Regional development and cohesion
Economic, social and territorial integration in the European Union must be supported by suitable policy. The EU’s Cohesion Policy does just that: it helps each region reach its full potential, and the European Union as a whole improve its living standards and overall prosperity. See how the EIB’s work supports cohesion.
Download the EIB Cohesion and Regional Development Overview 2023Our cohesion projects on the ground
Watch how we contribute to a cohesive and inclusive Europe
Our cohesion stories in the spotlight
We support the EU’s Territorial Agenda 2030
The EIB supports the Territorial Agenda 2030, a strategic policy document that outlines the goals for Europe, its regions, and its communities. This document defines two overarching objectives: a Just Europe and a Green Europe, with six priorities for developing the continent and all its places.
Balanced Europe
Better balanced territorial development utilising Europe's diversity.
Functional regions
Local and regional development, less inequality between places.
Integration beyond borders
Living and working across national borders.
Today, the EIB helps with important investments and gives technical advice. Many of these activities help meet the goals and priorities of the Territorial Agenda 2030.
Healthy Environment
Better ecological livelihoods and climate neutral towns, cities and regions.
Circular Economy
Strong and sustainable local economies in a globalised world.
Sustainable Connections
Sustainable digital and physical connectivity of places.
Today, the EIB helps with important investments and gives technical advice. Many of these activities help meet the goals and priorities of the Territorial Agenda 2030.
How we support a Just Transition
Many of the worst affected EU regions already have low incomes or have a long history of industrial decline. It takes many changes to move away from coal mining and CO2-intensive energy and industrial production, for example:
- Find new sources of heat and electricity.
- Clean up mining sites.
- Attract new businesses and invest in infrastructure to make up for the loss of jobs, value added, and tax revenue.
The Just Transition Mechanism addresses the social and economic effects of the transition. It focusses on the regions, industries and workers who will face the greatest challenges. The mechanism supports projects located in or benefiting one of the Just Transition regions jointly identified by Member States and the European Commission in the Territorial Just Transition Plans.
The Just Transition Mechanism has three pillars:
Just Transition Fund
This fund provides grants of up to 85% of the project investment cost, with private or public sector beneficiaries covering the rest.
Our support
The EIB can co-finance the public sector beneficiaries’ contribution to projects, advise on project preparation or help with financial instruments.
InvestEU "Just Transition" scheme
Some of the investments made in Just Transition regions may benefit from InvestEU.
Our support
For projects located in Just Transition regions, the EIB can give a loan backed up with the InvestEU guarantee and provide advisory support.
Public Sector Loan Facility
An EIB loan can be combined with an EU grant for public sector entities to support individual projects or sets of smaller projects.
Our support
The EIB gives a loan to a counterpart (see our loans for the public sector) who also applies for the EU grant. Counterparts can also approach EIB financial intermediaries. Additionally, the EIB can provide advisory support to prepare and implement projects.
Get support under the Just Transition Mechanism
The Just Transition Mechanism will primarily assist areas in EIB Cohesion priority regions. This means that there will be strong synergies between Cohesion and Just Transition.
The EIB Group:
- Sets down “Ensuring a Just Transition for all” as one of the four overarching objectives in its Climate Bank Roadmap 2025.
- Supports all three pillars as outlined in the comprehensive approach to supporting the Just Transition Mechanism.
- Offers advisory support to authorities and promoters.
The EIB will co-operate with other Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to support Just Transition outside the EU, following the MDB Just Transition High-level principles.
Our key publications
What we offer
Our lending, our financial instruments, and also our technical assistance and advisory services
can support the regions and people with furthest to go
Our cohesion loans must address at least one of the EIB's four priorities: innovation, infrastructure, small businesses, and environmental sustainability. In cohesion regions, we fund both public and private sectors.
For municipalities and regional governments
Based on the size of the project, the EIB offers a wide range of financing instruments for municipalities and regional governments, ranging from investment loans for big projects to framework loans for smaller multi-sector initiatives.
Our structural programme loans can also help deliver the EU budget's shared management funds (formerly known as the European Structural and Investment Funds, or ESIF).
For small businesses, mid-caps and large corporates
We finance the private sector in cohesion regions: thanks to our intermediated loans, about one-third of our cohesion lending supports small businesses and mid-caps. We also offer loans for larger corporations in a variety of industries.
Engineers and economists evaluate every project that the EIB finances, and the EIB makes this expertise available to promoters, regional and national governments, and financial intermediaries in cohesion regions to improve the technical and financial quality of their projects.
fi-compass
This platform delivers advisory services on financial instruments under the shared management funds.
Find out more about fi-compass
Innovation Fund - Project Development Assistance (PDA)
The European Investment Bank (EIB) gives specific help to projects that support a clean transition through new technologies. The goal is to make the projects more ready for future Innovation Fund calls.
More on the Innovation Fund - PDA
Joint Assistance to Support Projects in European Regions (JASPERS)
JASPERS works actively on cohesion. In the recent years, it supports Just Transition fund projects.
JASPERS also works with local governments, project developers, and the managing authorities of EU funds in EU countries to help them prepare strategies and sustainable projects, as well as to build their capabilities in areas such as the circular economy, energy efficiency, carbon neutrality, smart cities, applied research and innovation, healthcare systems, connectivity and sustainable mobility, affordable water and sanitation services.
Project Advisory Support Service Agreement (PASSA)
The PASSA program combines EIB internal expertise and external consulting to accelerate the implementation of EU-funded projects, in collaboration with promoters and governing authorities.
With the help of the European Investment Bank, Member States use the Bank’s professional fund management skills to implement financial instruments. They can use these innovative financial instruments with other sources of financing.
Find out more about shared management funds
EU countries can give part of their shared management funds to the InvestEU Fund by setting up a "Member State compartment." These countries can benefit from the EU guarantee's high credit rating, which allows more risky projects to be financed.