“We we are confident that social convergence will eventually leverage economic convergence,” says José Manuel Bolieiro
“We we are confident that social convergence will eventually leverage economic convergence,” says José Manuel Bolieiro
Horta
Presidência do Governo Regional
The President of the Regional Government of the Azores, José Manuel Bolieiro, delivered to the Regional Legislative Assembly a communication on the Azores 2030 Operational Programme,stating that there should be a "special effort" towards social and economic convergence for the development of the Region.
"We must undertake a special effort towards social convergence, alongside economic convergence. We have adopted the principle that the economy serves the people, improving their social conditions and being a social driving force, as we are confident that social convergence will eventually leverage economic convergence. It is not the people at the service of the economy, but rather the economy at the service of the people," said the President of the Government.
José Manuel Bolieiro called for the intervention of "everyone" in the definition of the Azores 2030 Operational Programme, whose preliminary proposal is available on the Portal of the Government. According to him, this matter is "a true element of development and social and economic convergence between the Region, the country and the European Union."
“This is the time, after hearing all partners, to move forward with its definition. Without delay or haste. The Azores are, for the time being, the only region in the country that is promoting a widespread public consultation on its operational programme," he added.
The President also stated: "Portugal has not yet signed the partnership agreement with the European Commission, and in European practice, nothing is decided until everything is decided. Obviously, we are promoting participation, and in good time."
José Manuel Bolieiro heard last week parties, social partners and other entities on this document. In this context, he reiterated his wish for this document to be "an important contribution" to "an agenda for the convergence of the Azores," namely with the allocation of 561 million Euros out of a total of 1,140 million Euros for the social area, including education, health and social inclusion.
“Our social, economic and financial reality is, therefore, very complex, given the situation that has been created in the past, the President of the Government recalled, pointing out "frustrating indicators in education, health and the economy."
“We want a more cohesive and fairer society, with more equal opportunities and based on the resources generated by a more competitive private economy, which ensures the provision of fundamental quality services such as health and education. It is the future of the Azores that we are all concerned with. We are counting on everyone's involvement to accomplish these goals together," he added.
The Azores 2030 Operational Programme (Azores OP 2030) is a programme co-financed by the European Structural and Investment Funds - ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) and ESF+ (European Social Fund Plus) for the 2021-2027 programming period.
The operational programmes are facing delays in their preparation, as a result of the well-known pandemic and public health situation. Consequently, since February 2020, the focus of the European Union and Member States has been redirected to the preparation and implementation of the Coronavirus Crisis Response Investment Initiative (CRII and CRII+) programmes and the Next-Generation EU, implemented through REACT-EU and the Recovery and Resilience Programme (RRP). This has led to delays in the preparatory process for the Multiannual Financial Framework 21-27 (MFF).
The preliminary proposal of the Azores 2030 Operational Programme, available on the Portal of the Government, summarises a very wide range of consultations and contributions from numerous regional agents. It contains the main proposals in terms of regional development policies for the near future, being in compliance with the main guidelines of the European 2030 Strategy, the Portugal 2030 Strategy, the National Partnership Agreement as well as with the regional strategic orientation principles.
Related note: Speech delivered by the President of the Government
