Catalonia has managed to mobilize 70% of the funds allocated under the European Union’s Next Generation program. However, despite this significant progress, half of the funds have yet to be awarded.
Although there is widespread concern among hundreds of companies about the possibility of being left without subsidies and European funds, the Generalitat de Catalunya shows satisfaction and optimism at this intermediate point in the distribution of funds.
So far, 2,845 million euros have been allocated out of the 3,420 million euros allocated to Catalonia. Of these, EUR 1,984 million have been mobilized and EUR 953 million have been committed.
Although only half of the funds mobilized have been allocated and less than a third of the total allocated, the Generalitat highlights that the percentage committed is 42% higher than the average for the rest of the autonomous communities.
The award of European Next Generation funds
However, difficulties still persist in the awarding process. The general director of European funds and State aid of the ‘conselleria’ of Economy and Finance, Aleix Cubells, explains that there is a lack of information and planning in certain resources that have not yet been allocated.
Despite this, the Generalitat compares itself with other regions and highlights that Catalonia leads in terms of money mobilized through its public administration, surpassing communities such as Valencia, Madrid and Andalusia.
The ‘consellera’ of Economy and Finance, Natàlia Mas, values positively the work of mobilization of Next Generation funds by the Generalitat de Catalunya.
It recognizes that, despite existing limitations and inefficiencies, they are managing funds efficiently and better than other regions. Also noteworthy is the good pace of recent months, where half of the funds mobilized between January and May of this year have been managed.
However, there is a warning about the slowdown in the awarding process due to the entry into force of Ministerial Order 55, which has paralyzed many bidding procedures.
In addition, the centralized management system, short application windows and overlapping aid programs have also made the process more difficult.
Some disqualifications
800 million are currently blocked due to the verification of conflicts of interest, due to administrative problems in the computer system.
In view of these difficulties, the Generalitat’s officials take the opportunity to ask the State to correct the errors detected in this first phase of the distribution of the funds, since there is a risk that the transformative impact of these funds will be lost if the appropriate measures are not taken.
Catalonia has managed to mobilize 70% of the Next Generation funds allocated, but half of the resources have yet to be allocated.
