75523 - EU COHESION POLICIES AND NEW MEMBER STATES

Conoscenze e abilità da conseguire

The students are expected to have learned the theoretical background of regional development policies and the rationale for an EU level intervention. They should be familiar with the regulatory background (instruments, common objectives, principles) and operation (institutional preconditions and processes, contents of development plans and operational programmes) of EU level cohesion policy. They should be able to analyse and compare the experiences of less developed member states in implementing EU funded programmes. They should be able to evaluate the new member states’ national development programmes and their role in economic and social development. They should be able to analyse preconditions of successful absorption of EU funds in individual member states.

Contenuti

One of the major endeavours as well as one of the consequences of the European integration process is to reduce the differences in development between individual countries and regions and to support the less developed areas in catching up with the others. This process requires joint action to strengthen the predominance of free market forces, as well as the establishment of a support system for the regional policy managed at EU level. An effective common regional (or cohesion) policy is crucial to the future development of an enlarged EU. If the EU does not have a commitment to reduce the disparities in income differences and living standards, the future of the integrative process would be undermined. It would be unacceptable for citizens in differing parts of the Union to be subject to significantly different standards. The new members can use the Structural Funds as major instruments to support their modernisation process. Although the future resource transfer was not the only reason to become full members of the EU, this field played a very important role for the Central and Eastern European countries. There is no doubt that it is of high importance for the historically undercapitalised countries to accelerate their modernisation process, among others, also by having access to EU funds.

The course is dealing with the operation of the common regional (cohesion) policy within the European Union and focuses on the extension of the policy towards the member states from Central and Eastern Europe. We analyse the impacts of Structural Funds and Cohesion Fund supports on development of the backward regions. We evaluate the economic, legal and institutional preconditions of successful absorption of EU transfers. The course focuses on the experience of the Visegrad Countries in using these transfers in their economic and social modernization and their catching up processes.

Testi/Bibliografia

European Commission: A new partnership for cohesion. Convergence, competitiveness, cooperation. Third Report on Economic and Social Cohesion. Luxembourg, 2004.

European Commission: Growing Regions, growing Europe. Fourth Report on Economic and Social Cohesion. Communication from the Commission. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities. May 2007. Luxembourg

Farole, T. – Rodríguez-Pose, A. – Storper, M.: Cohesion Policy in the European Union: Growth, Geography, Institutions. Jornal of Common Market Studies. Vol. 49, Issue 5, September 2011. 1089-1111 o.

Kengyel, Á.: The EU’s regional policy. In: Palánkai, T. (ed.): Economics of European Integration. Akadémiai Kiadó. Budapest, 2003., pp. 355-375.

Kengyel, Á.: The EU’s Regional Policy and its Implications on Economic Strategies within an Enlarged EU. Galileu Revista de Economia e Direito. Vol. IX. No. 2, 2004., pp. 35-48.

Kengyel, Á.: Evaluating the added value of EU level regional policy. Society and Economy. Vol. 30 (2008) No 2, December 2008. pp. 303-322.

Kengyel Á.: The Future of EU Cohesion Policy. Endogenous Development – Added Value of Intervention – Regulatory Frameworks. EU Working Papers. 3/2011. Vol. XV. No. 3. pp. 51-74.

Kengyel, Á.: The potential role of EU cohesion policy in funding social economy projects. In: Viñals, C. R. – Rodríguez, C. P. (eds.): Social Innovation. New forms of organisation in knowledge-based societies. Routledge. London-New York, 2013, pp. 159-187.

Kengyel, Á.: The European Union and its policies. In: Palánkai, T. (ed.): Economics of Global and Regional Integration. Akadémiai Kiadó. Budapest, 2014, pp. 175-190.

