Housing, defence, energy: how EU funds change regional programmes
Campania and Apulia focus more on water, Sicily on defence
The battle that has opened in Europe over the new 2028-2034 budget - in particular over the centralisation of cohesion policy contested by the regions - risks overshadowing the manoeuvre to reorganise the funds of the current 2021-2027 programming.
The mid-term review, which aims to bring a babel of projects that have in the meantime become, at least in part, almost anachronistic, into line with the new priorities, in the case of Italy so far concerns 23 programmes, five of which are national, i.e. managed by the ministries, and 18 regional. A remodulation worth a total of 2.6 billion euro (see Il Sole 24 Ore of 29 October) if we also include 361 million that refer specifically to the priorities of the ESF Plus fund.
Net of this figure and some additions made on the run, the monitoring presented by the Department for Cohesion Policies at the meetings held on 22 and 23 October with the European Commission on the Annual Performance Review focuses on 2.1 billion. The funds change destination in favour of the five priorities set by the European Union: affordable housing (a total of 853.8 million), water networks (527.3 million), energy transition (257.1 million), strategic technologies of the Step platform (256.5 million), and defence infrastructure (167.3 million). Finally, EUR 11.2 million is earmarked for civil preparedness in case of conflict, e.g. for field hospitals, public shelters, and a further EUR 43 million of resources remain to be allocated.
As said, the most relevant share concerns housing policies: 215 million come from the National Inclusion Programme, 155.4 from the Metro Pon, 38 million from the Just transition fund (the programme for the recovery of the industrial areas of Taranto and Sulcis), 100 million from the Calabria Regional Programme, 88.4 million from Sicily, 100 from Campania, 120 million from Lazio, 12 from Emilia Romagna and 6.5 from Abruzzo. 30 million from the Culture OP, 28.2 million from the Metro OP, 250 from Campania, 50 from Calabria, 40 from Puglia, 36.5 from Sicily, 60 from Lazio, 9.5 from Marche, 23 from Lombardy are diverted to the water networks.
Instead, 119 million from the National Research and Competitiveness Programme, 15 from the Pon Cultura and 14 from the Just transition fund, 50 from Campania, 37 from Sardinia, 12.5 from Abruzzo, 9.5 from Marche contribute to the energy transition. To feed the strategic Step technologies, 76 million from the Just transition fund, 60 million from the programmes of Abruzzo, 5.5 from Marche, 40 from Lazio, and 75 from Lombardy are defined.
