Union Cohesion Policy Research Articles

The impact of the European social fund on youth education and employment

The effectiveness of the European Union's Cohesion Policy in reducing regional socio-economic gaps remains an open empirical issue, while evidence as to how the policy is affected by specific territorial factors and which social groups benefit most from it remains sparse. This article seeks to address this gap by disentangling the impact of the European Social Fund (ESF) on youth education and employment prospects. Drawing on macro-level data for the European NUTS-2 regions, we assess the impact that this fund has on different education-specific youth population shares and employment rates. In the case of education, we find that the receipt of funding is associated with a human capital polarization of regional populations. Specifically, we identify a positive impact of the ESF on population shares with lower-secondary and tertiary education, and a simultaneous negative impact on the share of those with upper-secondary education. In the case of employment, we find a positive response for youth of all education levels. A heterogeneity analysis indicates that both the education and employment responses of the youth population to the receipt of the ESF are strongly influenced by local specialization in high-skilled activities.

Formation of an effective strategy for the development of the region under the conditions of european economic integration

Taking into account the processes of European integration of Ukraine, the study of regional strategies becomes especially important for solving the problems of the development of Ukrainian regions and supporting their competitiveness. The topic of regional development attracts significant attention of scientific researchers, as it requires the study and analysis of various factors affecting the processes of regional development, and the formation of scientifically based strategies to achieve optimal results. This topic is considered in various contexts, which contributes to the expansion of theoretical and practical knowledge about regional development and its constituent elements. Studying the regional policy of the European Union will give Ukraine the opportunity to gain valuable experience and knowledge for the development and implementation of its own regional strategy. By applying the practices of the European Union, Ukraine will be able to stimulate regional development, ensure social and economic stability, and increase the competitiveness of its regions. The main goal of this study is to analyze the problem of regional policy formation based on the principles used in the European Union. To achieve this goal, the work sets the following goals: to thoroughly investigate the aspects of the European Union's cohesion policy, to consider the main principles and priorities underlying the cohesion policy, such as increasing competitiveness, sustainable management of resources and ensuring the balanced development of territories. Also, study current areas of project financing, find out which areas and industries receive financial support from the European Union in order to promote regional development. Consider in detail the funding mechanisms and programs that contribute to the implementation of regional strategies. It was found that in the conditions of European economic integration, the regional development strategy is a necessary tool for achieving sustainable development of regions. One of the key aspects of this strategy is the application of the regional policy of the European Union, which can serve as a valuable experience for the formation of regional strategies in Ukraine. The regional policy of the EU is based on the principles of cooperation, rapprochement and support of different regions, which contributes to their development and ensuring more uniform economic growth. This approach involves the development of specific strategies and programs at the level of regions, taking into account their characteristics, potential and needs. It was also found that the regional policy of the EU cannot be a direct model for Ukraine, since the countries have different contextual conditions and features. However, Ukrainian regions can use the EU experience to adapt and implement their own regional strategies.

The European Union's cohesion policy for the years 2021-2027 in Poland in the face of the fourth industrial revolution

Purpose of the study: The article aims to present the direction of the European Union’s cohesion policy in the years 2021-2027 in Poland in the face of the challenges posed by the fourth industrial revolution.
 Methodology: In the first stage, the analysis and synthesis of the views included in the literature regarding the fourth industrial revolution were made. In the next stage, the most important challenges to public policies in the analysed sphere were presented. The second part of the work analyzes the draft partnership agreement for the implementation of the cohesion policy for the years 2021-2027 in the context of the challenges posed by the fourth industrial revolution.
 Main Findings: The fourth industrial revolution is an ongoing, changing process, which soon will become a challenge in the public policy sphere. The cohesion policy, being the axis of development policies in particular member states of the European Union, includes these changes' assumptions through the support of technological development and changes in the socio-economic structure.
 Applications of this study: The results of this research allow us to decide on the effectiveness of strategic planning and its compatibility with the predicted trends of socio-economic evolution. They also allow verifying the assumptions of the cohesion policy on the regional level.
 The originality of this study: In the following paper, the research on the assumptions of the cohesion policy in the face of the new challenges of the fourth industrial revolution was made. It is worth highlighting that this sphere of the new perspective of the cohesion policy - due to the fact that it is still being shaped- has not been a research subject yet.

