The partnership principle is not an empty concept but a precondition for the success of cohesion policy. This is the main message from opinion on the Outcome of the negotiations on the partnership agreements and operational programmes, which was drafted by Ivan ŽAGAR (EPP/SI), and adopted today by the European Committee of the Regions' commission for Territorial Cohesion Policy (COTER) in Riga, Latvia. The opinion underlines that regional and local authorities want structural and investment funds to be implemented in a much more effective way and for this, they need to be treated as full partners.
Žagar's opinion welcomes European Commission's decision to produce annual reports summarising the implementation reports of the Member States from 2016 onwards and invites Commissioner Crețu to discuss them with the CoR. It also calls on the Commission to assist in examining mechanisms to put the partnership on the right track in those countries where the partnership is somewhat superficial.
Effective partnership means faster development opportunities for EU citizens – explains the rapporteur, Ivan Žagar – through our research we have learned that partnership principle has not been applied appropriately in all Member States. The negotiations on the Partnership Agreements and Operational Programmes show that while local and regional authorities were consulted in most cases, their involvement did not amount to full partnership.
The opinion calls on the European Commission monitor partnership systematically and report frequently on best practice in order to help strengthening the partnership principle by convincing stakeholders of its benefits.
The opinion highlights concerns of regions because of the high levels of debt and austerity measures imposed by higher levels and a lack of available subnational financial resources. It praises European Investment Bank's Structural Programme Loans and calls on the Commissions' Investment Plan, targeting different policy levels, to complement the cohesion funds and programmes.
