The European Commission has recently introduced a series of policy updates aimed at strengthening economic resilience, promoting green initiatives, and enhancing digital transformation across Member States. These new measures reflect the EU's commitment to addressing current global challenges while fostering sustainable growth and unity within Europe. Recently, several insightful reports have been published, including the new Draghi’s Report, the 2024 Report on the State of Regions and Cities and the Report on the implementation of the Communication. Also, a new regulation aimed to ease cross-border cooperation was issued mid-October and information on a comprehensive evaluation of the Public Procurement Directives, as well as a summary of Committee of Regions plenary where the future of EU Cohesion policy was discussed.
We invite you to explore those policy updates, highlighting the key initiatives that aim to enhance competitiveness and promote sustainability across the EU.
New Draghi’s report
A key focus of the new Draghi’s report is the demographic challenge Europe is facing. With an aging population and a shrinking workforce, the report emphasises the need for policies that support higher birth rates and attract skilled immigrants. In terms of Cohesion Policy, the report underscores the importance of reducing regional disparities to ensure balanced growth across the EU. Draghi advocates for targeted investments in less developed regions to enhance their infrastructure, education, and technological capabilities. This approach aims to create a more inclusive economy where all regions can contribute to and benefit from Europe’s overall competitiveness. The report can be accessed here.
Report on the implementation of the Communication: “Putting people first, securing sustainable and inclusive growth, unlocking the potential of the EU’s outermost regions”
The European Commission’s report highlights progress in implementing the 2022 strategy for the EU's outermost regions, addressing their unique needs through targeted policies in areas like social policy, climate, and trade. Specific programs support biodiversity, climate adaptation, and tourism, and advisory tools and workshops enhance regional access to EU initiatives. A related document emphasizes Cohesion policy’s key role in aiding high-need sectors in these regions. The report and its annexes can be downloaded from here.
New regulation on facilitating cross-border solutions
Member states' EU ambassadors reached agreement on the Council’s negotiating mandate for a new regulation on facilitating cross-border solutions. The proposed regulation aims to facilitate cross-border interactions and promote the development of cross-border regions by making it easier to tackle cross-border challenges, such as the development of infrastructure and the operation of cross-border public services. Its key feature is the creation of cross-border coordination points within member states to handle cross-border files submitted to them, either by communicating with initiators on behalf of the competent authority or by assessing the file themselves. The new regulation is available here.
2024 Report on the State of Regions and Cities
On 7 October 2024, the European Committee of the Regions has published its EU Annual Report on the State of Regions and Cities, as a snapshot of the most pressing challenges faced by regions and cities across Europe, as well as solutions from the ground to inform EU policy decisions. It provides insights on how regions and cities in Europe come up with solutions to shape the future. More information and the report can be found here.
Call for evidence – evaluation of Public Procurement Directives
As outlined in the Political guidelines for the next term 2024-2029, the European Commission is set to launch a comprehensive evaluation of the Public Procurement Directives. Conducting the evaluation, the European Commission will look at several topics identified, such as the level of competition in the EU public procurement market, the simplification of the current mechanisms and the achievement of strategic objectives. The European Commission will publish the call for evidence and public consultation under this link.
Proposals to reform Cohesion Policy from regions and cities
During a European Committee of the Regions (CoR) plenary on 20-21 November, the participating regional and local leaders adopted a package of opinions defining the building blocks of Cohesion Policy after 2027. The importance of involving local authorities to ensure the policy remains effective and sustainable while opposing centralization was underlined, as well as the need for simplifying rules, reducing funding instruments, and maintaining the partnership principle post-2027.To strengthen territorial cooperation, the CoR proposed increasing the budget for cross-border initiatives and doubling funding for cross-border cooperation to address issues like emergency services across borders. Additionally, tackling demographic change was highlighted as a priority alongside green and digital transitions. Read more here.
- Logige sisse kommentaaride postitamiseks