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38-561: The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) is one of the European Structural and Investment Funds which was set up for the financing of Rural Development Programme (RDP) actions by European Union Council Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005 of 21 June 2005 on the financing of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Rural development is a vitally important policy area, affecting over 50% of

76-591: A framework for exchanging experience between regional and local bodies in different countries. The Instrument for Pre-Accession and the European Neighbourhood Policy Instrument are the two financial instruments dedicated to support territorial cooperation between European Member States border regions and their neighbours in accession countries and in other partner countries of the Union. The former currently finances 10 programmes and

114-486: A high-level strategy for the Operational Programmes in the respective member state. The document provides an overview of the economic strengths and weaknesses of the member state's regions, and out the approach to future Structural Funds spending across the member state. An Operational Programme (OP) sets out a region's priorities for delivering the funds. Although there is scope for regional flexibility,

152-592: A region's priorities must be consistent with the member state's NSRF. There is an Operational Programme for each region in the EU. These OPs, just like the NSRF, have to be approved by the European Commission before any implementation. The European Commission has adopted a draft legislative package which will frame cohesion policy for 2014–2020. The new proposals are designed to reinforce the strategic dimension of

190-542: Is available to support the implementation of 94 RDPs across the EU, for the programming period 2007–2013. Almost half of this money is provided by the EAFRD, overseen by the European Commission's Directorate General for Agriculture and Rural Development. EAFRD budgets in the RDPs are used to achieve a variety of rural development goals, including improving the competitiveness of farm, forest and agri-food businesses; helping protect

228-708: Is financed by the ERDF , the ESF and the Cohesion Fund. The priorities under this objective are human and physical capital, innovation, knowledge society, environment and administrative efficiency. The budget allocated to this objective is €283.3bn in current prices. This objective covers all regions of the EU territory, except those already covered by the Convergence objective. It aims at reinforcing competitiveness, employment and attractiveness of these regions. Innovation,

266-493: Is set for a period of seven years, from 2021 to 2027. Five ESIFs currently exist, they are: ESIFs constitute the great bulk of EU funding, the majority of total EU spending (nearly half of all ESIF allocations are realised as expenditure in the " real economy " through third party purchases ), and are among the largest items of the budget of the European Union . Apart from them, there are also other EU funds that have

304-464: Is the smallest of the three Cohesion Policy objectives (in terms of budget), it gained a critical importance to address the key challenges of the European Union, particularly with some redefinitions of the Treaty of Lisbon ( entered into force on 1 December 2009), and for contributing to achieve the goals of Europe 2020, the EU's growth strategy. In its title on Economic, Social and Territorial Cohesion,

342-582: Is €347bn: €201bn for the European Regional Development Fund, €76bn for the European Social Fund, and €70bn for the Cohesion Fund. The objectives setup shapes the main focus of interventions (eligible activities and costs) and the overall allocations of funds from the EU budget. This objective covers regions whose GDP per capita is below 75% of the EU average and aims at accelerating their economic development. It

380-470: The natural environment ; supporting rural economies ; and assisting quality of life in rural areas. This article about the European Union is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . European Structural and Investment Funds The European Structural and Investment Funds (ESI Funds, ESIFs) are financial tools governed by a common rulebook, set up to implement

418-482: The regional policy of the European Union , as well as the structural policy pillars of the Common Agricultural Policy and the Common Fisheries Policy . They aim to reduce regional disparities in income, wealth and opportunities. Europe's poorer regions receive most of the support, but all European regions are eligible for funding under the policy's various funds and programmes. The current framework

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456-528: The Cohesion Fund. As with the remaining two objectives, the European Territorial Cooperation Objective is delivered by means of multi-annual programmes aligned on the Union's objectives and priorities, expressed on the multi-annual financial framework. Each programme has a managing authority and a Joint Technical Secretariat, headquartered within the area it serves. They are responsible for the correct implementation of

494-1058: The Convergence Objective and the Regional Competitiveness and Employment Objective it aims at contributing to reduce regional disparities across Union's territory. The EUR 8.7 billion allocated to the European Territorial Cooperation objective represents 2.5% of the total budget for Cohesion Policy in 2007–2013 and is financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). It supports cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation programmes, helping Member States to participate in European Union (EU) external border cooperation programmes supported by other instruments (Instrument for Pre-Accession and European Neighbourhood Policy Instrument). The European Territorial Cooperation Objective replaced

