European Regional Development Fund

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The ERDF logo
  • Regions with funding according to the "convergence" objective
  • Regions with phasing-out funding (decreasing transitional aid)
  • Regions with phasing-in funding (increasing transitional aid)
  • Regions with funding according to the objective "Regional competitiveness and employment"
    • Badge on a funded project

    The European Regional Development Fund ( ERDF , colloquially EU Regional Fund ) is a structural fund of the European Union for economic catch-up processes in poorer regions and regions with structural problems.

    It supports medium-sized companies, among other things, to create permanent jobs, expand the infrastructure and finance technical aid measures.

    Funding takes place in funding periods of several years. These correspond to the multiannual financial framework (MFF), in which the annual maximum amounts (“ceilings”) are set that the EU may spend in individual policy fields (“headings”) during its term.

    The legal basis of the ERDF is Article 176 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

    In Germany, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy coordinates EU structural policy and funds at the federal level .

    Co-financing

    The ERDF is co-financed like the European Social Fund (ESF) : If a country receives money from the Structural Fund , it must also contribute public funds. EU regional funding must not replace support from the member states themselves (so-called additionality principle).

    A principle of EU structural policy is the partnership between the EU Commission and the Member State at all administrative levels as well as with economic, social and other partners in civil society.

    Distribution of ERDF funds

    Large parts of the funding went to private companies. Such subsidies account for more than a fifth of the total budget of cohesion policy. A small amount of capital aid flows into the development of constitutional and democratic structures as part of the capacity building.

    Funding period 2021–2027

    Whereas in the funding period from 2014 to 2020 20% state funds were to be added to the 80% EU funds, the EU will only pay 55% from 2021 (with deviations in transition regions). The recipient countries have to raise 45% of the funding. In addition, as in other structural funds, the ERDF budget is also decreasing.

    Funding period 2014–2020

    Compared to the 2007–2013 funding period, the 2014–2020 funding period only pursues the goals of “Investments in growth and employment” and “European territorial cooperation”.

    The ERDF is now primarily financing investments to strengthen operational competitiveness and create jobs in small and medium-sized enterprises and measures that serve energy efficiency, research and technological development and environmental protection.

    Funding period 2007–2013

    From 2007 to 2013 the ERDF pursued three goals:

    1. "Convergence"
    2. "Regional competitiveness and employment" as well
    3. "European Territorial Cooperation"

    aims

    While funding under the third objective is due to all regions that pursue the corresponding activities, the first two objectives are aimed at different groups of regions: Higher funding from the "Convergence" objective is only granted to regions with the lowest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. This redistributes money across the EU from wealthier to poorer regions.

    "Convergence" objective

    The “Convergence” objective (referred to as “ Objective 1 ” until 2006 ) is available to regions whose GDP per inhabitant is below 75 percent of the EU average. This is mostly aimed at modernizing the economic structure and creating jobs. The funds spent on this are higher than for the other funding objectives.

    The goal of "convergence" aims to achieve the following basic goals:

    • Modernization or diversification of economic structures
    • Creation of sustainable employment relationships
    • Stimulating economic growth
    • Focus on areas with special characteristics: urban, remote, mountainous, sparsely populated areas and peripheral areas of the EU

    "Regional competitiveness and employment" objective

    The “Regional competitiveness and employment” objective is open to regions that are not eligible for funding under the “Convergence” objective. The aim is to strengthen research, development, financial engineering as well as in the environment and risk prevention. Overall, the funding here is less extensive than for funding under the “convergence” objective.

    The aim of the "regional competitiveness and employment" objective is to achieve the following basic objectives:

    • Innovation and knowledge society (research and technological development, innovation and entrepreneurship, financial engineering)
    • Environmental and risk prevention (cleaning up polluted areas, energy efficiency, environmentally friendly urban transport, risk prevention plans)
    • Access to transport and telecommunications

    European Territorial Cooperation Objective

    The “European Territorial Cooperation” objective focuses on cross-border economic and social development, transnational (between regions within a given area of ​​the EU) and interregional (between any regions of the EU) cooperation. The funds provided for this make up the smallest portion of the fund.

    The aim of "European territorial cooperation" is to achieve the following basic objectives:

    • Cross-border economic, social and environmental activities
    • Cross-national cooperation (including bilateral cooperation between marine regions)
    • Transregional cooperation (including networking and the exchange of experience between regional and local authorities)

    Transitional aids: phasing-out and phasing-in

    Regions which, as in eastern Germany, have lost their entitlement to funding according to the “convergence” goal due to catching-up processes, receive lower-level transitional aid under the “competitiveness” goal.

    • So-called phasing-out funds are available for regions whose GDP in the funding period 2000-2006 was below 75 percent of the overall EU average (former Objective 1 regions ) and whose prosperity was still below 75 percent of the average of the former EU member states. but is now over 75 percent of the overall average, as the EU enlargement since 2004, in which several comparatively poor countries joined the EU, the GDP per capita in the EU as a whole fell. The phasing-out aid is based on the amount of funding according to the “convergence” goal. They are gradually being reduced.
    • Phasing-in support is available for regions whose GDP in the funding period 2000–2006 was below 75 percent of the EU average (former Objective 1 regions), but whose GDP is now over 75 percent of the average of the EU members before 2004 ( EU-15 ). The phasing-in aid is below the phasing-out aid and is also being gradually reduced to the level of funding according to the “competitiveness and employment” goal.

    Specialized procedure

    The efREporter and the EurakaPlus software are used as specialist procedures .

    Legal provisions

    The legal basis for the application of the ERDF is specified by the European Union. General provisions are contained in Regulation (EU) No. 1303/2013 . These are supplemented by the Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 2019/694 . Furthermore, the special provisions for the ERDF from Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 1080/2006 and Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 2015/1974 apply . The provisions of the Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 2015/1970 and the Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 2015/1974 apply to the reporting of irregularities . In addition, the provisions on de minimis aid must be observed if funding under this aspect is already excluded.

    Other structural funds

    In addition to the regional fund, there is another structural fund, some of which supports similar objectives to the ERDF:

    • The European Social Fund (ESF), which was set up as early as 1958 when the European Economic Community was founded, grants funding according to the criteria of the objectives “convergence” and “regional competitiveness and employment”.

    See also

    Web links

    Commons : ERDF  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

    Individual evidence

    1. ↑ Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy - Structural Funds
    2. ↑ Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy - funding period 2014–2020
    3. ^ Julian Dörr: The European cohesion policy. An economic perspective . De Gruyter, Berlin 2017, ISBN 978-3-11-048012-2 , pp. 285 ff .
    4. ^ Julian Dörr: The European cohesion policy. An economic perspective . De Gruyter, Berlin 2017, ISBN 978-3-11-048012-2 , pp. 165 ff .
    5. ↑ Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy - ERDF and ESF
    6. ↑ Inforegio - EU regional policy
    7. ↑ Purpose - EU regional policy
    8. ↑ Information from the EU - accessed on June 17, 2019
    9. ↑ EurekaPlus - accessed June 17, 2019
    10. ↑ Regulation (EU) No. 1303/2013 , accessed on September 21, 2019
    11. ↑ Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 2019/694 , accessed on September 21, 2019
    12. ↑ Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 1080/2006 , accessed on September 21, 2019
    13. ↑ Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 2015/1974 , accessed on September 21, 2019
    14. ↑ Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 2015/1970 , accessed on September 21, 2019