As we reach the halfway point of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, it is a good time to take stock of what we have achieved with this ground-breaking instrument.
The RRF has succeeded in its immediate ambition: to help Member States recover faster from the harsh social and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It inspired confidence at a very difficult time. With each national recovery plan adopted, it brought clarity of purpose. Thankfully, we have now moved on from the pandemic.
The RRF has another, more future-oriented goal.
This is to boost the EU's overall resilience and make our economies and societies more sustainable, especially by supporting the green and digital transitions. And it is achieving these aims as well.
Since it was set up in early 2021, the RRF has been transforming economies and societies across Europe.
This is the first time that we are managing to combine investments with growth-enhancing structural reforms.
All EU countries need these to tackle longstanding challenges - and also new ones. The RRF has brought a fundamental change in implementation as Member States carry out country-specific recommendations and put EU priorities into effect.
The benefits are clear and tangible, as we can see from the mid-term evaluation that we are presenting today.
The RRF's innovative approach to EU spending, based on performance rather than costs, is bringing real results on the ground. Let me give you a few examples, and there are many hundreds of reforms and investments to choose from.
They are all thanks to RRF funding:
- France is pressing ahead with a renovation programme to make 1.5 million households more energy efficient.
- Bulgaria is improving its minimum income scheme.
- Austria has introduced a scheme to make climate-friendly transport easy and affordable.
- Lithuania is improving school infrastructure and making sure that children have equal access to education.
- Greece is investing heavily in the digital transformation of its public sector entities.
These are just a few examples.
So far, we have paid out €225 billion in RRF funding to Member States, based on completed milestones and targets.
Based on the latest national reporting, we should see around 54% of all milestones and targets completed by the end of 2024. This corresponds to around €100 billion of new payments this year.
We expect, and we need, the pace of implementation to pick up during the second half of the RRF's lifetime. In some cases, Member States will also have to catch up on delays.
Despite the challenges posed by high inflation and tense geopolitics, we see a sustained increase in investment in the EU. This is largely thanks to the impact of the RRF.
It is boosting public investment, which is expected to reach 3.4% of GDP this year.
And it is helping to generate private investments through enabling reforms.
At the same time, it is worth remembering that Member States have been carrying out their RRF reforms and investments through a particularly difficult period.
First, the COVID-19 pandemic.
Next, Russia's continuing aggression against Ukraine – which led to disruptions in global energy markets and supply chains.
Against these fast-moving developments, the RRF has proved to be a flexible tool that can quickly adapt to new crises.
Its innovative design and priorities make it vital for addressing recent challenges linked to competitiveness and energy security.
Last year, Member States focused on revising their plans to address the impact of inflation and supply chain disruptions.
Some countries – Greece, Slovenia and Croatia – also had to cope with natural disasters like floods and wildfires.
We also encouraged Member States to include chapters to reflect the priorities of the REPowerEU plan, to:
- diversify the EU's energy supplies,
- produce more clean energy,
- and accelerate the green transition.
Through the REPowerEU chapters, a further €60 billion will be dedicated to speeding up the green transition.
The RRF funding is supporting vast amounts of sustainable transport, energy efficiency renovations and renewable energy installations.
In all, €68 billion in RRF funding will support clean tech, clean energy and the decarbonisation of EU industry.
More than 3,000 kilometres of electricity transmission and distribution lines will be modernised.
This is roughly the distance between Lisbon and Riga.
However, despite the evident success of the Facility, it has not all been plain sailing. There are also lessons to be learned.
Feedback from Member States tells us there is room for greater flexibility and simplification.
One example is the very detailed definition of milestones and targets to be met for each payment. Another is the accumulation of data collection requirements for audit and control purposes.
Involving other parties such as regional and local authorities, as well as social partners, is crucial for a country to plan and carry out measures contained in its national plan. But the degree of their involvement varies a lot around the EU.
Social partners must play a pivotal role in the design and implementation of labour market and social policy reforms.
And if a national plan is to bring its full benefits, countries must have enough administrative capacity to make sure that RRF funds are properly managed, absorbed and put to the best use.
I will conclude here and pass over to Paolo. Thank you.