Administrative and organizational capacities of civil society in EU Cohesion Policy

ABSTRACT Administrative capacities are among the crucial factors influencing success in European Union (EU) Cohesion Policy absorption. The current research concentrates on the public sector, while administrative capacities in other stakeholders are omitted. Our research focuses on whether local stakeholders from civil society have sufficient capacities to contribute effectively and efficiently to EU Cohesion Policy implementation. We performed our research on 57 integrated urban development plans in Czechia and Portugal and conducted 33 interviews with local entities. The results indicate a different level of capacity not only between the public and civil society organizations but also within civil society.

Examining conditionalities in Cohesion Policy: an application of the principal–agent framework

ABSTRACT This article examines policymaking behind bargaining and implementing ex-ante and macroeconomic conditionalities. The aim is to show the process of building governance in European Union (EU) Cohesion Policy. This process is examined via the principal–agent framework which enables studying EU policymaking through delegation and agency. The results show the limits of the principal–agent model in interpreting a principal’s failure to monopolize control, notably punitive means. The paper then asserts that policymaking behind conditionalities showed some promises on delivery in building governance, yet with the apparent limits. To overcome them, clarifying relations with other governance modes such as the European Semester would be needed. Additionally, conditionalities’ result orientation should improve through rules predictability and consistent applicability of the governance framework. Therefore, governance built on conditionalities is still in the making.

The Beneficiaries of Training Co-Financed by the ESF and Their Employability Market Orientation in Creating Labour Market Competitiveness

The key objective of this article is to present the importance of human capital in the training process co-financed by the European Social Fund (ESF) in shaping sustainable economic development attitudes from the perspective of the labour market competitiveness. The presented research process focuses on the role of the psychological and competitive potential of individuals as workpreneurs on the modern labour market, showing an adaptive set of behaviours referred to as Employability Market Orientation. It has been assumed that one of its dimensions, which is Career Exploration, is of importance for the use of training as ESF interventions and is a manifestation of the scope of realization of the assumed goals under the European Union (EU) cohesion policy. CAWI type of research was carried out on a group of 840 Poles at the ages 18–60. The analysis of Pearson’s r correlations led to the establishment of the existence of a relationship between participation in ESF training and Career Exploration (CE). Persons with high CE indicated more frequently than the remaining respondents that ESF training had increased their competitiveness on the labour market, whilst there were fewer of those who noted they had brought them no benefits. On the other hand, no relationship was identified between CE and non-participation in EFS training on account of poor adjustment of the offer to the needs of the labour market. A conclusion may thus be drawn from the obtained results that regions in which individuals show diverse levels of CE features will avail of the training co-financed from the ESF to a varying degree, regardless of their form or efficiency of their procedures. The role of human capital potential was thus confirmed in realizing the basic goals of the EU cohesion policy.

La politique de cohésion de l’Union européenne a-t-elle une assise scientifique ?

Si l’Union européenne n'a pas de compétence précise dans le domaine de l’aménagement du territoire, la politique de cohésion est une politique publique qui représente aujourd'hui le second poste des dépenses de l'Union. Cette action pensée dans l’espace communautaire reste limitée par la souveraineté territoriale des États. Au fil des années, le dispositif de départ, simple allocation de ressources aux territoires en difficulté, s’est enrichi d’une base juridique et technique. Les chercheurs se sont rapprochés de la Commission européenne, et inversement, pour développer des travaux en lien direct avec les finalités, les outils et l’évaluation de cette politique communautaire à destination des États membres et de leurs territoires. Ce rapprochement s’est construit à la croisée d’intérêts universitaires s’intéressant à la construction d’une politique territorialisée et d’une Commission européenne soucieuse de trouver une légitimité scientifique à la gestion d’une politique publique dont elle est responsable et dont elle assure la co-construction. Notre approche consiste à analyser si une assise scientifique soutient la politique publique. En effet, au fil du temps, de nombreux concepts ont été utilisés dans les rapports et les analyses. Des chercheurs ont investi ce champ pour en comprendre la construction et en mesurer les effets. Un courant de recherche s’est ainsi progressivement structuré et orienté autour de son analyse et par extension du processus de construction et d’intégration européenne. Qu’en est-il réellement ?

