The Spanish government will channel European reforms and aid through the plan España Puede. Spain will be the second largest recipient of funds, estimated at € 154,996 million euros between 2021 and 2023.
Next Generation EU
NextGenerationEU (NGEU) is a €750 billion temporary recovery instrument, which will be channeled through the EU’s long-term budget, particularly in the years 2021-2023 (Fig. 1).
Fig. 1. Next Generation EU
The money from NGEU will be invested across several programs, and will be distributed to EU countries and beneficiaries through grants (€390 billion) and loans (€360 billion).
The majority of funds from NGEU (€672.5 billion) will be spent through the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) program. The RRF consists of large-scale financial support to public investments and areas such as green and digital projects. The support will be given out in the form of loans (€360 billion) and grants (€312.5 billion) (Fig. 2).
Fig. 2. The Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF)
The Facility’s aim is to mitigate the economic and social impact of the coronavirus pandemic and make European economies and societies more sustainable, resilient and better prepared for the challenges and opportunities of the green and digital transitions.
The Facility is an opportunity to create European flagship areas for investments and reforms with tangible benefits for the economy and citizens across the EU. These should address issues that need significant investment to create jobs and growth, and which are needed for the green and digital transitions. The Commission strongly encourages Member States to put forward investment and reform plans in the areas shown in Fig. 3.
Fig. 3. RFF: flagship areas for investments and reforms
In order to receive support from the RRF, EU countries need to submit Recovery and Resilience Plans to the Commission, where they explain how they will spend the money. The plans should effectively address challenges identified in the European Semester, particularly the country-specific recommendations adopted by the Council. The plans should also include measures to address the challenges and reap the benefits of the green and digital transitions.
España Puede
On April 14, the Spanish government presented its Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan as España Puede. Once the Spanish Council of Ministers has approved it, it is expected to be submitted to Brussels this Friday.
Fig. 4. Percentages of funds allocation by lever in the next three years
These 10 levers are a part of 30 projects or lines of action that articulate, in a comprehensive and complementary way, the different drivers of structural reform, both regulatory and investment-focused (Fig. 5).
Fig. 5. España Puede: ten lever policies comprising 30 lines of action
Which funds can the agro-food sector apply for?
According to Eleconomista.es, four ministries have European funds available for farmers and agro-food companies to boost their digitalization and environmental sustainability.
They will be able to access funds to be managed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. This will be through the Plan to Boost the Sustainability of Agriculture and Livestock, included in project 3, of lever number 1.
They will also be eligible for funds under project 12 (Spain 2030 Industrial Policy) of lever number 5: funds for innovation, digitalization and decarbonization managed by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism and funds for the implementation of the circular economy managed by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge.
In the same policy lever, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation will be responsible for project 15: Digital Connectivity, cybersecurity and deployment of 5G networks.
The Agro-food and Fisheries Recovery Plan
In addition to the funds available in other ministries, as mentioned above, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food presented a recovery plan for the sector last December. This three-year plan envisages public contributions of €1,051 million for the environmental and digital transformation of the agro-food and fishing sectors.