We must acknowledge the Minister for the South of an exercise in realism and goodwill. Giuseppe Provenzano appears determined not to waste the structural funds of the European Union and to reschedule the co-financed interventions. The test takes on a significant political importance. Not only because it attempts to make up for a historic delay, an evil even endemic. But also because it will be a useful litmus test to understand how we will use the European resources that Italy will have available in the coming months.
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The metaphor of water: from the basins to the periphery
The most appropriate metaphor, which summarizes all the difficulties in the use of European funds in the South, and beyond, has so far been that of the water introduced into an aqueduct. The water must get to quench the most uncertain development areas and, in the case of immediate needs for the health and social emergency, it must be of immediate use. Like oxygen for Covid’s most serious patients. The horse (businesses, communities) awaits it but there is little when it is there. Yet collected in large European basins, to which are added the Italian ones in case of co-financing or partnership. The aqueduct full of holes, unfortunately not only imaginary. And of bottlenecks. These are the delays of the state and regional bureaucracy. Local selfishness often results in conflicts over the ownership of water (if it flows in my territory only I have to decide how to use it). Distribution paralyzes us, meanwhile the thirsty horse is wasting away. The supply expires and we often forget it.
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The European basin is likely to close and therefore, in trouble, at the end the water is poured to refresh the environment (and a little consensus is obtained), it is literally thrown away or used for secondary and useless works (the roundabout in the road, the sidewalk redone in extremis). The horse, in the meantime, perhaps already dead, but politics has watered the plants (the voters). Brokerage wins over the real need of local and national communities.
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Professional training, the black hole
In the case of professional training, a sort of black hole was formed which has not always improved human capital, but has certainly fattened personal chains and various types of belonging. The contribution is not rarely considered a subsidy due. The idea that the investment should have a return and generate completely eventual income and work. And so that spending on health and water scattered to refresh the environment and create consensus free of any opportunity cost. It is the perverse logic of the common good which belongs to everyone, not anyone. So you can waste it. Nobody bears responsibility for it. Now the commitment is to break this vicious circle.
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European funds for the South
The Minister for the South and Territorial Cohesion now promises to reschedule the interventions and to free up most of the 10.4 billion available for interventions in the most disadvantaged areas of the country. The pandemic has induced the European institutions, with two new regulations, to grant greater margins of flexibility also to face the health, economic and social emergency. Provenzano worked closely with the European Commissioner for Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, with his cohesion and reform colleague, Elisa Ferreira, and with Vice-President Frans Timmermans. By size, financial dimension and effective procedural simplification – explains the minister – it is the most important reform of the cohesion policy of the last ten years and goes almost totally in the direction always supported by Italy with the governments of any orientation.
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The reasons for the failure
But why, in these long years, have the interventions been so problematic and dispersive? Provenzano speaks of a condition of solitude for European cohesion policy in our country. Community funds have often been used as replacement and non-additional expenditure, as the spirit of solidarity among the members of the Union would like. The parcelling has reached extreme levels. If you want to get an idea – explains Luca Bianchi, general manager of Svimez go to the portal Opencoesione.gov.it. The site records the progress of the various community programs. You will find that of the 44.7 billion available to our country, in the 2014-2020 EU budget period – and time is running inexorably – projects for only 18 billion have been activated. But there are more than 595 thousand programs, which means that they have an average size of around 30 thousand euros. With few exceptions, we are not faced with strategic choices, on an adequate scale, and with a growth horizon. In many cases, the fundamental distinction between ordinary and extraordinary resources has disappeared. The funds are distributed in advance and become, in substance, the exclusive property of the beneficiaries, Regions and ministries.
The loss of technical skills of local authorities has impoverished and simplified the quality of the interventions. The absence of central governance has left room for regional jealousies and the particularities of the territories. The Cohesion Agency at the Presidency of the Council – which was supposed to coordinate interventions and investments in order to have a coherent overall picture – has in fact turned into a sort of great reporting consultant. The agreements signed with the responsible ministries and with some Regions should now guarantee the maintenance of the territorial destination constraint of resources, which has often been questioned in the past.
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The European structural funds
The revision of the National Operational Programs (Pon) reached 5.4 billion. With a significant share of European structural funds (ERDF, European Regional Development Fund and ESF, European Social Fund). For example, about 730 million go to school, half of which are from European structural funds. The Ministry of Development was able to allocate 1.480 billion to the guarantee fund for businesses. The more complex reprogramming with the Regions. And it stopped at 5 billion, of which about 3 billion in the South, adding the amounts of the two European structural funds. Far below our estimates – admits the minister himself – and without real central coordination it will be extremely difficult in the future to accelerate investments and avoid waste. Guidelines have been set for regional Operational Programs (Por). The degree of resistance owned by the Regions remains quite high (my water and woe to those who touch it). Now let’s see if Provenzano will be able to reverse consolidated traditions of delays and waste. The imminence of regional elections does not help. And the health and social emergency is often such that it is not possible to distinguish needs from abuses, investment programs from maintaining relationships and defending position rents. Europe observes, swollen with too many prejudices. But this time, far wider and more vital resources are at stake for the future of the country.
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