Finances - Saxony-Anhalt draws 91 percent from EU funding pot
Saxony-Anhalt is still threatened with a loss of EU funding in the hundreds of millions. Around 1.38 billion euros had been committed to the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) by the end of November, as the Ministry of Finance in Magdeburg announced in response to an inquiry. This corresponds to 91.33 percent of the total volume.
This means that the state is not making use of all the opportunities to promote investments in growth and jobs, for example. Among other things, the fund is intended to help improve living conditions in structurally weak regions.
The projects for the 2014 to 2020 funding period must be completed by the end of 2023. The total volume amounts to 1.51 billion euros. A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Finance said that the efforts of all those involved are currently focused on making the best possible use of EU funds. A final picture will only become clear in the coming year.
Finance Minister Michael Richter (CDU) had already admitted in the summer that the volume would not be exhausted. "There will be funds left over. I am assuming over 100 million euros," said the CDU politician. "With a total volume of 1.5 billion euros, that is manageable."
Richter justified the fact that not all funds can be used with the coronavirus pandemic, among other things. Supply bottlenecks and staff shortages have led to delays. There are capacity bottlenecks in the trades for construction projects. In some cases, award procedures came to nothing and had to be repeated in order to find a contractor.
The delays affected major construction projects in the areas of urban development funding, energy-efficient refurbishment and research and development, among others. In total, more than 6500 projects were supported during the funding period.
Overview of ERDF projects
Read also:
- A clan member is punished here
- Traffic lawyer warns: Don't talk to the police!
- Will he be convicted as Jutta's murderer after 37 years?
- He also wanted to kill his cousin
- Despite the threat of losing hundreds of millions of EU funding, the CDU's Finance Minister Michael Richter in Saxony-Anhalt admitted that there will be leftover funds, estimated to be over 100 million euros.
- The CDU politician Richter justified the inability to use all EU funds due to the coronavirus pandemic, resulting in supply bottlenecks, staff shortages, capacity issues, and delayed award procedures.
- The incomplete use of EU funds has affected major construction projects in Saxony-Anhalt, including urban development, energy-efficient refurbishment, and research and development, supporting over 6500 projects during the funding period.
- The BMF (Federal Ministry of Finance) in Magdeburg is currently focusing on making the best possible use of the remaining EU funds, with a total volume of 1.51 billion euros.
- Saxony-Anhalt draws a significant portion of its finances from EU funding, with 91.33% of the total volume committed to the ERDF by the end of November, totaling 1.38 billion euros.
Source: www.stern.de
