The Study on National Policies and Cohesion investigated how EU Member States eligible for Cohesion Fund support designed and financed policies to address territorial disparities. Implemented by a consortium led by Technopolis-Group, with CSIL as a core partner, the research filled a key information gap by systematically mapping and classifying nationally funded cohesion measures.
The project pursued three main objectives:
Quantitative analysis of national investments in cohesion-related policies financed without EU funds.
Creation of a comprehensive database capturing budget allocations, thematic focus, instruments, and territorial targets.
Comparative evaluation of these measures against EU Cohesion Funds, highlighting complementarities, gaps, and regional disparities.
The methodology combined desk research, literature review, interviews with stakeholders, database development, and statistical analysis. A policy taxonomy was also developed to categorise approaches by thematic focus, instruments (grants, loans, guarantees, financial instruments, public procurement, PPPs), and modes of delivery.
Key findings:
Between 2015 and 2021, 59 measures were implemented across 13 of the 15 countries studied.
78% of measures directly targeted territorial cohesion; 71% were geographically focused; 83% prioritised less developed regions.
Funding distribution was concentrated on connectivity (72.8% of budgets), while business support represented the highest number of initiatives (44.1%).
National measures often addressed internal disparities but varied widely across Member States, underlining the need for greater harmonisation in data collection and classification.
📖 Read the full report on the EU Publications website
Cover image generated with Google AI Studio. The illustration is for visual and illustrative purposes only and does not depict actual project data or outcomes.