The President of the Regional Government challenged today the European Commissioners responsible for the Community Budget, Günther Oettinger and Regional Policy Corina Creţu, to take active part in the defence of Cohesion Policy in the framework of the proposals they will present to the Multiannual Financial Framework 2020.
 
"It is not enough to hear the Commission saying it is convinced and now it is up to the regions to convince the European Council and Member States. Having a strong cohesion policy endowed with adequate resources is not a matter that only concerns the regions and local authorities. In fact, it concerns the whole European Union as it is this policy is closely related to one of the main purposes of the European project: economic, social and territorial cohesion," said Vasco Cordeiro. Currently, he also chairs the Conference of Peripheral and Maritime Regions of Europe (CPMR).
 
At the meeting with the two European Commissioners held in Brussels, Vasco Cordeiro stated that this policy should continue to be the main Community investment policy in regions such as the Azores. In this context, we should take into consideration its goals towards employment creation, business competitiveness, economic growth, sustainable development and improvement of citizens' quality of life.
 
With an overall Community budget of 352 billion Euros by 2020, the Cohesion Policy accounts for almost one third of the EU overall budget. It is implemented through three main funds: the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Cohesion Fund.
 
In the light of the ongoing negotiations on the next multiannual financing framework and the importance of the financial resources of Cohesion Policy for areas such as employment, innovation, education, social inclusion and energy, Vasco Cordeiro invited commissioners Oettinger and Creţu for the General Assembly of CPMR to be held in Madeira in October.
 
Today's meeting also included leaders from regions and interregional cooperation organisations that have signed the Cohesion Alliance Declaration, which was also signed by the Azorean Government in January. In this document, regions demand the existence of a strong Cohesion Policy with the necessary resources in the budget for the post-2020 period.
 
The meeting with Günther Oettinger and Corina Creţu was part of a round of contacts that Vasco Cordeiro has been establishing since 2017 with senior politicians from European institutions. The main purpose is to raise their awareness for the relevance of the European Union maintaining the main Community investment tool in the regions under the next multiannual financing framework.
 
At the end of last year, Vasco Cordeiro met with the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker. In January this year, he held meetings with the European Commission's chief negotiator for Brexit, Michel Barnier, the first Vice-President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, and the President of the Committee of the Regions, Karl-Heinz Lambert.
 
In November 2016, Vasco Cordeiro was reelected for a second term as President of CPMR, an interregional cooperation body that encompasses 160 regions from 28 European states, congregating 200 million citizens.