532-527: The ERDF established. They would then be able to show their public some tangible benefits of EEC membership. The ERDF was set to be running by 1973, but the 1973 oil crisis delayed it, and it was only established in 1975 under considerable British and Italian pressure. It started with a budget of 1.4 billion units of account , much less than the original British proposal of 2.4 billion units of account, but has increased rapidly both proportionally and absolutely in

570-626: The European Commission. This was followed by a period where EU member states tried to maximize control, with little systematic project appraisal and a focus on a small number of large projects. Since 1994 more systematic, co-ordinated and complex methods of allocating resources start to be introduced. For example, most funds within the 2004–06 Integrated Regional Operational Programme (IROP), and its 2007–13 successor (ROP), are allocated through largely need-based project-selection mechanisms. Regions with low GDP receive more funds. However, within these regions, more funds go to relatively rich local areas with

608-690: The European Union ). Failure to comply with these legal requirements may result in irregularity rulings which carry financial implications. One project supported by the Fund is the Golf Club Campo de Golf in the African Spanish exclave Melilla , located right next to the border with Morocco where African migrants regularly attempt to enter the territory of the EU by climbing a triple fence with razor wire. In 2009, Ecologists in Action called

646-490: The European Union. fi-compass provides essential information for managing authorities, financial intermediaries, and any stakeholder interested in EU shared management financial instruments. This section explains the interplay between different political levels – European, national and regional – in determining the priorities for the Structural Funds and the guidelines for implementing regional projects. In general,

684-706: The Structural Funds (the Regional Policy framework), through the ordinary legislative procedure and consulting the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions (leading to the publication of Regulations). The key indicator for the division of regions under singular objectives is the Gross National Product per capita (GNP p.c.) level. This is subject to criticism based on

722-684: The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union establishes that 'the Union shall develop and pursue its actions leading to the strengthening of its economic, social and territorial cohesion'. By introducing the concept of territorial cohesion, the Treaty of Lisbon recognised a strong territorial dimension for the cohesion policy. This territorial approach requires a unique and modern governance system, combining different levels of government (European, national, regional and local). Member States thus conduct their economic policies and coordinate them for

760-577: The best institutions. It has been argued that part of this can be explained by the frequent need to co-fund projects, and the needed capacity to prepare applications. The ERDF supports programmes addressing regional development, economic change, enhanced competitiveness and territorial co-operation throughout the EU. Funding priorities include modernising economic structures, creating sustainable jobs and economic growth, research and innovation, environmental protection and risk prevention. Investment in infrastructure also retains an important role, especially in

798-653: The coherence of EU action. European Regional Development Fund During the 1960s, the European Commission occasionally tried to establish a regional fund, but only Italy ever supported it. Britain made it an issue for its accession in 1973 , and pushed for its creation at the 1972 summit in Paris. Britain was going to be a large contributor to the CAP and the EEC budget, and sought to offset this deficit by having

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836-415: The course of time. Since its creation, it has operated under changing set of rules that were standardised with Single European Act and is now in its 2014–2020 period. As part of its task to promote regional development, the ERDF contributes towards financing the following measures: All awards of ERDF must comply with European Union competition law (including State Aid Law and Government procurement in

874-533: The fact that GDP p.c. is unable to reflect the real socio-economic reality of regions. Some groups (e.g. Beyond GDP) and organisations propose the creation of a set of alternative indicators that could substitute the GDP and its derivates. The way the ESIFs are spent is based on a system of shared responsibility between the European Commission and the member state authorities: Prior to 1989, funding decisions were taken by

912-436: The field of the environment and trans-European transport networks . It applies to member states with a gross national income (GNI) of less than 90% of the EU average. As such, it covers the 13 new member states as well as Greece and Portugal. Sections below present information about objectives that have been defined for the programming period, which runs from 1 January 2007 to 31 December 2013. The overall budget for this period

950-456: The funding that has been made available for national and regional aid programmes for the period 2007–2013. There are three priorities: A National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) establishes the main priorities for spending the EU structural funding a member state receives between 2007 and 2013. Each member state has its own NSRF. Adopting an NSRF is a new requirement of the Structural Funds regulations for 2007 to 2013. Each NSRF functions as

