Today, Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira launched the latest edition of the EU Regional Social Progress Index (EU-SPI) at an event in Brussels, organised by the European Committee of Regions. The report measures social progress across EU regions and allows the Commission to assess the quality of life and well-being of citizens.
- 23 May 2024
Commissioner Ferreira opened the event and discussed the importance of measuring social progress at regional level to ensure that the objectives of Cohesion Policy are achieved – leaving no person or region behind.
At today’s event, the Commissioner said: “We have been saying for a long time that the GDP is a useful tool to assess how EU regions are progressing, but it does not provide the full picture. Economic indicators, social indicators but also indicators on wellbeing, citizen perceptions and trust all have their role to play; the Social Progress Index offers important insights on regional development in Europe. This data can help us to evaluate regional development, helping us to better the lives of all Europeans.”
The EU Social Progress Index (EU-SPI) measures wellbeing and social progress across EU regions by tracking 53 socio-economic and environmental indicators, including indicators related to citizens’ perceptions and trust. It combines economic and social indicators to ensure that our policies go beyond the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), to better reflect societal development and citizens’ perceptions, and to allow us to build a Europe that is fair, sustainable, and inclusive. The index has been developed to explore social progress and attitudes at regional level, complementing the GDP, which is often the most used index.