Pillar 2 Technical Assistance: Call for applications

Between 14 December 2023 and 14 February 2024, a call for expression of interest was open for EU regions to receive technical assistance foreseen under Pillar 2 of the Talent Booster Mechanism. This call was open to 36 EU regions from 11 Member States that are sharply affected by the departure of their population aged 15-39.

Read more about the call below.

Introduction

As part of the Pillar 2 of the Talent Booster Mechanism, 36 regions at risk of falling into a talent development trap had the opportunity to benefit from direct technical assistance to elaborate analyses, policy recommendations and an action plan to respond to their specific territorial challenges linked to the demographic transition.

These regions were identified in the European Commission Communication on Harnessing Talent in Europe’s Regions, published in January 2023. The Communication focused on the undergoing significant demographic changes in the EU, marked by an ageing population, declining birth rates, and an exodus of young, skilled workers from several regions. The 36 regions were identified as those facing extensive net out-migration of their population aged 15-39.

Through a dedicated open call targeting these regions, 10 regions were selected based on their motivation to receive expert support, the relevance of their challenges and needs, the operational readiness to engage with the experts and the potential for embedding results of the support in Cohesion Policy interventions.

The call for expression of interest for the regions at risk of falling in a talent development trap was open from 14 December 2023 until 14 February 2024.

A team of dedicated technical experts is now providing analyses and recommendations across key policy sectors on how to respond to (rapid) population reductions, helping regions elaborate new approaches to demographic transition and talent development through tailored place-based policies.

The technical support is part of the eight-pillar ‘Talent Booster Mechanism', put in place by the Commission to help boost talent in regions facing or at risk of facing a talent development trap. The Mechanism supports EU regions affected by the accelerated decline of their working age population and the departure of their young population to train, retain and attract the people, skills and competences needed to address the impact of the demographic transition.

Detailed information about the call

The guidelines document provides the details of the call for expression of interest under Pillar 2 of the Talent Booster Mechanism, including the eligible applicants, the selection criteria and the available technical assistance support.

Eligible regions

The target group of the technical assistance under Pillar 2 of the Talent Booster Mechanism are the 36 regions identified by the European Commission as being at risk of falling into a talent development trap – sharply affected by the departure of their population aged 15-39 (a reduction of more than -2 per thousand per year compared to 5.3 per thousand on average in the EU).

You can find more about the regions that were selected here!

Learn more about the Pillars of the Talent Booster Mechanism.

Who could express interest?

Eligible applicants were regional administrations with implementing powers at a NUTS 2 level in the countries where these are in place:

• In Greece, Italy, Poland and Spain, where there is a regional public administration covering the entire NUTS 2 territory.
• In France, where there is a regional public administration covering the entire NUTS 2 territory. In two exceptional cases where the regional administration territory is larger than the NUTS 2 region, the regional administration can apply on behalf of the eligible NUTS 2 region (e.g., Normandie can apply for Basse-Normandie; Bourgogne-Franche-Compté can apply for Bourgogne and/or Franche-Compté; Hauts-de-France can apply for Nord-Pas de Calais and/or Picardie; and Aquitaine can apply for Poitou-Charentes and/or Limousin).

As an exception, and only in the Member States where there are no NUTS 2 regional administrative bodies that covered the entire NUTS 2 territory, the eligible stakeholders were the following:

• In Finland and Slovakia, where there are no regional administrations covering the entire NUTS 2 territories, the eligible applicants are the lower level NUTS 3 regional administrations within the eligible NUTS 2 regions.
• In Latvia and Lithuania, where the NUTS 2 area corresponds to the entire national territory, the eligible applicant is the competent national ministry, who may focus on one or several NUTS 3 regions in its territory.
• In Portugal, the eligible applicants are the Commission for Regional Coordination and Development for Norte and the regional administrations of the two autonomous regions of Azores and Madeira.
• In Romania, the North-West Regional Development Agency can apply.

What type and scope of technical assistance will be provided?

The purpose of the support is to assist regional authorities in addressing the demographic transition that is exacerbated by the risk of falling in a talent development trap. A dedicated assessment report will be developed, tailored to the needs of the region. It will include analyses and recommendations across key policy sectors, as well as an action plan to guide policy implementation.

For each selected region, a report will be prepared focusing on the perspective of cohesion whilst identifying the corresponding regional and national policies relevant to tackling the outmigration of the young population from a spatial perspective. The goal is to obtain tailored recommendations for national and regional policies that cohesion policy can help implement or address via investments and reforms, and to identify growth paths or priority areas for investments through the analysis of the territory’s future needs. Field visits and local events will also be organised and implemented in collaboration with the relevant authorities.

Opportunities for policy dialogue will also be provided to the regions via dedicated workshops and events. The precise objectives and scope of the policy analyses, recommendations and policy dialogues will be defined and agreed upon in the inception phase in close dialogue between the beneficiary and DG REGIO.

Specific examples of analyses and areas for expert support can be found in the call guidelines.

Selection of regions

The 36 eligible regions were spread across 11 EU Member States. The technical assistance is being delivered to 10 EU regions.

The selection criteria were based on:

• Clarity of description of the unique challenges and needs of the region.
• Clarity of description of the current and future efforts to utilise regional assets in addressing demographic challenges.
• Demonstrated potential for embedding results of the support in the Cohesion Policy interventions.
• Clarity of motivation to receive expert support.
• Demonstrated operational readiness to engage with the experts.

How to apply

Applications are closed.

You can find more about the regions that were selected here!

Timeline

1. 14 December 2023 – 14 February 2024

   Call for members open
2. February - March 2024

   Selection of regions
3. March 2024

   Results are communicated to selected regions
4. March 2024 – May 2025

   Wave 1 implementation process with the first batch of 5 selected regions
5. June 2025 – December 2026

   Wave 2 implementation process with the second batch of 5 selected regions