Annual EU report on the state of municipalities and regions – The data for Greece

The European Committee of the Regions has published, in the context of the work of the 20th European Week of Regions and Cities held in Brussels, the annual EU report on the state of regions and cities for 2022.

The Report outlines the impact of the war in Ukraine on the EU’s regions, urges action to tackle inequality and poverty, warns that the lack of involvement of regional and local authorities in the Recovery Plan risks widening regional differences and examines the effects of the climate crisis across the EU.

This year’s Report aims to be the starting point for a deeper reflection on how EU policies can best promote solidarity, sustainability, just transition and territorial cohesion in the future.

He considers cohesion policy a critical tool for the progress and prosperity of the EU.

The report accompanies the results of the Regional and Local Barometer, a survey of around 2,500 local and regional politicians conducted by IPSOS, who were asked about their response to the war in Ukraine, key EU issues for regions and cities , where they would like EU money to be spent, and on the influence of regions and cities on policy-making.

More specifically, according to the Report, the cities and regions of Central-Eastern Europe are most affected, not only in terms of hosting the majority of refugees, but also by economic sanctions and their dependence on Russian energy.

Dependence on Russian energy imports, especially gas, is considered a risk factor as it is more difficult to replace than oil or coal imports. In this context, it is pointed out that the EU must deal with the displacement of millions of Ukrainians in Europe, the increase in energy and fuel prices and the impact on the supply chain and food supply.

Specifically on the impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine, it is found that Russia’s war against Ukraine has had local and regional effects across the EU, with a clear East-West divide: “From Finland in the north to Greece in the south, almost every area in the countries along the EU’s eastern border, as well as in the Czech Republic, is particularly vulnerable to the effects of war.

Regions of medium-high vulnerability are mainly located along the Mediterranean Sea, including Cyprus, most of Italy, large parts of Spain and Portugal, but also Germany.

At the same time, the Report highlights that solidarity prevails across the Union, with local and regional authorities having welcomed the highest percentage of refugees, as well as resilience, adapting energy use and providing support to citizens and small and medium-sized businesses.

Looking ahead, the European Committee of the Regions has launched the European Alliance of Municipalities and Regions for the Reconstruction of Ukraine, which will build on existing experience in interregional and intermunicipal partnerships between the EU and Ukraine.

Special reference is made to the increased cost of growing agricultural food due to the increase in prices for fertilizers, animal feed and energy. As estimated, this situation may have an impact on the wider economy. It is noted that regions with a higher percentage of employment in agriculture, in particular Bulgaria, Greece, Lithuania, Italy, Poland and Romania, are likely to be more affected.

Regarding the effects on tourism due to the war in Ukraine, it is noted that countries close to the region and destinations with traditionally high percentages of Russian tourists, such as Greece, Austria, Spain, Italy, France, Portugal, Finland, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary.

Regarding inflation, it is pointed out that it affects the poorest households more. According to the Report, this includes specific areas in Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Lithuania and Romania, while countries that have a high percentage of Ukrainians among their population and are likely to receive a larger number of Ukrainian refugees are also affected, such as the Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Italy, Latvia and Poland.

In addition, the Report calls for action on tackling inequality and poverty. According to the report, the problems caused by rising inequalities, uncontrolled inflation, the energy crisis, gender inequalities and high youth unemployment remain a real challenge for the EU.

Subsequently, the importance of the Recovery Fund is underlined and it is reported that as of June 2022, 21 member states had received a pre-financing disbursement of approximately 13% of their total allocation.

Five member states – France, Spain, Greece, Italy and Portugal – have also received the first formal payment, having met milestones and targets approved by the European Commission, it underlines. It is also observed that in Estonia, Greece, Slovakia and Sweden, “digital transformation” is the second most supported policy pillar.

However, it is observed that the participation of local and regional authorities in the preparation of national recovery and resilience plans (NRSPs) was low. The regional and local barometer produced by the European Committee of the Regions shows that only 1% of respondents were fully involved and only 9% were partially involved in the drawing up of national plans.

More than four out of ten respondents said they did not participate. but were informed about plans approved by the national government (41%), while a similar percentage said they were neither informed nor involved (45%). The percentage of respondents who were neither informed nor involved in the plan ranged from 12% in Italy to 77% in Denmark, with Greece at 48%.

The Report points out that the non-participation of regional and local authorities in the recovery plan entails the risk of widening the territorial gap in Europe.

As far as the chapter of the Report on the effects of the climate crisis in the EU is concerned, the warning is expressed that not taking action to deal with the climate crisis increases the risk of natural disasters for local communities.

It is also estimated that failure to act quickly or effectively to slow down the climate emergency could have devastating effects on towns, cities and regions across the EU.

In this light, it emerges that cohesion policy is paying off and must remain a pillar for the future of Europe for the implementation of the green and digital transition. Specifically for the cohesion policy, it is emphasized that it is of key importance for the local communities of the EU.

The regional and local barometer data confirms this conclusion: 88% of respondents agreed that cohesion should be one of the core values ​​of the European Union.

However, one area where cohesion policy still fails to have a greater impact is digital technology. There is a clear and significant gap between rural and urban areas in the majority of EU countries in terms of the number of people who never use the internet, as well as a clear gap in digital skills between southern/eastern and northern/western regions of the EU; as well as between urban and rural areas.

It is noted that the gap is not only related to connectivity: in many cases, access to basic digital infrastructure is also low.

The data shows that traffic restrictions and telecommuting due to the pandemic have boosted daily internet use in almost all EU regions, with significant increases of up to 10% in countries such as Romania and Slovenia, as well as some regions in Greece , Portugal and Spain.

Furthermore, the Report underlines the importance of full cooperation with local governments in implementing the proposals of the Conference on the Future of the EU, which lasted a year and ended in May 2022. A key conclusion concerns the reform of the European Committee of the Regions ” in order to strengthen its role in the institutional architecture regarding issues with a territorial impact’.

In this context, it has been assured that the Committee of the Regions will facilitate this process and will propose concrete measures to strengthen the territorial dimension and the coherence of all European policies, while mentioning the result of the barometer, that 89% of those who answered agreed that regions and municipalities should have a greater say in the future of the European Union. A related reference is made to the youth of Europe, emphasizing that the Committee of the Regions will continue to play a leading role in shaping the future of Europe and promoting gender equality.

Introducing the Report, the president of the European Committee of the Regions, Vasco Alves Cordeiro, observes that its publication takes place at a time when the war against Ukraine is raging and leading to unpredictable social and economic consequences for the whole of Europe. “As regions and cities spare no effort to welcome refugees and face the challenges arising from the war, we demonstrate that, as with all other crises facing the European Union, local and regional authorities are actors that cannot be bypassed,” he notes.

Focusing on the Report, it states that its aim is to provide a tool for European, national, regional and local decision-makers across the EU to see through the perspective of regions and cities – as they face the challenges arising from the war against Ukraine, the climate crisis – wider socio-economic trends as well as democratic transformations, to provide more comprehensive and effective responses.

The Report provides data and analysis on a wide range of issues, but also offers a collection of best practice and stories of how local and regional authorities are working every day to provide answers.

As the chairman of the Committee of the Regions puts it, this Report is a wake-up call.

“The crises we face put us all to the test and call for historic actions. Our societies require profound changes to achieve the green and digital transition, while maintaining a strong territorial cohesion and our essential social fabric. These profound changes will require the participation of regions and cities, not only to shape the solutions we need but also to implement them. No top-down one-size-fits-all approach will work,” explains Vasco Alves Cordeiro.

RES-EMP

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