Members of the Monitoring Committee for the Operational Programme for the Implementation of the European Cohesion Policy in the Period 2014-2021 (OP) met today at Brdo pri Kranju. Most of the members participated in the meeting via videoconference. The meeting was chaired by State Secretary mag. Monika Kirbiš Rojs.
Members of the Monitoring Committee (MC) approved the 2020 Annual Implementation Report, a document prepared by the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy as the Managing Authority in cooperation with the relevant line ministries. The Ministry of Finance as the Certifying Authority and the Budget Supervision Office of the Republic of Slovenia as the Audit Authority presented their reports. MC members were briefed on the progress made concerning the amendment of the relevant OP to accommodate the additional funding from React-EU, and on the progress made concerning the implementation of financial instruments, EU macro-regional strategies and territorial cooperation. Additionally, MC members discussed the 2021 Communication Plan and the developments concerning the evaluation of the OP.
State Secretary updated the MC members on the progress made in preparing the relevant 2021-2027 documents. On this occasion, she underlined the importance of the complementary use of the available Cohesion Policy funds with the funds allocated to Slovenia under the nextGenerationEU, an instrument designed to power the post-Covid-19 recovery in EU Member States. According to State Secretary, the funds available under various EU funding mechanisms should be seen as one big chunk. ‘’That is the only way we can address the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and as a country get prepared to face future challenges,’’ stressed State Secretary and added that ‘’the remaining funds under the current OP will be paid out from the EU budget by the end of 2023. This amount will be topped up by a further EUR 330 million coming from the React-EU initiative. The latter will primarily be earmarked for strengthening the resilience of the healthcare system and supporting social services, social infrastructure, the economy and education. In addition, we will have at our disposal a EUR 3.2 billion (in current prices) Cohesion Policy envelope. The national Recovery and Resilience Plan will play a key role in our recovery and resilience building efforts. Not only because of the measures it sets out, but also because of the planned reforms which will pave the way towards a long-term recovery of Slovenia and support the green and digital transformation’’, concluded State Secretary. In this context, Slovenia plans to use a total of EUR 2.5 billion.
The MC meeting is convened at least once a year. It consists of the representatives of 28 institutions or bodies and is chaired by mag. Monika Kirbiš Rojs, State Secretary at the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy. The designated institutions and bodies include the relevant line ministries, government offices, economic and social partners, environmental NGOs, disability organizations, the Human Rights Ombudsman of the Republic of Slovenia, local and regional authorities and councils of both cohesion regions. Representatives of the European Commission participate in the meetings in an advisory capacity.