Reform and Growth Facility plan: tangible support for economic development in the Western Balkans

The EESC has adopted an opinion on the new Reform and Growth Facility for the Western Balkans, at the Commission's request. The plan will support the Western Balkans to speed up regional economic cooperation. This is the first time the EU has focused on economic development and socioeconomic convergence in the region.

Recently proposed by the Commission, the Reform and Growth Facility for the Western Balkans, the financial pillar of the Growth Plan, will support a range of socioeconomic and fundamental reforms in the region. In addition, it will support Western Balkan economies to speed up regional economic cooperation as a stepping stone to European value chains and greater competitiveness. This should help them integrate smoothly into the EU single market

As the EESC member and rapporteur for the opinion, Ionuţ Sibian said, “On the basis of the experience of implementing the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) in the EU Member States, we recommend establishing Growth Plan scoreboard and country monitoring committees to enhance the implementation and coordination of the plan and monitor its operation. Of course, these committees should include social partners, as well as specialised civil society organisations from the beneficiary countries.”

The EESC opinion states that a gradual, predictable and merit-based approach to acquiring benefits during the EU accession process, including financial support, integration into the EU single market and participation in the work of EU institutions, is the best way to proceed towards EU enlargement.

In her address at the April plenary session, the EESC member and co-rapporteur for the opinion, Dragica Martinović pointed to the socioeconomic convergence gap between these countries and the EU average. “This gap is and will remain a challenge unless it is gradually closed. The New Growth Plan and Reform Facility for the Western Balkans changes the rules of the game, as this is the first time that the EU has put focus on economic development and socioeconomic convergence in the region.”

Ms Martinović added: “Regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations throughout the EU accession process and the focus on developing the Common Regional Market (CRM) are also of crucial importance.”

The Committee calls for clear, transparent guidance on how to apply the proposed conditionality package. It also reiterates the importance of ensuring that the EU's focus on stability and geopolitical interests does not come at the expense of the rule of law and democracy. That is why input from social partners and civil society organisations should be sought in a timely manner and given due consideration throughout the plan's implementation phase.