Speeches

Dear President, colleagues, if we care about every citizen and every area of the European Union, then we must dedicate the same importance to smaller urban centres, rural units, mountainous areas, islands, border areas, as we dedicate it, for example, to large cities. Today, unfortunately, this is not the case and we do not have balanced regional development. Croatia stands out because all of these areas face serious problems, from the lack of affordable housing, poor public transport, which hinders access to education, health services and the labour market, to deficient infrastructure. Young people are leaving these areas, and local governments do not have the fiscal capacity to address these challenges. I know that very well as mayor of Pregrada. That is why cohesion policy must offer solutions through the financing of local and regional projects. Cooperation between all levels of government and simplified access to these funds can significantly improve the situation. Our smaller urban centres, rural communities of the region are the solution, not the problem. It is time to provide them with the necessary financial resources.

Honourable colleagues, rural areas make up 83% of the territory of the European Union and are home to 137 million people. These areas are crucial for the production of basic resources such as food and energy. Nevertheless, despite their importance, rural communities are systematically marginalised through concrete policies and funding programmes. Yes, there are documents such as the Rural Pact and the Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas, which are good guidelines, but their implementation is slow and problems are accumulating. Emigration, lack of public services, inadequate infrastructure are the everyday life of local communities in rural areas, and the lack of support from higher levels of government creates an unsustainable situation. Today, rural Europe is also facing natural disasters due to climate change, from landslides, droughts, floods to earthquakes and fires. And for such situations, we need faster and simpler financial mechanisms. This is why it is essential to provide direct and easily accessible European funds to ensure the development and sustainability of rural areas and the survival of people in them.