Empirical evidence on the macroeconomic effects of EU cohesion policy

Philipp Mohl evaluates the macroeconomic effects of EU Cohesion Policy with the help of empirical methods.

His findings indicate that in particular the part of EU Cohesion Policy which is spent for the poorest regions (the so-called Objective 1 funding) has a positive and statistically significant impact on economic growth.

Moreover, the employment effects of EU Cohesion Policy seem to be conditional on the educational attainment, i.e., in particular regions with a high share of high-skilled population tend to benefit from EU funds.

Finally, the author does not find evidence that EU funds significantly increase public investment in the EU countries, which points to a crowding out of national investment.

Overall, the gained insights contribute to a more profound understanding of the macroeconomic effects of EU Cohesion Policy, which is essential to design an effective and efficient EU spending system.