In supporting this opinion on the effective engagement of local and regional authorities in the cohesion policy programmes for the 2021-27 period drawn up by ECR Vice-President Juraj Droba, CoR members ask for the full respect of the "partnership principle" and its implementation under the new instruments financed by Next Generation EU, such as the Just Transition Fund and the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).

President of the Bratislava Region, Mr Droba, said: "I would like to stress the importance of involving regional and local authorities in the negotiations on the new programming period at the EU level. The regional dimension and solid data are often missing in the debates between governments and the European Commission. Therefore, the voice of the regions and cities must be strengthened."

With a total of €392 billion for the 2021-2027 period, cohesion policy is the main investment policy of the European Union. Partnership agreements and operational programmes are the cornerstones of cohesion policy, laying out Member States' strategies on how to use structural funds to strengthen economic, social and territorial cohesion by reducing disparities between regions. In order to ensure that cohesion policy successfully meets citizens' needs on the ground, the full involvement of local and regional authorities, socio-economic partners and civil society at all stages of the preparation and implementation of these key documents is of paramount importance.

 Juraj Droba highlighted in his opinion that differences in the timing of the preparation of national recovery and resilience plans and partnership agreements may, in some cases, hinder effective institutional coordination and limit the search for synergies. The potential priority of RRF funding over cohesion policy, owing to the pressure for rapid implementation and take-up, may reduce the activities in the programming and implementation of cohesion policy 2021-27, contributing to further delays and take-up of cohesion funding. Therefore, he urged for the "main strategic documents for the new programming period be adopted without delay so that implementation can get under way as soon as possible".

 The plenary of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) adopted the opinion by overwhelming majority. It took place in hybrid format on 12 October 2021.