EU cohesion policy in Lombardy: achievements and future challenges

Across Lombardy, they have funded cutting-edge research, business innovation and sustainability, urban regeneration projects, measures to prevent hydrogeological instability, and initiatives to protect the region’s water network.

These are the resources provided through the EU Cohesion Policy—highly valuable, yet perhaps still not widely recognised. They are now at the centre of a significant shift in European policy, amid concerns over possible funding reductions and changes to the way resources will be managed and allocated.

In particular, the Regional Programme of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2021–2027 is the European Union’s main instrument through which the Lombardy Region supports economic growth and prepares the region for the challenges of technological transformation. The current programming period alone provides funding worth €2 billion.

To review the impact of these resources on innovation and regional competitiveness, the Lombardy Region hosted yesterday morning the annual event "From 2014 to 2034: The Evolution of Cohesion Policy between Achievements and Future Challenges."

The event presented the results achieved under the 2014–2020 programming period, together with an initial overview of the current 2021–2027 programme, which has already supported around 5,000 projects through targeted resource management.

ERDF funding in Lombardy has, for example, financed business research and innovation measures through calls such as Research & Innovate I and II, Strengthen & Innovate, Patents 2023, and Collaborate & Innovate (first and second editions).

Attention also turned to the 2028–2034 programming period, which may introduce significant changes, including a more centralised management of cohesion funds, potentially reducing the role currently played by regional authorities.

Speaking at the event, Alessandro Fermi, Regional Minister for Universities, Research and Innovation, emphasised that the ERDF programme has become one of the most effective tools for supporting the growth of Lombardy’s innovation ecosystem by investing in universities, research centres, SMEs and businesses engaged in technology transfer.

Fermi: European resources serving businesses, universities and citizens

"Lombardy is among the European regions that have made the most effective use of ERDF funding," said Minister Fermi. "We have transformed these resources into tangible growth and support for our productive system. These results are not the product of chance but of strategic planning developed in close cooperation with local stakeholders who understand the needs and potential of their territories.

"For this reason, we are concerned by the possibility that the European Commission may centralise the management of these funds. Such a decision risks weakening the direct relationship with citizens, businesses and public administrations that has enabled Lombardy to become a benchmark for effective implementation. Cohesion policy was created to strengthen regions, not to distance decision-making from them."

Fermi also confirmed that many of the innovative measures introduced by the Regional Ministry to support Lombardy’s innovation ecosystem will continue over the coming years.

Supporting the AI revolution

"We are now entering a new phase," Fermi added. "Artificial intelligence, strategic technologies and the digital transformation are fundamentally reshaping research and business. European programming must therefore evolve by directing increasing investment towards skills, technology transfer and the strategic sectors that will determine Europe's competitiveness in the years ahead."

In line with these priorities, Lombardy’s ERDF Programme has already reallocated part of its funding to calls implementing the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) initiative, which supports the development of strategic technologies aimed at strengthening the European Union’s technological sovereignty.

For this reason, the Regional Minister expressed the hope that the next EU programming period will recognise and reward the strong performance of regions