Letter of 18 June 2014 from Elżbieta Bieńkowska, Vice-President of the Council of Ministers/Minister for Infrastructure and Development, to Erminia Mazzoni, Chair of the Committee on Petitions of the European Parliament
Translation
Dear Chair,
In response to the letter of 5 May 2014 requesting a response to petition No 2761/2013 on the division, in a manner which is unfair and contrary to the principles of cohesion, of EU funds between various sub-regions of Mazowieckie province between 2007 and 2013, I hereby submit the following opinion:
The Minister for Infrastructure and Development takes note of the adverse socio-economic situation in the Radom sub-region. Mazowieckie province is developing unevenly, and there are significant developmental discrepancies between the individual sub-regions. Basic indicators of socio-economic development for the sub-region (GDP, unemployment rate – Annex 1) point to the entrenchment of the adverse situation in the sub-region in recent years, placing it in last place in the province. It should be stressed, however, that such discrepancies are seen in practically every province. Provincial capitals are centres of growth, while the areas most distant from them show the greatest prevalence of negative phenomena. Given these trends, strategic documents have defined so-called 'strategic intervention zones'. These zones include provincial towns, such as Radom.
The petition's negative assessment of the use of EU funds in Mazowieckie province in terms of territorial division is not justified. It should be stressed that the territorial distribution of cohesion policy funds depends to a large degree on the absorption capacity of entities acting in individual administrative units (businesses, self-government units, NGOs, etc.) and on their activeness and effectiveness in applying for support. In the case of national financing programmes, entities from all over the country may apply. However, in the case of regional programmes, only entities from a particular province may apply. The amount of the available funds that ends up in the individual municipalities, counties and sub-regions depends to a great extent on the activeness of those entities and on the quality of their applications for financing. One should therefore talk not of 'receiving', but of 'acquiring' support, as 'receiving' could give rise to the false impression that funds are distributed in a top-down manner, without the active participation of the beneficiaries themselves.
The primary mode in which projects are selected for funding is through competition, in accordance with which projects are selected that meet the criteria formulated by the Monitoring Committee established for that particular operational programme. They are also selected according to the extent to which the proposed projects would contribute to achieving the objectives of the programme and the region's development objectives, as well as in view of other more general criteria connected with the particular type of intervention. These criteria are known to the entities applying for support, and the conclusions of the assessments are always forwarded to the applicants. What is more, the applicant has the right to appeal against the assessment and obtain a second assessment.
LT\1036924EN.doc PE539.718v01-00
EN United in diversity EN Therefore, any intra-regional discrepancies in terms of use of cohesion policy funds are not the result of a conscious policy to 'divide funds between individual regions in an unfair manner', but of the absorption capacity of applicants, the location of the entities and the quality of the projects submitted (projects carried out in the individual sub-regions of Mazowieckie province are set out in Annex 2).
When comparing the use of NSRF funds between 2007 and 2013 in the individual sub-regions of Mazowieckie province, it should be noted that the major part of EU financing was won by projects being carried out in the capital city of Warsaw, while the Radom sub-region came in last place. EU funding amounting to EUR 2.4 billion for projects in the Radom sub-region accounts for 6 % of funding contracted for Mazowieckie province, as compared with Warsaw, which receives 45 %. To a large extent, this difference results from Warsaw's status as Poland's capital city, and from the fact that several large-scale projects of national importance are being carried out in Warsaw (including the most expensive project: construction of the central section of a second metro line).
An analogous break-down of the distribution of funds between sub-regions restricted to the Mazowieckie Regional Operational Programme shows much smaller discrepancies (Annex 3). Admittedly, Warsaw is in first place in terms of the amount of EU funding received for projects, while the Radom sub-region is in last place, but in terms of the share as a percentage, the funding breaks down much more evenly. The Radom region receives 12 % of EU funding under the Regional Operational Programme, while Warsaw receives 20 %. The difference between the two sub-regions with the highest and the lowest levels of funding is thus significantly lower than was stated in the petition (according to the petition, the Radom sub-region received three times less from the Mazowieckie Regional Operational Programme). For a fuller impression, one should also take into account the per capita amount of EU funding (Annex 4). After calculating the amount of funding per capita, the Radom sub-region is seen to be in fourth place among all the sub-regions of Mazowieckie province, whereas Warsaw is in last place. Across the whole province, the level of EU funding per capita amounted to PLN 1,298, and the figure for the Radom sub-region did not diverge from the regional average.
In summary, one should unequivocally conclude that the theory set out in the petition on the unfair division of funds to Radom is baseless. When carrying out a proper assessment of the use of EU funds by individual sub-regions in Mazowieckie province, one should:
take account not of the absolute amounts, but of the per capita amount, since the population density varies between the regions;
bear in mind that the Regional Operational Programme funds are not distributed on a territorial basis, but that the values of EU funding within a province reflect the activeness of beneficiaries in particular regions and their effectiveness in applying for EU funds.