Implementation of innovations in enterprises using the EU funds: A comparative analysis

The European Union sees the role of innovations as measurably influencing the improvement of social and economic development in the regions of its member states. Actions that promote the implementation of innovations in the SME sector as one of the elements having a positive impact on the European Union's cohesion policy have a special role in supporting enterprises. Therefore, the EU operational programmes dedicated to small and medium-sized enterprises are a valuable source of external financing for innovations in these entities. The implementation of innovative investment projects positively influences the development of enterprises. A company resistant to implementing innovations may lose its competitive position on the market and slow down its development. The aim of this article is to conduct a comparative analysis of the implementation of innovative investments between the enterprises that received financial assistance from the European Union in relation to the enterprises that implemented innovations using other sources of financing. The study shows that enterprises covered by financial support from operational programmes have a higher level of innovative investments than other economic entities. Companies receiving EU aid are more often implementing production innovations among all four types of innovations as compared to other enterprises. In addition, it was found that in the lack of financial support from the EU, almost half of the companies would not be able to implement innovations as such. Therefore, the issue of innovations implemented in enterprises with the use of the EU financial aid should be considered as a currently relevant topic and an extremely important one from the standpoint of entrepreneurship development. This study should be considered unique, as there are no studies, to the best of the author's knowledge, containing comparative analyses in this area.

Realization of the EU's Cohesion Policy in Health Care in the Visegrad Group Countries in the Perspective 2014-2020.

A key objective of the European Union is to strengthen regional cohesion by addressing development disparities, particularly by targeting less-favored regions (1). Initiatives related to leveling development differences in the field of health care are recognized as a one of priorities in the European Union. Therefore, when implementing cohesion policy, decisions have been made to mobilize structural funds for sectoral activities. The aim of this paper is to present the European Union's cohesion policy in the field of health care and to indicate the most important actions of the implemented programmes/projects in selected countries: Poland, the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic and Hungary—the Visegrad Group–VG4—in the period of 2014–2020. Analysis covers programmes, funding sources, and activities undertaken in achieving cohesion policy objectives in health care in the VG4.

Pripremljenost Srbije za primenu poglavlja 22 u oblasti regionalne politike

Regional policy is the EU's main instrument for investing in sustainable and inclusive economic growth. Member States are responsible for its implementation, which requires adequate administrative capacity and sound financial management. When Serbia becomes a member of the EU, it will have at its disposal many times more funds from the EU structural funds than the ones it currently receives, and for the use of which it must prepare before joining the Union. Member States must respect EU law when selecting and implementing projects, in areas related to regional policy and Structural Instruments. Member States must also establish the institutional framework, organizational arrangements and necessary organizational arrangements to prepare supporting documents. This implies the establishment of all structures at the national and regional level required by EU regulations and standards. This Chapter 22 has a double meaning: it is important in itself, because through the negotiations on this Chapter it must be proven that we are in the mood to establish good and sufficient capacities for the use of EU Cohesion Policy. At the same time, Serbia is thus preparing to be an equal participant in the Union's Cohesion Policy, as well as all other member states.

Implementation of European Union structural and cohesion policy after 2020

Structural and cohesion policy is one of the European Union’s main instruments for implementing one of its main principles, and that is solidarity between the more economically developed regions and those which are lagging behind in economic and social terms. Reducing regional disparities in the European Union is achieved through individual instruments, the most important of which are the structural funds. The preparation of legislation and conditions for the new programming period 2021-2027 is currently being intensively negotiated at the level of the European Commission and the Member States. These processes are affected by the fact that the European Union is currently facing many new challenges that affect the setting of priorities as well as the new multiannual financial framework. Cohesion policy is the European Union’s most powerful investment tool and currently accounts for one-third of the EU budget but cuts proposed by the Commission for the years 2021-2017 would reduce its share considerably.Key words: cohesion, European Union, programming period 2021-2027, legislative

