site.btaEU Member States' Directors General Responsible for Cohesion Policy Meet in Sofia

Sofia, February 14 (BTA) - A meeting of the Directors General of EU Member States responsible for Cohesion Policy was held in Sofia on Wednesday.

Nearly 70 delegates of the 28 Member States, the European Commission, the General Secretariat of the Council, the Committee of the Regions, the European Investment Bank and the European Free Trade Association participated in the event.

"We need smartly designed measures concerning the future Cohesion Policy. To be successful, we must adopt smart strategic planning and smart implementation and control systems," Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev said at the meeting, quoted by the Government Information Service.

"The Bulgarian Presidency [of the EU Council] has the opportunity to encourage the debate on a simpler and more effective Cohesion Policy," he pointed out.

On behalf of the European Commission, Marc Lemaitre, Director-General of the Directorate General for Regional and Urban Policy, commented that now is the right time to pay special attention to Cohesion Policy. He added that the Commission will follow closely the results of the meeting in Sofia and will take into consideration the proposals made by Member States.

The relationship between Cohesion Policy, economic governance and the European Semester topped the agenda of the meeting. Ways to speed up the implementation of the European Structural and Investment Funds were discussed as well.

The results of the meeting will contribute to the debate on the future of Cohesion Policy during the EU General Affairs Council meeting in its cohesion format, due in Luxembourg on April 12, 2018, the Government Information Service said.