The European Commission has launched a Coronavirus Response Investment Initiative (CRII) to mobilise €37 billion of cohesion policy funds. This will flexibly respond to the rapidly emerging needs in the most exposed sectors, such as healthcare, SMEs, and labour markets, including education and training. It will help the most affected territories in Member States and their citizens.

We also launched a Coronavirus Response Investment Initiative+ to mobilise flexibly all unused Structural and Investment funds. Also, the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) will deliver food aid and basic material assistance through electronic vouchers, and provide protective equipment, thus lowering risk of contamination. The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) will cover temporary stopping of fishing activities, and the suspension of production and additional costs for aquaculture farmers, as well as producer organisations for the storage of fishery and aquaculture products.

You may have seen information on our initiative Support to mitigate Unemployment Risks in an Emergency (SURE). Its aim is to help protect jobs and workers affected by the coronavirus pandemic. It will provide up to €100 billion of financial assistance to Member States, and will help the whole of Europe. 

These loans will assist Member States to cope with sudden increases in public expenditure to preserve employment. Specifically, they will help Member States to cover two types of costs:

• those directly related to the creation or extension of national short-time work schemes
• as well as costs for other similar measures they have put in place for the self-employed