EU-Kohäsionspolitik: Finanzielle Fehlanreize und die Suche nach dem europäischen Mehrwert

This article analyzes both, the reform needs and reform obstacles of EU cohesion spending. Although the empirical evidence is unable to substantiate an European added value, structural funds continue to absorb an increasing amount of resources. The analysis reveals several shortcomings of this policy: First, EU regional programs have neglected institutional constraints on the side of recipient countries and regions. Second, an inflation of policy objectives makes a clear performance measurement increasingly impossible. And third, through the inclusion of rich regions into its programs, cohesion spending has lost its focus. To tackle these shortcomings, a comprehensive reform package is recommended which includes new incentives on the financing side of the EU budget. Only increasing regional co-financing or other financing innovations can reduce disincentives from common pool-financing and overcome reform resistance. Without any such financing side reforms, merely some incremental reforms are consistent with political-economic constraints.