EAPN responds to the European Commission’s legislative proposals regarding the future of Structural Funds, to make sure that Cohesion Policy will fully deliver on the poverty reduction target.
The Key messages of this response are:
- Establish clear Commission guidelines on how Structural Funds should deliver on the poverty-reduction target through integrated and socially inclusive approaches, (particularly through Active Inclusion) for ESF, ERDF and other Cohesion Funds.
- Strengthen the partnership principle at all stages of the Structural Funds’ process (both for partnership contracts and Operation Programmes) and make these Funds accessible for small NGOs (with tailor-made grants and technical-assistance schemes).
- Ensure a proper monitoring process of effective use of Funds in Europe 2020, in both National Reform Programmes and National Social Reports.
- Give equal relevance to each Europe 2020 headline targets in all Structural Funds.
- Solidarity with poorer regions, not double penalty! – NO to macro-economic conditionality, but favour social conditionality and incentive mechanisms.
- Develop asocial-inclusion mainstreaming clause and a social evaluation system based on hard and soft social indicators.