Regional structural heterogeneity: evidence and policy implications for RIS3 in macro-regional strategies

ABSTRACT In the future of European Union (EU) Cohesion Policy, a critical feature is how to capitalize on the current Research and Innovation Strategy for Smart Specialisation (RIS3), introduced in the 2014–20 programming period as an ex-ante conditionality for accessing European Structural Investment Funds. As a contribution to the current debate, this paper frames the socioeconomic comparative analysis of EU regions, considering subnational structural similarities, and referring to population, labour market and the sectoral composition of the economy. Principal component analysis and cluster analysis are performed on 31 input variables, returning 19 different types of EU regions. With an application to the EU macro-regions, the paper supports policy planning in macro-regions as a meso-level of interventions for the future Cohesion Policy.

The influence of the local context on the implementation and impact of EU Cohesion Policy

ABSTRACT This paper analyzes the impact of the European Union's Cohesion Policy on firm growth in the programming period 2007–13 in seven European countries. Results show that Cohesion Policy support promotes firm growth in size (value added and employment) more than in productivity. However, even when the policy is the same and similar projects and beneficiaries are considered, its effectiveness varies across different territorial contexts, among but also within countries. In several cases, the impact of grants on firm growth is larger in regions with lower income or scant endowments of territorial assets, most likely because firms in those regions cannot rely on external assets.

Rola Polityki Spójności Unii Europejskiej (2014-2020) w przeciwdziałaniu negatywnym skutkom zmian klimatycznych

In this article, the author attempted to present the role of European Union (EU) cohesion policy for the years 2014-2020 in counteracting negative effects of climate change. To this end, the EU’s position on the anthropogenic concept of climate change, the issue of adaptation to climate change as the objective of the current cohesion policy and the challenges and threats of the EU climate and energy policy for Poland were presented.

Building Bridges: Cities and Regions in a Transnational World

2016 Regional Studies Association, annual conference, Graz, Austria, 3-6 April 2016IntroductionCities and regions are central spatial scales for investigating the nature, dimensions and impacts of political, economic, social and environmental change. Since 1965, the Regional Studies Association (RSA) has been devoting attention to the theoretical development, empirical analysis and policy debate of issues at urban and regional scales. The 2016 RSA annual conference took place in Graz (Austria), between 3 and 6 of April. The theme of the conference was 'building bridges: cities and regions in a transnational world'. The RSA annual event was hosted by the 'Karl-FranzensUniversitat Graz'. The scientific committee consisted of Michael Steiner, Jorn Kleinert and Johannes Mossbock. The University of Graz, an institution of higher education founded in 1585 by Archduke Charles II of Inner Austria, is Austria's second oldest university and one of the largest in the country. The conference brought together senior and early-career academics, as well as a good number of policymakers with the objective of initiating an interdisciplinary dialogue about the future of a transnational world of urban and regional cooperation.Graz welcomed the delegates with a very warm early spring, and both the weather and the programme made it a privilege to attend the conference. The four plenaries, as well as the 98 parallel sessions, took place in an intensive three-day programme. Several special sessions, including those oriented to academics in the early stages of their careers, also strengthened the conference programme.Plenary sessionsWithin a multidisciplinary programme, this report focuses primarily on plenary and special sessions. With often thought-provoking presentations, the plenary sessions covered different topics from structural transformation in regional economics in the USA, to EU cohesion policy and worldwide demographic and migration challenges in the context of economic and financial crises. The plenary sessions focused on the themes presented in Table 1.In the opening plenary session, Geoffrey Hewings (University of Illinois, USA) focused on regional competitiveness and complementarity. By exploring the links between and within regions, Hewings underlined the demographic challenges and ties as well as ongoing changes in the organisational structures of firms through the example of car manufacturers in the USA. Ron Boschma (Utrecht University, The Netherlands) presented the preliminary results of a working paper on research conducted in 118 European regions. The aim of the study is to deepen the understanding of the role of institutions as drivers of diversification in European regions. The 'quality of institutions' and 'regional diversification', as well as 'social capital', were the key key concepts that emerged from Boschma's presentation, together with a preliminary conclusion that institutions matter for regional diversification.Philip McCann (University of Groningen, The Netherlands) opened the second plenary session of the first day of the conference, with the challenges for the European Union's cohesion policy taking centre stage. Special focus was given to the analysis of pre/ post-crisis in EU-15, EU-17 and regions in decline. Philip McCann also highlighted the changes in labour productivity, mainly due to demographic changes, which will also create challenges for the EU's cohesion policy. From the London School of Economics, Iain Begg presented to and discussed with a fully packed auditorium 'Why We Have an EU Cohesion Policy', questioning whether it makes sense. Begg underlined the misconceptions of the concept of cohesion. This is in line with Molle (2015), who emphasised that cohesion was introduced into EU policy without a precise definition. Despite the fact that the European Union has adopted several strategies to cope with a set of interrelated problems and spatial imbalances (Molle, 2014) - for instance, the Europe 2020 strategy - a handful of challenges remain unresolved, as Begg has argued. …

