Ex-ante vs enabling conditions: an improvement of conditionality in 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy?

In the 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy Regulation enabling conditions have susbstituted ex-ante conditionalities that were introduced in the previous programming period in order to enable Member States to implement the needed reforms that would have guaranteed effective spending of Cohesion Policy Funds. Given the failed success of ex-ante conditionalities, novelties have been introduced in this programming period, in order to make the implementation of enabling conditions more straightforward and efficient. Some of these novelties fall under the factors that the literature has evidenced as important in determining the full implementation of conditionality, namely criticality, ownership and flexbility. These three factors are therefore tested, in the specific case of Italy, in order to grasp evidence whther their inclusion in conditionality design enhances conditionalities' implementation and therefore helps MS to fulfil the requirements imposed by the European Commission.

In the 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy Regulation enabling conditions have susbstituted ex-ante conditionalities, introduced in the previous programming period in order to enable Member States to implement needed reforms that would have guaranteed effective spending of Cohesion Policy Funds. Given the failure of ex-ante conditionalities, novelties have been introduced in the 2021-2027 programming period, in order to make the implementation of enabling conditions more straightforward and efficient. Some of these novelties fall under the factors that the literature has evidenced as important in determining the successful implementation of conditionality measures, namely criticality, ownership and flexbility. These three factors are therefore tested, in the specific case of Italy, in order to grasp evidence on whether their inclusion in conditionality design enhances enabling conditions' implementation and therefore helps MS to fulfil the requirements imposed by the European Commission.