Brussels, President Todde speaks on behalf of the Italian regions: “cohesion policy is essential for development”.

La President of the Sardinia Region, Alessandra Todde, intervened on behalf of the Italian delegation at the meeting held today in Brussels, in the palace Berlaymont, Home of the European Commission, between Executive Vice President for Cohesion and Reforms, Raffaele Fitto, and 30 regional presidents and ministers di 149 European Regions participating in the initiative EURegions4cohesion.

President Todde began by underlining the importance of Cohesion Policy, which "essential element for the development of our territories".

“Cohesion” – he stated – “is the only EU policy that, since its origins, has had a long-term strategic scope, a means to provide concrete answers to the needs of citizens and the productive fabric. Its success lies precisely in its ability to involve local actors in the programming processes guided by the European Commission, also through tools that have proven to be an added value for addressing specific challenges and improving the competitiveness and sustainability of territories, such as Integrated Territorial Investments (ITI) and Participatory Local Development”.

As an example, the President cited the projects ITI “Santa Barbara’s Way” e “Sinis Mont'e Prama Integrated System”, as a testimony of “important interventions built from below which contribute to the improving competitiveness and resilience of the areas concerned, with multiplier effects for adjacent interventions”.

Todde represented to Vice President Fitto the need “that the reform of the Cohesion Policy maintains the centrality of the Regions in its planning and management functions, as it is the level of government most capable of intercepting territorial challenges and problems, as well as ensuring a direct link between citizens and the European Union".

“To make our Europe stronger and more resilient – ​​concluded President Todde – it is necessary to promote the territorialisation of other EU policies as well, right from the legislative development stages, so that the objectives of economic convergence are pursued by all European policies, as enshrined in the Treaties”.

EURegions4cohesion represents the main long-term investment policy which helps to strengthen the European competitiveness strategic autonomy, Green and digital transition and reduce territorial disparities.

The meeting was attended by regional political representatives from: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the Netherlands.