EU funding brings concrete benefits to EU region and citizens, 2019 Strategic Report concludes

Today, the European Commission published its 2019 Strategic Report on the European Structural and Investment Funds. The 2019 edition of this Report, published every 2 years, shows that EU funding brings concrete benefits to the EU’s regions and its citizens. EU-funded projects are, among others, creating the equivalent of 300,000 jobs, improving broadband access for approximately 8 million households, helping to improve the employment opportunities of 23 million citizens and supporting the reconstruction of over 1,300 km of railway lines. Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira said: “EU countries have decisively built on the support delivered by the EU funds to boost sustainable growth, jobs and reforms. Together we are making sure no person and no region is left behind. I encourage each Member State to keep the momentum in implementing projects on the ground, to be able to turn the coming green and digital challenges into opportunities, with the help of the EU.” By September 2019, €500 billion, or more than 75% of the European Structural and Investment (ESI) Funds’ budget for 2014-2020, had been committed to concrete projects in EU’s regions. Payments to beneficiaries have reached €210 billion. The report shows that EU money has been invested in key priority areas, such as research and innovation, projects supporting decarbonisation and other measures to fight climate change, and initiatives that boost employment, support education and training and foster social inclusion. EU and country-specific data on the European Structural and Investment Funds is regularly updated on the ESIF Open Data Platform.