On Wednesday 9 March, the European Commission presented the work programme and financing decision for 225 reform support projects to be implemented in 2022 in the Member States with the help of the European Technical Support Instrument (TSI) (see EUROPE 12740/30).
With this instrument, “we are helping Member States to plan and implement the reforms they themselves have chosen”, said the European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reform, Elisa Ferreira. In the face of accelerating history, marked by the Covid-19 pandemic, and now the Russian invasion of Ukraine, national and local governments cannot stand still, she added, and that is why we are helping them to “carry out reforms that can improve their resilience, support their growth strategies, prepare for the dual digital and ecological transition, and ensure the efficiency and flexibility of public administrations”.
In 2022, 225 projects from 25 Member States (17 projects in Greece, 16 in Italy, 14 in Croatia, 12 in Spain...) will be implemented. More than half will contribute to the digital transition and 36% to the climate transition.
Even before the outbreak of war in Ukraine, “seven countries” had asked for technical assistance in relation to the reception of refugees, noted the European Commissioner, who said the technical support instrument was ready to do more in this area in response to the massive influx of refugees fleeing Ukraine.
An internal source at the EU institution noted a “fairly clear shift” in the requests made by Member States, which are now more focused on supporting the implementation of measures to promote climate and digital transitions. The source also noted “two new features”: targeting of reforms linked to national recovery plans under the European Next Generation EU Plan and setting up transnational projects.
For the period 2021-2027, the budget of the TSI amounts to €860 million, with 120 million allocated for 2022.
See the 225 projects supported: https://aeur.eu/f/ni
See the TSI work programme: https://aeur.eu/f/nj (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)