Kengyel, Á. (ed.): Comparison of Experiences of the Visegrad Countries in Using EU Regional Development Funds: Studies on national development programmes: Academic year 2014-2015. Budapest: Corvinus University of Budapest Jean Monnet Chair in EU Policies, 2015. 148 p. (ISBN 978-963-503-600-4)

Kengyel, Á.: The Role of EU Cohesion Policy in Catching Up: The Case of Central and Eastern European Countries. In: Kengyel, Á. (ed.) Comparison of Experiences of the Visegrad Countries in Using EU Regional Development Funds: Studies on national development programmes: Academic year 2014-2015. 148 p.
Budapest: Corvinus University of Budapest Jean Monnet Chair in EU Policies, 2015. pp. 9-28.
(ISBN 978-963-503-600-4)

Kengyel, Á.: The Importance of EU Cohesion Policy in Central and Eastern Europe. TRANSITION STUDIES REVIEW 22(1.) pp. 3-20. (2015) (ISSN 1614-4007)

Kengyel, Á.: New Headings – Old Problems: The Evolution and Future of the EU Budget, INTERECONOMICS Review of European Economic Policy 51(2), March-April 2016, pp. 100-106. (ISSN 0020-5346) DOI 10.1007/s10272-016-0584-0 (The article is fully accessible to all users at libraries and institutions that have purchased a SpringerLink license': http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10272-016-0584-0 [http://www.springer.com/-/0/AVQXNru_2brxj7RS2BEJ] .)

KPMG: EU Funds in Central and Eastern Europe. Progress Report 2007-2013. KPMG Central and Eastern Europe Ltd. Warsaw, 2014.

Nič, M. - Świeboda, P. (eds.): Central Europe fit for the future. Visegrad Group ten years after EU accession. Report by the High Level Reflection Group. Central European Policy Institute (CEPI) - demosEUROPA Centre for European Strategy. Bratislava – Warsaw, 2014.

(http://www.cepolicy.org/sites/cepolicy.org/files/attachments/central_europe_fit_for_the_future_report.pdf)

Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006. Official Journal of the European Union. L 347. pp. 320-469.

Rozmahel, P. et al.: Integration of Central and Eastern Euroepan Countries: Increasing EU Heterogeneity? Working Paper no 9. WWWFOREUROPE WelfareWealthWork. European Commission European Research Area Seventh Framework Programme, 2013. (http://www.foreurope.eu/fileadmin/documents/pdf/Workingpapers/WWWforEurope_WPS_no009_MS77.pdf)

Varga, J. – in’t Veld, J.: The Potential Impact of EU Cohesion Policy Spending in the 2007-2013 Programming Period: A Model-Based Analysis. European Economy. Economic Papers 422, September 2010.

Wintjes, R. - Hollanders H.: Innovation pathways and policy challenges at the regional level: smart specialization. UNU-MERIT Working Paper Series no. 2011-027

Zawistowski, J. et al.: Evaluation of benefits to the EU-15 resulting from the implementation of the Cohesion Policy in the Visegrad Group countries. Instytut Badan Strukturalnych. Warsaw, 2011.

(http://eu.kormany.hu/admin/download/0/ad/20000/benefits_EU15_cohesion.pdf)

PowerPoint presentations (drafts of the lectures)

The European Commission’s regional policy website:

(http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm)

Websites of the managing authorities of the beneficiary countries

Metodi didattici

Lecture, presentations, case studies and discussions

Modalità di verifica e valutazione dell'apprendimento

A group of 4-5 students should prepare a presentation about a country case, which will be presented and discussed during the classes. Each student should submit a paper in 5-6 pages till the day of written exam. The aim of the case studies is to analyse the most important characteristic features of national development programmes and to evaluate their impacts.

Grading: 30% presentation, 70% written exam.

The presentation should contain:

• Presentation of the country’s economic development and present situation. Economic and social problems and regional disparities based on statistical figures (indicators) should be explained.
• The development strategies (OPs and priorities) of the periods 2004-2006, 2007-2013 and 2014-2020 should be compared and evaluated.
• A short description of the strategy, basic goals and priorities of the Partnership Agreement 2014-2020 should be given. Contents of operational programmes should be summarized and the budgetary background (EU funding + national public and private contributions) should be explained.
• The experience with EU funding and the impact of the Structural Funds on catching up should be evaluated. The ex-ante, mid-term and ex-post evaluations on the results of intervention should be explained.

2-3 successful (innovative) project examples should be selected and explained (aims, implementation and results). The projects could be chosen from earlier programming periods. Lessons from these projects for other potential applicants for EU funding should be concluded.

Orario di ricevimento

Consulta il sito web di Akos Miklos Kengyel