Synthesis Report - European Commission - Europa

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Synthesis Report Ex-post Evaluation of the ERDF 2000-2006 2 Chapter 2 – Regional developments, 2000-2006 2.1 INTRODUCTION The main concern in this chapter is to set out the economic developments which occurred at regional level across the EU25 over the 2000-2006 programming period and, in particular, to compare developments in the regions receiving funding under cohesion policy with those in nonassisted regions. The focus is mainly on the years from 2000 to 2006. Because of the special arrangements introduced in response to the financial crisis, however, the expenditure cofinanced by the Structural Funds extended well beyond 2006 into 2009, as indicated in the previous chapter. Accordingly, it potentially affected developments after the period which is the focus here and these ought ideally to be included in the analysis as well. This is difficult to do in practice, since at the time the evaluation was carried out, the regional accounts data covering all the EU25 countries on a comparable basis were available only up to 2006. Nevertheless, some account is taken of developments at national level after 2006 and of their potential impact on those at regional level. The first part of the chapter considers the macroeconomic context in which the development of the regions assisted, and the policy for assisting them, took place, which inevitably affected the growth they achieved or, indeed, were capable of achieving. It also considers the macroeconomic policies that were followed, which are likely to have influenced the finance available for regional policies and the priority attached to them. In addition, it examines the wider economic context and the effect on this of the continuing process of globalisation and EU enlargement during the period. The second part of the chapter reviews the growth of regional economies and the associated developments in employment and productivity which occurred over the programming period, distinguishing regions receiving funding under Objective 1 and under Objective 2 from others. It then goes on to consider the extent to which differential growth rates in GDP reduced disparities between regions in these terms as well as in terms of income per head which is, in principle, a more relevant indicator of social cohesion A distinction is made throughout between regions in the EU15 and those in the EU10 countries which only began to receive ERDF support (as well as support from the other Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund) after entry into the EU in May 2004. 2.2 MACROECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS OVER THE PERIOD 2000-2006 The development of regions is intrinsically bound up with the development of the national economies of which they form part. The rate of growth they can achieve is greatly affected by the growth rate of the regions surrounding them as well as by the growth occurring in both the country in which they are located and other Member States, given the highly integrated nature of the EU economy. There are a number of reasons for this. Most importantly, a significant share of the goods and services produced in a region will go to markets outside, either in the country or in other part of the EU. In addition, the willingness of businesses to invest in the region, as well as the funds available to do so, is likely to be affected by conditions in the wider economy and not just in the region itself. The same applies to the willingness, and ability, of national governments to devote resources to regional development which will equally be affected by the state of public finances – itself 46
Ex-post Evaluation of the ERDF 2000-2006 Synthesis Report influenced by the rate of growth of the national economy – and by the macroeconomic policy pursued. 2.2.1 Growth of GDP in the EU15 Member States The underlying economic conditions across the EU fluctuated markedly over the years 2000-2006 and beyond. The formulation of programmes at the beginning of the period coincided with a relatively high rate of economic growth. In 2000, growth of GDP in the EU15 was particularly high, at close to 4%, following two years when it was also above the long-term trend. Although there were differences between countries, in all of them, growth averaged more than 2% a year in the first two years of the period (Table 2.1). Table 2.1 Growth in GDP in EU Member States, 1995-2008 Annual average % change 1995-99 1999-06 1999-01 2001-03 2003-06 2006-07 2007-08 EU25 2.7 2.3 2.9 1.3 2.5 2.8 0.8 EU15 2.6 2.2 2.9 1.2 2.4 2.6 0.6 DE 1.7 1.3 2.2 -0.1 1.7 2.5 1.3 PT 4.1 1.4 3.0 0.0 1.3 1.9 0.0 IT 1.5 1.4 2.8 0.2 1.4 1.6 -1.0 DK 2.7 1.9 2.1 0.4 2.7 1.6 -1.2 NL 4.1 2.0 2.9 0.2 2.6 3.6 2.0 FR 2.5 2.1 2.9 1.1 2.2 2.3 0.4 BE 2.4 2.1 2.3 1.2 2.6 2.8 1.1 AT 2.8 2.1 2.1 1.2 2.8 3.5 2.0 UK 3.3 2.7 3.2 2.5 2.7 2.6 0.7 SE 3.1 3.1 2.7 2.2 3.9 2.6 -0.2 FI 4.8 3.2 3.9 1.7 3.8 4.2 1.0 ES 3.9 3.6 4.3 2.9 3.6 3.7 1.2 GR 3.2 4.3 4.3 4.5 4.1 4.0 2.9 LU 5.6 4.7 5.4 2.8 5.4 5.2 -0.9 IE 9.9 6.1 7.5 5.5 5.6 6.0 -2.3 MT : 1.5 -1.6 1.1 2.7 3.7 2.1 CY 3.5 3.6 4.5 2.0 4.1 4.4 3.7 PL 5.7 3.7 2.7 2.6 5.1 6.6 5.0 SI 4.4 4.1 3.6 3.4 4.9 6.8 3.5 CZ 1.0 4.2 3.1 2.7 5.9 6.1 3.0 HU 3.7 4.4 4.7 4.3 4.2 1.2 0.6 SK 3.9 4.9 2.4 4.7 6.7 10.4 6.4 LT 4.8 7.3 5.5 8.5 7.7 8.9 3.0 EE 5.9 8.5 8.7 7.7 8.9 7.2 -3.6 LV 5.0 8.6 7.5 6.8 10.5 10.0 -4.6 Note: The EU15 and EU10 countries are ordered separately in terms of GDP growth over the period 1999-2006 MT: Data relate to 2000-06 and 2000-01 Source: Eurostat, National accounts From mid- 2001 on, however, growth in the majority of EU15 countries slowed appreciably, falling to an average of only just over 1% a year in 2002 and 2003, so depressing government revenue across the EU and, potentially, the funds available for cohesion policy. This was particularly the case in Germany, where GDP fell over these two years, even if marginally, and 47
Page 1: Cohesion Policy Ex-Post Evaluation
Page 4 and 5: Synthesis Report Ex-post Evaluation
Page 98 and 99:
Synthesis Report Ex-post Evaluation
Page 100 and 101:
Page 102 and 103:
Page 104 and 105:
Page 106 and 107:
Page 108 and 109:
Page 110 and 111:
Page 112 and 113:
Page 114 and 115:
Page 116 and 117:
Page 118 and 119:
Page 120 and 121:
Page 122 and 123:
Page 124 and 125:
Page 126 and 127:
Page 128 and 129:
Page 130 and 131:
Page 132 and 133:
Page 134 and 135:
Page 136 and 137:
Page 138 and 139:
Page 140 and 141:
Page 142 and 143:
Page 144 and 145:
Page 146 and 147:
Page 148 and 149:
Page 150 and 151:
Page 152 and 153:
Page 154 and 155:
Page 156 and 157:
Page 158 and 159:
Page 160 and 161:
Page 162 and 163:
Page 164 and 165:
Page 166 and 167:
Page 168 and 169:
Page 170 and 171:
Page 172 and 173:
Page 174 and 175:
Page 176:
Consult this website for further in
show all

Synthesis Report - European Commission - Europa

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?