Beyond the EU Structural Funds’ Absorption Rate: How Do Regions Really Perform?

Eirini Aivazidou, Giovanni Cunico and Edoardo Mollona
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Eirini Aivazidou: Department of Computer Science and Engineering (DISI), School of Science, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Mura Anteo Zamboni 7, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Giovanni Cunico: Department of Computer Science and Engineering (DISI), School of Science, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Mura Anteo Zamboni 7, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Edoardo Mollona: Department of Computer Science and Engineering (DISI), School of Science, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Mura Anteo Zamboni 7, 40126 Bologna, Italy

Economies, 2020, vol. 8, issue 3, 1-24

Abstract: Although the EU structural funds aim to alleviate disparities through supporting regional development, their impact on local economies and societies is considered as uneven. As existing studies explore the absorption rate of the EU share of contribution as a point-in-time indicator at the end of the policy cycle, evidence about regional co-finance and the factors dynamically affecting absorption performance is lacking. To that end, this paper aims to provide a new longitudinal investigation of the absorption time series and develop an original indicator, supported by a statistical error analysis, for offering a transparent view of the total funds’ absorption. The analysis highlights that undesired regional strategies due to low administrative capacity may increase the absorption rate, though without supporting regional growth. The proposed approach could further facilitate the equitable allocation of political accountability regarding the structural funds’ absorption to the EU and the regions. Overall, it is anticipated that this research will support the EU in monitoring actual regional performance for prompting local managing authorities to improve their administrative capacity.

Keywords: structural funds; absorption rate; regional performance; European Union; longitudinal analysis; statistical error analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E F I J O Q (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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