COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT Accompanying the document REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Annual Monitoring Report on the implementation of Structural Reform Support Programme 2017
Date: 2018-11-21
Institutions: European Commission, Secretariat-General
Subjects: EU aid, EU programme, activity report, administrative reform, economic convergence, economic reform, fund (EU), institutional reform, structural adjustment, sustainable development

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 21.11.2018 SWD(2018) 465 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT Accompanying the document REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL  Annual Monitoring Report on the implementation of Structural Reform Support Programme 2017  {COM(2018) 755 final}  
 
 
Table of Contents 

GLOSSARY .................................................................................................................................................. 2 

1. 

INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 3 

2. 

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ................................................................................................... 4 

2.1. 

2.2. 

2.3. 

2.4. 

2.5. 

Budget of the Programme ............................................................................................................. 4 

Objectives of the Programme ........................................................................................................ 4 

European Added Value ................................................................................................................. 5 

Implementation of the Programme and forms of support .............................................................. 5 

Data collection .............................................................................................................................. 6 

3. 

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAMME IN YEAR 2017 .................................................. 6 

3.1. 

3.2. 

3.3. 

Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 6 

Requests for support submitted by the Member States ................................................................. 7 

Application of the assessment criteria ........................................................................................... 9 

3.3.1. 

Step 1 – screening and analysis of the requests for support ............................................... 10 

3.3.2. 

Step 2 – prioritisation of the requests for support ............................................................... 14 

3.4. 

3.5. 

3.6. 

3.7. 

Selection of requests ................................................................................................................... 14 

Cooperation and Support Plans concluded .................................................................................. 16 

Reform partners and special measures ........................................................................................ 17 

Implementation of support measures .......................................................................................... 18 

4. 

PROGRESS IN RELATION TO PROGRAMME'S OBJECTIVES ........................................... 24 

4.1. 

4.2. 

4.3. 

4.4. 

4.5. 

Progress in achieving the general objective ................................................................................ 27 

Progress in achieving the specific objectives .............................................................................. 29 

Expected results of the SRSP activities ....................................................................................... 29 

Examples of finalised support measures ..................................................................................... 30 

European Added Value ............................................................................................................... 31 

5.  CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................................. 33 

ANNEX I ..................................................................................................................................................... 34 

ANNEX II .................................................................................................................................................... 39 

1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
GLOSSARY 

Term or acronym 

Meaning or definition 

AMI 

CMU 

CSP 

CSR 

EBRD 

EFSI 

ESIF 

EU 

PPP 

SRSP  

SRSS 

TAIEX 

Appel à manifestation d'intérêt 

Capital Markets Union 

Cooperation and Support Plan 

Country-Specific Recommendations 

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development 

European Fund for Strategic Investments 

European Structural and Investment Funds  

European Union 

Public Private Partnerships 

Structural Reform Support Programme 

Structural Reform Support Service 

Technical Assistance and Information Exchange 

2 

 
 
 
1.  INTRODUCTION 

Structural reforms are crucial to modernise our economies, encourage investment, generate jobs and 
raise  living  standards.  The  overall  successful  implementation  of  reforms  requires  efficient  and 
effective public administrations as the latter influence the performance of all public policy domains, 
including  reform  efforts.  For  this  reason,  addressing  the  structural  challenges  of  public 
administrations  (e.g.  in  terms  of  competences,  mobility,  incentives,  changes  to  work  processes, 
etc.), especially the development of adequate institutional and administrative capacity, is crucial for 
well-functioning economies and for underpinning the success of structural reforms. 

The  Structural  Reform  Support  Programme  (SRSP)  was  established  in  May  2017  for  the  period 
from  2017  to  2020,  under  the  Regulation  (EU)  2017/825  of  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council  (the  SRSP  Regulation)1.  Its  objective  is  to  strengthen  the  capacity  of  Member  States  to 
prepare and implement growth-enhancing reforms, including through assistance for the efficient and 
effective use of Union funds.  

The  support  provided  through  the  Programme  is  available  to  all  EU  Member  States  upon  their 
request (Article 7 of the Regulation) and requires no co-financing. It is managed by the Structural 
Reform Support Service (SRSS) of the Commission. 

The  Programme  offers  interested  Member  States  support  to  carry  out  reforms,  but  ultimate 
decisions on the design, structure and implementation remains with the Member States. 

The Commission monitors the implementation of the support measures financed by the Programme. 
In accordance with Article 16 of the SRSP Regulation, for every year of the implementation of the 
Programme,  the  Commission  provides  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  with  an  annual 
monitoring report.  