Europeanizing Sub-national Governance: Partnership in the Implementation of European Union Structural Funds in Poland

Da˛browski M. Europeanizing sub-national governance: partnership in the implementation of European Union Structural Funds in Poland, Regional Studies. The legacy of centralism, lack of traditions in collaborative policy-making and weakly institutionalized sub-national authorities prompt questions about the transferability of the European Union's cohesion policy partnership principle to Central and Eastern European member states, which are the main recipients of cohesion funding. What is the impact of partnership at the sub-national level? What are the mechanisms of the sub-national actors' adjustment to this European Union-imposed practice and what is the scope for its institutionalization? By investigating sub-national partnership arrangements in Poland, this paper sheds light on these under-researched issues and contributes to the debate on the future of European Union cohesion policy. Da˛browski M. 欧洲国家分治：欧盟结构基金在波兰实施中的协作关系，区域研究。中心主义的遗风、合作政策制定传统的缺失以及 地方各级权 力机构的弱制度化，对在作为整合基金主要接受者的中、东欧成员国中贯彻实施欧盟整合政策中的合作 原则提出质疑。合作对于地方层面 的影响何在？地方行为者依据何种调整机制应对欧盟实践，其制度化的范围又有多广？通过考察波兰的 地方合作状况，本文回答了上述研究问题，并为欧盟整合 政策未来的发展方向提出建议。 欧盟整合政策 欧洲化 合作 波兰 结构基金 地方各级主管机构 Da˛browski M. L'européanisation de la gouvernance infranationale: le partenariat dans la mise en application en Pologne des Fonds structurels de l'Union européenne, Regional Studies. L'héritage du centralisme, le manque de tradition quant à la prise de décision en collaboration et la faible institutionnalisation des administrations infranationales soulèvent des questions quant à la probabilité de transférer le principe de partenariat de la politique de cohésion de l'Union européenne aux pays-membres de l'Europe centrale et orientale, qui sont les principaux bénéficiaries des fonds européens. Quel est l'impact du partenariat au niveau infranational? Quels sont les mécanismes de l'ajustement des acteurs infranationaux à cette pratique imposée par l'Union européenne, et quelle est la portée quant à son institutionnalisation? En examinant les démarches suivies en Pologne pour ce qui est du partenariat infranational, cet article cherche à éclaircir ces questions qui méritent une réflexon plus approfondie et contribue au débat à propos de l'avenir de la politique de cohésion de Union européenne. Politique européenne en faveur de la cohésion Européanisation Partenariat Pologne Fonds stucturels Administrations infranationales Da˛browski M. Europäisierung der subnationalen Regierungsführung: die Partnerschaft bei der Implementierung des Strukturfonds der Europäischen Union in Polen, Regional Studies. Das Erbe des Zentralismus, die mangelnde Tradition einer Zusammenarbeit bei der politischen Gestaltung sowie die schwach institutionalisierten Behörden auf subnationaler Ebene wecken Zweifel an der Übertragbarkeit des Partnerschaftsprinzips der EU-Kohäsionspolitik auf die Mitgliedstaaten in Mittel- und Osteuropa, den wichtigsten Empfängern von Kohäsionssubventionen. Wie wirkt sich eine Partnerschaft auf subnationaler Ebene aus? Mit welchen Mechanismen passen sich die subnationalen Akteure an diese von der Europäischen Union auferlegte Praxis an, und welchen Spielraum gibt es für ihre Institutionalisierung? Durch eine Untersuchung der Vorkehrungen für subnationale Partnerschaft in Polen wird in diesem Beitrag Licht auf diese nicht ausreichend untersuchten Fragen geworfen und ein Beitrag zur Debatte über die Zukunft der Kohäsionspolitik der Europäischen Union geleistet. Kohäsionspolitik der Europäischen Union Europäisierung Partnerschaft Polen Strukturfonds Subnationale Behörden Da˛browski M. Europeización de la gobernanza subnacional: colaboración en la aplicación de los fondos estructurales de la Unión Europea en Polonia, Regional Studies. El legado del centralismo, la carencia de tradiciones en la elaboración de políticas participativas así como unas autoridades subnacionales débilmente institucionalizadas plantean cuestiones sobre la transferibilidad del principio de colaboración de la política de cohesión de la Unión Europea a los estados miembros de la Europa Central y Oriental, que son los principales receptores de subvenciones del fondo de cohesión. ¿Qué efecto tiene la colaboración a nivel subnacional? ¿Cuáles son los mecanismos de ajuste de los actores subnacionales para esta práctica impuesta por la Unión Europea, y cuáles son las posibilidades para su institucionalización? Mediante un análisis de los acuerdos de colaboración subnacional en Polonia, en este artículo arrojamos luz sobre estas cuestiones escasamente abordadas y contribuimos al debate sobre el futuro de la política de cohesión en la Unión Europea. Política de cohesión de la Unión Europea Europeización Colaboración Polonia Fondos estructurales Autoridades subnacionales