988-551: The goal of completing the internal market with a total borders opening, by 31 December 1992. Regional competition would be tighter and a Cohesion Policy was needed to mitigate the negative side effects of market unification. The "objectives" were then created to discipline the capture of funds in terms of economic and social cohesion across the Union's territory. In the first multiannual financial framework, 1988–1999, there were seven objectives, which have been progressively reduced. Even though European Territorial Cooperation Objective

1026-539: The latter 13 programmes. fi-compass is an advisory service platform provided by the European Commission in collaboration with the European Investment Bank Group. It offers access to publications, learning tools, and tailored advisory services related to financial instruments under the EU shared management funds. These financial instruments, including loans, guarantees, equity, and other risk-sharing mechanisms, support various projects across

1064-455: The least-developed regions. The ESF+ focuses on four key areas: increasing the adaptability of workers and enterprises, enhancing access to employment and participation in the labour market, reinforcing social inclusion by combating discrimination and facilitating access to the labour market for disadvantaged people, and promoting partnership for reform in the fields of employment and inclusion. The Cohesion Fund contributes to interventions in

1102-464: The organisation of European Territorial Cooperation: The European Territorial Cooperation Objective is financed by the European Regional Development Fund, whereas the remaining two objectives of the Cohesion Policy set for the 2007–2013 period are also financed by the European Social Fund (Regional Competitiveness and Employment Objective), and, in the case with the Convergence Objective, also

1140-544: The overarching priorities for the Structural Funds are set at the EU level and then transformed into national priorities by the member states and regions. At the EU level the overarching priorities are established in the Community Strategic Guidelines (CSG). These set the framework for all actions that can be taken using the funds. Within this framework, each member state develops its own National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF). The NSRF sets out

1178-415: The policy and to ensure that EU investment is targeted on Europe's long-term goals for growth and jobs ("Europe 2020"). Through partnership contracts agreed with the commission, member states will commit to focussing on fewer investment priorities in line with these objectives. The package also harmonises the rules related to different funds, including rural development and maritime and fisheries, to increase

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1216-412: The population of the EU and almost 90% of EU land. Farming and forestry remain central to rural economies , and rural development also focuses on revitalising rural areas in other ways. Furthermore, issues such as climate change , renewable energy , biodiversity and water management are becoming increasingly important aspects of the EU's rural development policy. Over €200 billion in funding

1254-1018: The potential to contribute to the regional development, in particular the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF), the Just Transition Fund , the Connecting Europe Facility , the LIFE programme , the InvestEU Programme, the Horizon Europe , or the Erasmus+ . It is up to the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union to define the tasks, priority objectives and the organisation of

1292-527: The previous INTERREG Community Initiative (in the period 2000–2006) and thus many European Territorial Cooperation programmes bear the name INTERREG. The "objectives" were introduced with the Single European Act as a criterion to make the Structural Funds spending more effective as Regional Policy started to be rationalised in a perspective of economic and social cohesion. The Single European Act, that entered into force in 1987, institutionalised

1330-494: The priorities for the respective member state, taking specific national policies into account. Finally, Operational Programmes for each region within the member state are drawn up in accordance with the respective NSRF, reflecting the needs of individual regions. The Community Strategic Guidelines (CSG) contain the principles and priorities of the EU's cohesion policy and suggest ways the European regions can take full advantage of

1368-616: The programme, both from a financial and from an operational perspective. Within European Territorial Cooperation, there are three types of programmes: In particular, cross-border actions are encouraged in the fields of entrepreneurship, improving joint management of natural resources, supporting links between urban and rural areas, improving access to transport and communication networks, developing joint use of infrastructure, administrative cooperation and capacity building, employment, community interaction, culture and social affairs. Together and in their specific fields, these programmes provide

1406-540: The promotion of entrepreneurship and environment protection are the main themes of this objective. The funding – €55bn in current prices – comes from the ERDF and the ESF . European Territorial Cooperation is an objective of the European Union 's Cohesion Policy for the period 2007–2013, serving its ultimate goal to strengthen the economic and social cohesion of the Union. Regions and cities from different Member States are encouraged to work together, learning from each other and developing joint projects and networks. With

1444-443: The promotion of the 'economic, social and territorial cohesion'. European Territorial Cooperation is a component of the economic policy framework of the Union. The current Regional Policy framework, sustained by Structural Funds, is set for a period of seven years, from 2007 to 2013. For this period, the following regulations (and the changes in detail made to them by means of subsequent regulations) are especially important in defining

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