental phase of projects.
• Projects can be included under one of the basic
  Priority Objectives if they are approved
  positively in the initial phase.

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THE BUDGET

• The total budget assigned for the Structural
  Funds and the Cohesion Fund in 2000-2006 is of
  213 billion.
• It is distributed among the different Priority
  Objectives, the Innovative Actions,the Community
  Initiatives and Fisheries projects outside of the
  Objective 1.

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IS THE POLICY WORKING?

• Examples of initiatives undertaken with
  Structural Funds

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Italy

• In Italy the Union contributed almost 20
  million to a 66 million Rural Development
  project in the Trentino province.
• The project consisted of numerous small projects
  like the construction of an artificial lake on
  the slopes of Monte Carno.
• Water can now be collected in this lake from the
  river and distributed throughout the village. It
  is a delightful pleasure to the apple growers in
  the village.

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Lunen

• Germany where an old coal mine was converted into
  a future-oriented centre of technology and
  innovation.
• The creation of LUNTEC cost a total of 8.5
  million with the Union contributing 2.9
  million.
• LUNTEC has rented out 70 of its space since 1995
  to a variety of interesting and innovative
  organisations. Such a project is greatly
  supportive of industrial change.

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How Successful the Regional Policy

• Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund have
  already contributed substantially reducing
  regional disparities
• Dynamic regions grow at a faster pace than poorer
  regions, the results of the Regional Policy have
  been significant.
• The poorest regions in the current EU comprise
  10 of the EU population, and they saw a per
  capita GDP rise from 54.2 of the Community
  Average in 1987 to 61.1 in 1997.

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• Greece, Portugal, Ireland and Spain, the least
  prosperous nations, witnessed the national per
  capita GDP rise from 67.6 in 1988 to 78.8 in
  1998.

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• In the Objective 1 regions, the Funds contributed
  about 1/2 per year growth between 1989 and
  1999.
• The cumulative effect added about 10 to GDP in
  Greece, Ireland, and Portugal and over 4 in
  Spain.
• A third or more of the economic convergence of
  these countries would not have happened without
  the Structural Funds.

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THE FUTURE

• If all Member States combine the financial
  support of the Structural and Cohesion Funds with
  support for Regional Policy, in time disparities
  should be reduced and hopefully eliminated.
• With many of the Applicant countries physically
  close to some for the strong EU nations, these
  Accession states have better potential for their
  economies to be enhanced and for the goal of
  solidarity to be realised.