The EPP Group in the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) has called for stronger and more strategic cooperation between public authorities and the private sector to reduce territorial and economic disparities across Europe.
In an opinion adopted at the plenary session on 4 March, EPP-CoR members stressed that, despite the remarkable progress made over the past 20 years, significant gaps remain in fully unlocking the potential of Cohesion Policy to attract private investment and ensure sustainable growth across all regions and cities.
Presenting the opinion during the CoR plenary session, Kristoffer Tamsons (SE/EPP), Member of the County Council of Stockholm and CoR rapporteur, said: “Private sector engagement is not optional – it is essential for the long-term resilience and impact of cohesion investments. To fully unlock this potential, cities and regions need stronger administrative, financial and technical capacity to partner effectively with private investors.”
Bureaucratic inefficiencies, weak procurement systems, overlapping controls, limited local adaptation and political instability were identified among the key obstacles hindering effective cooperation between public and private actors. Tamsons therefore called for genuine simplification of rules and stronger support for local and regional authorities to facilitate effective partnerships with the private sector.
With negotiations underway on the EU’s next long-term budget for 2028–2034, cities and regions also emphasised the crucial role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as key drivers of regional economic development and strategic partners in Cohesion Policy. During the 2014–2020 programming period, Cohesion Policy supported around five million SMEs with EUR 118 billion in funding and contributed to the creation of 370,000 new direct jobs. The opinion stresses that a place-based approach tailored to the specific needs of regional SME ecosystems is essential to strengthen innovation, competitiveness and job creation across Europe.
Technical support on the ground to ensure fair distribution of funds
The rapporteur underlined that stronger public-private cooperation must be accompanied by better support for regions and cities to design and implement strategic investment projects.
He warned of a widening gap between regions that are innovation leaders and those that lack the institutional capacity and experience to benefit fully from new financial tools and programmes. The future EU budget should therefore include sufficient advisory and technical support for less-experienced regions in order to ensure a fair and balanced distribution of cohesion funding.
The opinion also highlights the importance of maintaining regional innovation ecosystems within the future cohesion policy framework, including initiatives such as Regional Innovation Valleys, which foster cooperation between public authorities, businesses and research actors across regions.
Among the proposals to simplify access to EU funding for final beneficiaries and public authorities, Tamsons called for lighter audit procedures for small projects (below EUR 100,000) where outcomes can be clearly demonstrated. He also proposed introducing a rapid review mechanism to identify and address disproportionate national requirements and prevent unnecessary “gold-plating”, ensuring better alignment between EU and national rules, particularly with regard to state aid and national co-financing.
Finally, the opinion stresses that cohesion policy should make better use of financial instruments tailored to regional needs and local financial ecosystems, including targeted tools for less-developed regions and low-density areas. By leveraging private investment alongside public funding, these instruments can significantly increase the impact of cohesion investments and support long-term regional transformation.
