Forging a sustainable future together. Cohesion Policy at its defining moment

Andres Rodriguez-Pose

No 2524, Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) from Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography

Abstract: This paper outlines a renewed vision for the EU’s Cohesion Policy amid the growing political uncertainty threatening its very viability. Drawing on the High-Level Group on the Future of Cohesion Policy’s findings, it advocates for a more dynamic, systemic approach emphasising institutional capacity, territorial sensitivity, global links, and performance-based delivery. These are areas where past reforms have underdelivered. It warns against marginalising cohesion in favour of top-down, centralised strategies, arguing it is more than a funding tool. Cohesion Policy is the EU’s most democratic mechanism, fostering trust, participation, and unity. Revitalising it is essential for competitiveness, resilience, and the very future of Europe.

Keywords: EU Cohesion Policy; Regional development; Policy reform; EU enlargement (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 O18 R11 R58 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-08, Revised 2025-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-eec and nep-eur
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:egu:wpaper:2524

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