Brussels, 05/07/2005 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 5 July in Strasbourg, the European Commission adopted its communication entitled: ”Cohesion Policy in Support of Growth and Jobs: Community Strategic Guidelines, 2007-2013”. The result of far-reaching discussions within the Commission and among Member States, including Bulgaria and Romania, the document was presented by Commissioner Danuta Hübner during the European Summit of Regions and Cities on 20 May in Wroclaw. On 21 May, the document was also presented to ministers responsible for regional policy and territorial cohesion, brought together informally in Luxembourg by Ms Hübner and her colleague for social affairs, Vladimir Spidla (see EUROPE 8949/8951/8952). The document will remain in draft form, as the future financial framework has not yet been approved by the European Council and the legislation on cohesion policy has still to be approved by the EP and Council, as warned by Ms Hübner in Wroclaw.
The Commission's communication sets out three priorities on which cohesion policy resources should be focused, namely: 1) improving the attractiveness of Member States, regions and cities for investment and work, by improving access to transport (rail, transport networks that are sustainable from the environmental point of view, projects of European interest, motorways of the sea), by guaranteeing an adequate level and quality of services and safeguarding their environment (by promoting, for example, investment that contributes to the Kyoto commitments, sustaining projects that improve energy efficiency, and developing renewable and alternative energies); 2) encouraging innovation, entrepreneurship and growth of the knowledge economy through research and innovative capacities, including new information and communication technologies; and 3) creating more and better jobs by attracting more people into employment or entrepreneurial activity, improving the adaptability of workers and enterprises and increasing investment in human capital.
A special chapter of the communication is also devoted to the need to take the territorial dimension of cohesion policy into account. We recall that, in Wroclaw, Ms Hübner had justified this specific chapter by pointing out that the new generation of Structural Fund programmes will be based on crossborder, transnational and interregional cooperation, which will be focused on the exchange of experience and good practices in regional and urban development.