Europeanization and multi-level governance in south-east Europe: the domestic impact of EU cohesion policy and pre-accession aid

This article considers the extent to which European Union (EU) cohesion policy and related pre-accession instruments are contributing to the development of more compound polities in south-east Europe and, specifically, promoting multi-level governance. In this respect, the article has two points of departure: the first is the argument by Schmidt (2006) that the EU is a highly compound polity that tends to pull member states in this direction; the second is the considerable literature that links EU cohesion to the promotion of multi-level governance. In addressing the core question, we draw on the new institutionalist strand of the Europeanization literature to offer insights into the domestic responses to EU incentives and pressures.

Building multi‐level governance in Southeast Europe?

Drawing on the contributions to this volume, this concluding analysis reflects on the extent to which European Union (EU) cohesion policy and related pre‐accession instruments are contributing to the development of more compound polities in Southeast Europe and, specifically, promoting multi‐level governance. It argues that these EU policies have created more compound polities but that system‐wide multi‐level governance remains weak in the case study states and central governments remain prominent. However, there are interesting and potentially important developments in relation to particular features of multi‐level governance, not least in states whose engagement with the EU in this sphere is relatively new. As such, a large part of this story appears yet to unfold.

The domestic effects of EU cohesion policy in Greece: islands of Europeanization in a sea of traditional practices

This contribution considers whether European Union (EU) cohesion policy has contributed to the development of a more compound polity in Greece and, specifically, considers the extent to which there is a process of Europeanization characterized by emergent features of multi‐level governance. After providing a brief background on the nature of domestic governance and politics, it reviews the development of cohesion policy instruments in Greece and, then, discusses the scope and the nature of changes that have taken place in the last decade. The main finding is that, while the effects of EU cohesion policy on Type I multi‐level governance remain limited, its impact on Type II multi‐level governance is more pronounced. However, change is neither omnipresent nor linear. The overall picture is one of an emerging archipelago of ‘islands of Europeanization’ within a sea of traditional institutions and practices.