Retrospective projects in ERDF regional operational programmes: a contribution to programme pre-evaluation

Abstract

The work examines ‘the ‘retrospective projects’ in the POR ERDF: a contribution to the pre-assessment of programmes’, bringing the territorial dimension into line with the relevant economic and institutional aspects. In general, this modus operandi, although formally in line with the POR, affects the sectoral or integrated policies prefigured in the programmes and may result in a denial or deviation from the original intentions. Ultimately, it is not a virtuous mobilization of additional resources as a result of programmatic choices, but of forced converging back to financial utilitarianism, to buffer heavy criticality. The illustration of the situation in conjunction with the POR ERDF 2007-13 highlighted some technical aspects and additional activities to “demonstrate” the use of the European resources allocated to these instruments. Only EU co-financed programmes have logic – at least at first – really programmatic, but additions/resources/projects can distort the sense of the original objectives. In particular, it is necessary to clarify the correspondence between the results obtained/attributed to the POR and the resources really involved in their implementation, much greater than the nominal allocations of the programmes.

Keywords

Cohesion policy; assessment of policies; European Union; Europe; Sardinia; Lombardy

JEL codes

R58; F15; H77