Cohesion and European Funds
The European Commissioner for Regional Policy Johannes Hann attended in Bucharest a forum on the EU Danube Strategy.
Corina Cristea, 31.10.2013, 19:27
The European Commissioner for Regional Policy Johannes Hann attended in Bucharest a forum on the EU Danube Strategy. On this occasion he discussed the importance of the EU cohesion policy and funds for the member states.
The EU cohesion policy and funds are the main source of public investments in many member states, and the main community instrument for encouraging growth and employment and bolstering the digital agenda, an environment-friendly economy, innovation and research. The statement was made in Bucharest by the European Commissioner for Regional Policy Johannes Hann, who attended a meeting on the EU Strategy for the Danube Region.
The EU official appreciated the progress made by Romania, which managed to reach a 25% EU fund absorption rate, but said that Romanian authorities still have a lot to do in this respect. This week, the European Parliament has received a compromise text on the legislative package for the EU cohesion policy for the coming 7 years.
According to Commissioner Hann, this is a decisive step towards finalizing reforms in the field and Parliament is expected to endorse the document as soon as possible. It is only based on this document that the over 320 billion euros in European funds for the next seven years can be allocated. The final form of the document will be made public after endorsement by the European Parliament. If the text is approved by the end of this year, the new programmes can be implemented starting as early as in January 2014.
