The President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, has warned the Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, Raffaele Fitto, of the risk that concentrating the management and distribution of the funds allocated to the outermost regions (ORs) within the Member States would pose to those regions.
He conveyed this to Fitto during a bilateral meeting they held as part of the 30th Conference of Presidents of the Outermost Regions (CRUP), which is taking place in Guadeloupe.
Clavijo has told Fitto that the new European strategy for the outermost regions (ORs) could end up being nothing more than «a declaration of intent» if the reform of the EU budget for 2028-2034 centralises the management of European funds within national governments.
Canary Islands: Centralisation undermines say in EU funding
This would «undermine the decision-making capacity» of these territories, he explained.
During this meeting, as detailed by the Government of the Canary Islands in a statement, Clavijo expressed his appreciation to Fitto for the «personal commitment» he has shown towards the outermost regions and for the change in approach introduced in the new strategy, which recognises these regions as strategic territories for the European Union.
However, he has emphasised that this recognition must be directly reflected in the resources and financial instruments that Europe makes available to them over the coming years.
The President of the Canary Islands has expressed concern about the potential consequences of the new budgetary framework, which proposes integrating a large proportion of the traditional cohesion, agriculture and fisheries funds into broader national and regional plans.
The regional government argues that, for the Canary Islands, this model could represent «a step backwards» in terms of guarantees of specific funding and the ability of regional authorities to participate directly in the planning, management and monitoring of European funds.
EU budget: Clavijo calls for effective tools for the new strategy
«I would like to thank Vice-President Fitto, who is due to visit the Canary Islands on 3 December, for the commitment he has shown to the outermost regions, because the new strategy represents a significant step forward and recognises the role we can play in the future of Europe,» said Clavijo.
But at the same time, he has raised «a concern that we need to address: we cannot have an ambitious strategy for the outermost regions whilst, at the same time, approving a budget that undermines the tools we need to implement it».
«If resources and decision-making are concentrated at the level of the states and regions, we lose our capacity for management; we will be taking a step backwards,» he added.
Furthermore, he acknowledged Fitto’s involvement in the European Commission’s proposal to extend until 2035 the exemptions from the European Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) applicable to certain air and sea connections in the outermost regions.
He also praised the work carried out by the Vice-President to promote this measure, even in the face of resistance within the Commission itself, considering it to be an example of how European institutions can adapt their general policies to the specific circumstances of the outermost regions.
In this regard, Clavijo has asked Fitto to maintain the same level of personal commitment during the negotiations on the next multiannual financial framework, the proposal for which sets out changes that may directly affect specific programmes and funds in the Canary Islands.
He argues that the new budgetary framework must preserve the additional cohesion funding, the support instruments for agriculture and fisheries, and the mechanisms that enable the additional connectivity costs of the outermost regions to be offset.
Canary Islands call for protection of key EU funding programmes
Among the priorities put forward to the Commission’s Vice-President is the maintenance of POSEI as an autonomous instrument, with its own regulations and sufficient funding to support local agricultural production and contribute to food sovereignty.
The Canary Islands are also calling for the continuation of specific allocations from the ERDF and the ESF+, as well as mechanisms to compensate for additional costs in the fishing sector, together with guarantees that the resources earmarked for the outermost regions will be identified and safeguarded in future financial instruments.
As Clavijo has emphasised, these measures must be accompanied by «effective participation» by regional authorities in decisions affecting their territories, thereby ensuring that administrative simplification does not result in the centralisation of European policies.
«Article 349 cannot remain merely a recognition on paper. It entitles us to have Europe take our specific characteristics into account and adapt its policies accordingly. That is why we need to preserve POSEI, the Cohesion and Fisheries Funds, and the instruments that compensate for our additional costs,» he argued.
Speaking in Guadalupe, Clavijo stated that the Canary Islands will maintain «an active stance until the end of the negotiations» and will step up its collaboration with Spain, France and Portugal so that the three states can jointly defend the legal and budgetary safeguards that preserve the special treatment afforded to the outermost regions.
He emphasised that the political commitment of the three governments is essential to ensure that the demands of the outermost regions are not undermined during the negotiations on the European budget and the regulations implementing its financial instruments.
To this end, the Government of the Canary Islands considers it essential to have Fitto’s support and direct involvement, both within the Commission and in negotiations with the Council and the European Parliament.
Migration: The Canary Islands call for EU solidarity and an emergency mechanism
The bilateral meeting also provided an opportunity to address the main social challenges facing the Canary Islands, which, as the president argued, require the effective implementation of the special treatment provided for the outermost regions.
On the issue of migration, Clavijo has called on the European Union to fully recognise the unique characteristics of the Canary Islands as an external Atlantic border and to put in place effective mechanisms for solidarity and shared responsibility.
He therefore emphasised that the management of arrivals, humanitarian assistance, the protection of unaccompanied migrant children and integration require «sufficient funding, operational support and ongoing coordination between the European institutions, the State and the autonomous community».
The Canary Islands also call for the future European emergency response mechanism for external borders to take into account exceptional situations of migratory pressure that may affect the archipelago and to enable the necessary resources to be mobilised swiftly.
The regional government also advocates strengthening European cooperation with countries of origin and transit, particularly in West Africa, through training, employment and economic development initiatives that help to create opportunities and improve the joint response to migration challenges.
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