Dialogue with EU Commissioner Ferreira on the future of cohesion policy

The European Union Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira, will take the stage at LSE to discuss about the future of the European Cohesion Policy and the differenct challenges that lie ahead.

EU Commissioner Ferreira will provide a brief lecture on her thoughts on the topic, followed by a discussion with with Professor Rodríguez-Pose, Princesa de Asturias Chair and Director of the Cañada Blanch Centre, Chair of the High-level Level Group on the future of Cohesion Policy.

Cohesion Policy is potentially the main tool that the EU has given itself to make the most of economic opportunities across the continent. It is the largest territorial development policy in the world and involves the biggest budget globally to reduce disparities in development across regions. From the reform of Structural Funds in 1989 until 2018, the EU invested EUR 909 billion for this purpose. An additional EUR 392 billion has been earmarked for investment during the 2021-2027 programming period. The primary objective of this investment has been to reduce development disparities between EU regions by creating a more balanced and equitable geographical distribution of economic activity. Cohesion investment is aimed at ensuring that all regions can advance and contribute to the prosperity of the Union.

On the whole, cohesion investment has had positive effects, particularly on economic growth and employment, as well as on areas like innovation and transport infrastructure. Research has also unveiled direct impacts of cohesion investment in terms of improved profitability, innovativeness and employment in assisted companies compared with non-assisted ones. Through Cohesion Policy, many regions in the EU have overhauled their infrastructure, fostered innovation in local industries and generated sustainable employment. Investments in human capital, technology and innovation channelled through Cohesion Policy have, in many cases, contributed to a more dynamic and competitive EU.

But Cohesion Policy needs to developed to help tackle the growing structural challenges facing the EU, some of which have been festering and growing for so long that they now require bolder action. The EU needs a stronger Cohesion Policy to make sure that European citizens find ample opportunities to develop their talents and feel supported.

Professor Rodríguez-Pose will discuss with EU Commissioner Ferreira on the future of Cohesion Policy and its role on harnessing the full potential of Cohesion Policy to tackle the long-term challenges the European Union faces.

"By focusing on the less developed and more vulnerable regions, we aim to unlock the economic potential across the entire EU; an economic potential that has very often remained idle or has been overlooked, undermining the position of Europe in the world, as well as hurting the well-being of its citizens. This potential is especially important in the case of areas that are experiencing long-term economic decline and have been far too frequently ignored by policy. Our approach is not about levelling the playing field but rather about raising the dynamism of those areas of the EU that have considerable unused potential, ensuring that every region, no matter its current state, can contribute to and benefit from the EU's growth." Inforegio - discussion with Prof. Andrés Rodríguez-Pose

Meet the EU Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms

Dr. Elisa Ferreira, GCC is a Portuguese politician and economist who has been serving as European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms in the administration of President Ursula von der Leyen since 2019. She previously served as vice-Governor of the Bank of Portugal from 2016 until 2019. She was as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the Socialist Party; part of the Party of European Socialists between 2004 and 2016.

She holds a degree in Economics (1977) from Porto University (Portugal) and a PhD. in Economics by the University of Reading (U.K.). Moreover, she has been senior lecturer in the Economics Department of Porto University and continues to do so. EU Commissioner Ferreira has held several positions as a civil servant, member of the Board of Portugal's Statistics authority (Instituto Nacional de Estatística, 1989-1992), executive vice-President of the Porto Industrial Association (Associação industrial Portuense, 1988-1992) or vice-President of Portugal's Northern Region Coordination Commission (Comissão de Coordenação da Região do Norte, 1992-1994). From 1995, she was appointed Minister for Environment and, from 1999 to 2002, Minister for Planning (Spatial and Regional Development) for the Portuguese government.

Meet our chair

Professor Andrés Rodríguez-Pose is the Princesa de Asturias Chair and a Professor of Economic Geography at the London School of Economics. He is the Director of the Cañada Blanch Centre LSE. He is a former Head of the Department of Geography and Environment between 2006 and 2009. He is a past-President of the Regional Science Association International (RSAI) (2015-2017) and served as Vice-President of the RSAI in 2014. He was also Vice-President (2012-2013) and Secretary (2001-2005) of the European Regional Science Association.

More about this event

The Cañada-Blanch Centre at LSE is the vehicle to achieve the objective of the Fundación Cañada Blanch: developing and reinforcing the links between the United Kingdom and Spain. This is done by means of fostering cutting-edge knowledge generation and joint research projects between researchers in the United Kingdom, and at LSE in particular, on the one hand, and Spain, on the other.