Austrian Regional Aid and European Cohesion Policy

Over the 1995–1999 programming period, Austria will receive a total of ECU 1,623 billion from the EU structural funds, of which 42 percent is explicitly designed for regional policy purposes. The list agreed upon of regions qualifying for subsidies and other support is well-targeted in that such regions are defined by relatively poor economic performance, deficits in human capital endowment and an unfavorable employment trend. Still, by not being sufficiently restrictive – covering 40.9 percent of the population – it does not guarantee an adequate concentration of resources on the major problem areas. It is therefore left to regional policy at the national level to set meaningful priorities within the scope of the negotiated list.