Yours sincerely,
PE539.718v01-00 2/9 LT\1036924EN.doc EN DEPUTY MINISTER
Marceli Niezgoda [signature] UNDERSECRETARY OF STATE
For the attention of:
1. Małgorzata Wierzbicka, Director of the Department for Infrastructure Programmes, Ministry for Infrastructure and Development 2. Marek Kalupa, Director of the Department for the Coordination of the Implementation of EU Funds, Ministry for Infrastructure and Development
LT\1036924EN.doc 3/9 PE539.718v01-00 EN List of annexes:
Annex 1: The socio-economic situation in the Radom sub-region
Annex 2: Projects carried out in individual sub-regions of the Mazowieckie sub-region: All programmes – value of contracts and amount of EU funding, as of 30 April 2014. (PLN)
Annex 3: Projects carried out in individual sub-regions of the Mazowieckie sub-region: Mazowieckie Regional Operational Programme – value of contracts and amount of EU funding, as of 30 April 2014. (PLN)
Annex 4: Projects carried out in individual sub-regions of the Mazowieckie sub-region: Mazowieckie Regional Operational Programme – value of contracts and amount of EU funding, as of 30 April 2014. (PLN)
PE539.718v01-00 4/9 LT\1036924EN.doc EN Annex 1
The socio-economic situation in the Radom sub-region
The Radom sub-region has the lowest GDP per capita in Mazowieckie province. This indicator has grown little in comparison with the national average since 2007; however, this change is significantly smaller than in other sub-regions. In relation to the province average, however, there has been no change. In this regard, Radom sub-region also appears to be the worst performer in the whole region.
Territorial entity Gross Domestic Gross Domestic Gross Domestic Product Product per capita Product per per capita, province = 100 capita, Poland = 100
2007 2011 2007 2011 2007 2011
PLN PLN % % % %
POLAND 30,873 39,665 100.0 100.0 - -
MAZOWIECKIE 49,350 64,790 159.9 163.3 100.0 100.0
Sub-region 25 - Ciechanowsko- 32,938 48,383 106.7 122.0 66.7 74.7 Płocki
Sub-region 26 - Ostrołęcko- 23,299 30,742 75.5 77.5 47.2 47.4 Siedlecki
Sub-region 27 - Radom 22,566 29,599 73.1 74.6 45.7 45.7
Sub-region 28 - City of 93,243 119,828 302.0 302.1 188.9 184.9 Warsaw Sub-region 29 - Warsaw East 24,147 33,952 78.2 85.6 48.9 52.4
Sub-region 30 - Warsaw West 36,240 50,036 117.4 126.1 73.4 77.2
Source: KSI SIMIK
LT\1036924EN.doc 5/9 PE539.718v01-00 EN The unemployment rate in the Radom sub-region is the highest in the province and is almost double the national average
Unemployment rate
2007 2012
POLAND 11.2 13.4
MAZOWIECKIE 9.0 10.7
Sub-region 25 - Ciechanowsko-Płocki 16.2 18.0
Sub-region 26 - Ostrołęcko-Siedlecki 14.3 16.0
Sub-region 27 - Radom 22.1 24.6
Białobrzegi County 14.3 17.0
Kozienice County 15.2 19.1
Lipsko County 14.3 17.0
Przysucha County 24.0 27.8
Radom County 28.3 30.3
Szydłowiec County 33.4 38.0
Zwoleń County 17.1 21.9
City of Radom County 21.8 22.6
Sub-region 28 - City of Warsaw 2.9 4.3
Sub-region 29 - Warsaw East 10.6 13.3
Sub-region 30 - Warsaw West 6.7 8.9
Source: KSI SIMIK
PE539.718v01-00 6/9 LT\1036924EN.doc EN Annex 2
Projects carried out in individual sub-regions of the Mazowieckie sub-region: All programmes – value of contracts and amount of EU funding, as of 30 April 2014. (PLN)
Sub-region Total amount EU funding
Ciechanowsko-Płocki 6,304,458,757 3,613,854,404
Capital City of Warsaw 33,104,193,775 16,964,156,377
Ostrołęcko-Siedlecki 7,257,936,860 3,734,896,789
Radom 4,325,617,634 2,378,160,845
Warsaw East 8,665,862,830 4,700,047,172
Warsaw West 11,256,641,479 5,842,368,907
TOTAL 70,914,711,336 37,233,484,494
Source: KSI SIMIK
LT\1036924EN.doc 7/9 PE539.718v01-00 EN Annex 3
Projects carried out in individual sub-regions of the Mazowieckie sub-region: Mazowieckie Regional Operational Programme – value of contracts and amount of EU funding, as of 30 April 2014. (PLN)
Sub-region Total amount EU funding
Ciechanowsko-Płocki 1,936,798,247 1,179,012,840
Capital City of Warsaw 2,779,678,176 1,376,668,921
Ostrołęcko-Siedlecki 2,148,180,271 1,437,284,765
Radom 1,385,816,338 804,031,473
Warsaw East 2,146,995,979 1,137,380,994
Warsaw West 1,711,702,800 901,924,577
TOTAL 12,109,171,811 6,836,303,570
Source: KSI SIMIK
PE539.718v01-00 8/9 LT\1036924EN.doc EN Annex 4
Level of EU funding per capita – on the basis of funding agreements signed as part of the Mazowieckie Regional Operational Programme, as of 30 April 2014. (PLN)
Source: Own calculations based on KSI SIMIK and Central Statistics Office local databank.
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