NRW Funding Programmes of the EU Structural Funds

In general, the State of North Rhine-Westphalia uses state funds and the money provided by the European Commission for North Rhine-Westphalia from the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) for two large funding programmes with future-oriented and sustainability-related objectives: the NRW ERDF/JTF Programme 2021-2027 with a focus on the economy and the NRW ESF Plus/JTF Programme 2021 -2027 with a focus on employment.

NRW ERDF/JTF Programme

The NRW ERDF/JTF Programme 2021-2027 is a multi-fund programme of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia for the 2021-2027 funding period.

The share of the NRW-ERDF programme part financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the State of North Rhine-Westphalia is intended to contribute to growth and employment in all parts of the state. The aim is to strengthen social, economic, ecological and social cohesion in North Rhine-Westphalia by implementing the European Green Deal and supporting the transition to a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy. A total of €3.1 billion are available for this purpose from 2021 to 2027, of which €1.3 billion are EU funds from the ERDF and €1.8 billion are state funds.

The NRW-JTF programme part financed from the Just Transition Fund (JTF) will systematically support the transition to a sustainable and climate-neutral economy in the Rhenish coal-mining region and at selected locations in the northern Ruhr region. Where today the generation of electricity from fossil fuels and carbon-intensive industries are of structural importance, a total of €1.1 billion, half of which is EU-JTF and half of which is state funding, are to be used from 2021-2027 to accelerate this transformation.

NRW-ESF Programme

The NRW ESF Plus/JTF Programme 2021-2027, in short ESF Programme 2021-2027, is a multi-fund programme of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia for the 2021-2027 funding period.

The funds from the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Just Transition Fund (JTF) are used for employment and social issues, i.e. to foster employment and social integration within the following two funding priorities: 1) education and further training, and 2) the skilled labour offensive. For the NRW-ESF Programme 2021-2027, the ESF will make €560 million available, there will be an additional €120 million from the JTF. This total of €680 million will be supplemented by state funds.

European Territorial Cooperation (ETC)/Interreg

The focus of European Territorial Cooperation (ETC), formerly the Community Initiative “Interreg”, lies both on direct cross-border cooperation as well as on transnational and interregional cooperation. On the one hand, its Interreg programmes support projects between SMEs and institutions as well as between science and business on important topics such as digitalisation, innovation or technology transfer, which – in the case of North Rhine-Westphalia – are put into practice with neighbouring regions in Belgium or the Netherlands (Interreg A). On the other hand, cooperation between institutions and local authorities or regions and other member states is fostered (Interreg B), with social, economic and ecological development in the foreground.

European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD)

With sustainable development in rural areas as its objective, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), together with national funds, supports farmers, local authorities and associations. In the new funding period from 2021 to 2027, the EAFRD, as the second, smaller pillar, has been incorporated in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) together with the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF). The aim is for the two CAP pillars to make a holistic contribution to the development of a sustainable agricultural economy in the EU. The Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture was responsible for developing the CAP Strategic Plan for the whole of Germany, which includes the funding priorities of both pillars. The EAFRD is thus no longer part of the EU’s regional structural policy.