Who benefitted from ERDF assistance in countries that

Who benefitted from ERDF assistance in countries that joined the EU in 2004? Brussels, 14 July 2015 R. Niessler - Director DG for Regional and Urban Policy European Commission

Structural and Cohesion Funds in EU-13 2

Structural and Cohesion Funds in EU-13 Aid intensity (€ per inhabitant and per year) is more than 4 times higher in EU-13 3

Structural and Cohesion Funds in EU-13 The contribution of Cohesion Policy to Member States' economies is much higher in the EU-13 4

Structural and Cohesion Funds in EU-13 In many of EU-13, Cohesion Policy is the most important source to finance public investment 5

Who benefits from Cohesion Policy? • The return of investment in EU-13 also benefits EU-15 Member States. • This spill-over effects of cohesion programmes implemented in EU -13 can take different forms: Ø Contracts awarded to EU-15 firms: 5% of funds in PL according to a recent study; Ø Trade spill-over: Increase in exports from EU-15 to EU-13 stemming from the increase in economic activity in beneficiary countries triggered by Cohesion Policy. By far the most important aspect 6

Who benefits from Cohesion Policy? • Example: Germany - Poland Exports from Germany to Poland steadily increase, partly as a result of Cohesion Policy in Poland 7

Who benefits from Cohesion Policy? • Example: Germany - Poland 8

Who benefits from Cohesion Policy? • Example: Poland The share of EU-15 in Polish imports is decreasing, while the share of the rest of the world is increasing 9

Who benefits from Cohesion Policy? • EU-15 benefits from the programmes implemented in the EU-13. • Analysis suggests that the trade balance of EU-15 is positively affected by EU-13 cohesion programmes. • However, weight of the rest of the world is increasing in Poland's trade. Trade spill overs of Cohesion Policy to EU-15 are diminishing 10

Who benefits from Cohesion Policy? Impact on GDP much lower in EU-15 11

Who benefits from Cohesion Policy? Cohesion Policy has a positive impact on important variables of the economy 12

Conclusion • Member States which joined after 2004 are the main beneficiaries of the Structural and Cohesion Funds. • Financial resources channelled through the funds are considerable (as % of GDP or per inhabitant) and play a key role, notably for financing public investment. • The interventions have a significant and positive impact on the economies of EU-13. • EU-15 Member States also benefit from spill-overs of the cohesion programmes implemented in EU-13. • However, these spill-overs are limited and the biggest impact materialises in EU-13. 13

Thank you for your attention 14 Title