Questions and answers: European Commission endorses Greece's €30.5 billion recovery and resilience plan
How did the Commission assess Greece's recovery and resilience plan?
The Regulation ensures a transparent assessment on the basis of 11 criteria against the back of the six pillars of the Regulation. The 11 criteria require an assessment of whether:
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-the measures have a lasting impact;
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-the measures address the challenges identified in the country-specific recommendations or a significant subset of it;
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-the milestones and targets which allow for monitoring the progress with the reforms and investments are clear and realistic;
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-the plans meet the 37% climate expenditure target and the 20% digital expenditure target;
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-the plans respect the do no significant harm principle;
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-the plans provide an adequate control and audit mechanism and set out the plausibility of the costing information.
The Commission has summarised its assessment in the proposal for the Council Implementing Decision. The accompanying staff-working document provides detailed documentation on the assessment.
Does Greece's recovery and resilience plan effectively support the green transition?
The Greek plan's contribution to the green transition amounts to 38% of its total allocation of €30.5 billion. This is in excess of the minimum of 37% required by the RRF Regulation.
Measures to support Greece's green transition include €1.3 billion to renovate more than 100,000 residences to increase their energy efficiency and €264 million to install more than 8,000 charging points for electric vehicles and replacing 220 urban transport buses in Athens and Thessaloniki with electric vehicles. It also includes investments to support the further expansion of renewable energy sources in Greece's energy mix and the construction of electricity interconnections between the Cyclades islands and the mainland.
Further investments aim to strengthen Greece's civil protection to prevent and manage climate related risks, including fire prevention, and support for a national reforestation programme that aims to enhance nature and biodiversity protection.
Reforms contained in the plan will ensure that future urban development plans will include a dedicated chapter on adaptation measures to strengthen overall climate resilience across all of Greece's municipalities.
Does Greece's recovery and resilience plan of Greece effectively contribute to the digital transition?
The Greek plan's contribution to the digital transition amounts to 23.3% of its total allocation of €30.5 billion. This is in excess of the minimum of 20% required by the RRF Regulation.
Measures to support Greece's digital transition include €231 million to provide approximately 600,000 school pupils and students in low-income families with vouchers for the purchase of tablets/laptops, and installing 40,000 interactive learning systems in schools. A further €1.3 billion is allocated for various projects to digitalise the public administration and to facilitate the development of smart cities across Greece. Additional funding is specifically earmarked to digital initiatives aimed at increasing the efficiency of key services, including tax and customs administration, justice, healthcare, social welfare, education and employment services. Significant reforms and investments are included to accelerate the deployment of very high capacity networks, in particular 5G and fibre networks, and the utilisation of space technologies and applications to support secure connectivity services. Digital upskilling measures included in the plan are expected to contribute to bridging the digital divide across the population and reduce skills mismatches in the labour market.
Does the recovery and resilience plan represent a balanced response to Greece's economic and social situation?
The Commission considers that the plan represents a comprehensive and adequately balanced response to the economic and social situation, thereby contributing appropriately to all six pillars referred to in Article 3 of Regulation.
The plan includes measures intended to move Greece towards a low-carbon energy model, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase renewable energy sources, promote energy-efficiency and the energy renovation of buildings, introduce sustainable transport modes and protect the natural environment.
Reforms and investments on digital transformation relate to enhancing connectivity and broadband coverage, digitalising public administration and key sectors of the economy, and developing digital infrastructures and digital skills.
The plan provides for measures to reinforce private investments, including for SMEs, improve the business environment, stimulate research, development and innovation performance, increase employment and link skills to jobs, and enhance the efficiency of the public administration and the justice system.
Targeted interventions are designed to strengthen social cohesion by addressing challenges related to labour market participation, skills development, and equal opportunities, while a number of investments facilitate territorial cohesion.
Concerning policies for the next generation, reforms and investments across all levels of education aim at digitalising processes and infrastructures, and developing digital skills for the youth, while other measures focus on early childhood education and care.
Do the reforms effectively address all or a significant subset of the relevant country-specific recommendations issued to Greece in the context of the European Semester?
Greece's recovery plan includes an extensive set of mutually reinforcing reforms and investments that contribute to effectively addressing all or a significant subset of the economic and social challenges outlined in the country-specific recommendations addressed to Greece by the Council in the European Semester in 2019 and in 2020
In particular, the plan includes measures in the areas of quality and sustainability of public finances; accessibility and resilience of the health system; active labour market policies; policies supporting public and private investments in the areas of education, skills and employability; research and development; safe and sustainable transport and logistics, clean and efficient production and use of energy including renewable energy and interconnection projects; environmental infrastructures; renewal of urban areas; and the digital transformation of the public administration and businesses.
The plan also includes a significant number of measures addressing challenges in the areas of fiscal structural policies, social welfare, financial stability, labour and product markets, and the modernisation of public administration, following up, broadening and complementing post-programme commitments.
In the medium-term, given its strong focus on investment, employment and productivity-enhancing policies, the implementation of the plan is expected to support the economic recovery and thus contribute to achieving a prudent fiscal position and ensuring debt sustainability in line with the relevant CSR.
For More Information
Press release: European Commission endorses Greece's €30.5 billion recovery and resilience plan
Recovery and Resilience Facility: Questions and answers
Factsheet on Greece's recovery and resilience plan
Staff-working document accompanying the proposal for a Council Implementing Decision
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