91998E2379

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2379/98

by Ernesto Caccavale (UPE) to the Commission

(27 July 1998)

Subject: Naples and the European Regional Development Fund

Can the Commission provide the following information:

- the number of projects submitted in the City of Naples to be funded by the ERDF;

- the number of projects actually approved, their location and duration;

- the amount of financial aid provided or promised by the European Union for projects funded by the ERDF on the basis of the estimates contained within the present Structural Funds;

- a comparative analysis of the European projects submitted, funded and carried out in other Italian cities within the context of the ERDF?

Can the Commission provide data showing the impact on employment of the projects which have been carried out with ERDF funding in Naples, by comparison with projects in other Italian cities?

In the light of the current situation, can the Commission also indicate any circumstances in which the City of Naples has not fully utilized the ERDF funds and the extent to which the City of Naples will be able to continue to receive the support from that Fund?

Answer given by Mrs Wulf-Mathies on behalf of the Commission

(30 September 1998)

Since the first reform of the Structural Funds in 1989, the predominant form of assistance has been operational programmes. Apart from major projects, which are dealt with on an individual basis, the specific projects financed inside a programme from which Italy benefits are simply communicated to the members of the monitoring committee for the programme by the authority responsible for its implementation.

In general, the list of these projects is not structured by physical location but by beneficiary (commune, province, region or company benefiting from aid). On the basis of the data which the Commission has, it is not therefore possible to provide the detailed information requested by the Honourable Member for the town of Naples, or to make a comparative analysis with other Italian cities. Also, the Commission does not have data concerning the impact on employment in the city of Naples only.

With regard to the resources made available by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for the city of Naples, the Objective 1 Community Support Framework for Italy for the period 1994-99 stipulates that 70 % of the resources allocated to the region of Campania (ECU 890 million) should be used in the metropolitan area of Naples. A specific evaluation of the use of these resources has not been carried out yet. Nevertheless, under its agreement of July 1995 with the Italian authorities on improving the management of the Structural Funds in Italy, the Commission is following closely the implementation of all the programmes, including the regional programme for Campania.

It is not possible to indicate the level of Structural Funds spending for the city of Naples in the next programming period.