More than 200 local actors gathered in Budapest, Hungary, last Friday to celebrate their life-changing achievements with the help of EU funds 2014-2020: 10.000 additional places in nurseries, 40.000 in kindergarten, over 2.000 primary healthcare units renovated, 3.700 hectares of new business parks in less developed settlements and 65.000 people trained, 3.3 million m2 public spaces refurbished, 750 km new bicycle roads – to name but a few.
- 13 November 2023
The event marked the end of the two territorial programmes funding until year end investments in the less developed regions of Hungary and the more developed Central Hungary region with some EUR 4.6 billion, almost one fifth of European cohesion policy funding 2014-2020 aiming at reducing disparities of development across the country.
Minister Navracsics showed his appreciation for the 13.000 supported projects which contributed to closing the gap between the more and the less developed regions and thanked the European Commission for the funds which contributed to “Hungary becoming more liveable and competitive”.
Commission Representatives underlined the role of the territorial programmes in supporting people and places that need it most as “the European Union is only as strong as its weakest regions”. They thanked the local “superheroes” whose determination and active listening change the lives of citizens for the better across the country. The Commission regretted however the decreasing awareness of European cohesion policy funding among Hungarian citizens and stressed that shared management of EU funds requires shared communication, because “this is what trusted partners do”. Looking ahead to the new programming period, Commission representatives called for the continued resort to Community Led Local Development actions, whose more efficient use the funds was praised time and again by different actors during the closing event.