1 Regulation (EU) 2017/825 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2017 on the establishment of the Structural 
Reform Support Programme for the period 2017 to 2020 and amending Regulations (EU) No 1303/2013 and (EU) No 1305/2013 (OJ 
L 129, 19.5.2017, p. 1–16). 

3 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
[…] 

Article 16 of SRSP Regulation  
Monitoring and evaluation 

2.   The Commission shall provide the European Parliament and the Council with an annual 
monitoring report on the implementation of the Programme. That report shall include information 
on: 

a)  requests for support submitted by Member States, referred to in Article 7(1); 
b)  analyses of the application of the criteria, referred to in Article 7(2), used to analyse the 

requests for support submitted by Member States; 

c)  cooperation and support plans, referred to in Article 7(2); 
d)  participation of reform partners, referred to in Article 9; 
e)  special measures adopted, referred to in Article 13(6); and 
f)  implementation of support measures2 

2.  BACKGROUND INFORMATION 

2.1.  Budget of the Programme 

The financial envelope for the implementation of the Programme over the period 2017-2020 was set 
at EUR 142.8 million (increased to EUR 222.8 million)3. The budget available for 2017 was EUR 
22.5 million4. 

In addition to the SRSP budget, Article 11 of the SRSP Regulation and Article 59 of the Common 
Provisions Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 enable the Programme to be financed through additional 
voluntary contributions from Member States from resources provided for technical assistance at the 
initiative  of  the  Member  States  under  the  European  Structural  and  Investment  Funds  (ESIF).  In 
2017, no Member States made  voluntary transfers to  the SRSP. The overall budget  for 2017 thus 
remained EUR 22.5 million. 

2.2.  Objectives of the Programme 

In accordance with Article 4 of the SRSP Regulation, the general objective of the Programme is to 
contribute  to  institutional,  administrative  and  growth-sustaining  structural  reforms  in  the  Member 
States.  The  way  to  achieve  this  objective  is  to  provide  support  to  national  authorities  aimed  at 

2 Point (f) of Article 16 was added by the Regulation (EU) 2018/1671 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 
2018 amending Regulation (EU) 2017/825 to increase the financial envelope of the Structural Reform Support Programme and adapt 
its general objective (OJ L 284, 12.11.2018, p. 3–5), which entered into force on 13 November 2018. 

3 On 6 December 2017, the Commission proposed to amend the SRSP Regulation to increase the budget of the Programme by EUR 
80  million  and  add  support  for  euro-area  membership  to  the  goals  to  which  the  Programme  contributes.  The  Regulation  (EU) 
2018/1671 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 amending Regulation (EU) 2017/825 to increase the 
financial envelope of the Structural Reform Support Programme and adapt its general objective entered into force on 13 November 
2018 (OJ L 284, 12.11.2018, p. 3–5).  

4 Excluding support expenditure. 

4 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
reforming  and  strengthening  institutions,  governance,  public  administration,  and  economic  and 
social sectors in response to economic and social challenges.  

The  overarching  goal  of  the  Programme  is  to  enhance  cohesion,  competitiveness,  productivity, 
sustainable  growth,  job  creation,  and  investment,  in  particular  in  the  context  of  economic 
governance processes, including through assistance for the efficient, effective and transparent use of 
the Union funds.  

The specific objectives  of the Programme, in  accordance with  Article  5 of the SRSP Regulation, 
are to:  

a)  support their initiatives to design their reforms according to their priorities;  
b)  enhance their  capacity to formulate, develop and implement  reform policies and  strategies 

and pursue an integrated approach; 

c)  support their efforts to define and implement appropriate processes and methodologies; and 
d)  assist them to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of human resources management. 

The  support  therefore  covers  all  stages  of  reforms,  from  inception  to  implementation  and  to 
evaluation of results. 

Support can be provided for reforms which fall under the following main broad policy areas (as set 
out in Article 5 (2) of the SRSP Regulation):  

a)  revenue administration and public financial management; 
b)  governance and public administration; 
c)  growth and business environment (including energy and climate action); 
d)  labour market, education, health and social issues; and  
e)  financial sector and access to finance. 

2.3.  European Added Value 

In accordance with Article 3 of the SRSP Regulation, the Commission should  ensure that actions 
and activities selected for funding are likely  to  produce results that show a clear European added 
value. 

The European added value is borne out in particular by:  

a)  the  development  and  implementation  of  solutions  that  address  local,  regional  or  national 
challenges that have  an impact on cross-border or  Union-wide  challenges, and which may 
also contribute to social, economic and territorial cohesion;  

b)  their complementarity and synergy with other Union programmes and policies at regional, 

national, Union and international level, as appropriate; 

c)  their contribution to the consistent and coherent implementation of Union law and policies, 

as well as the promotion of European values, including solidarity;  

d)  their  contribution  to  the  sharing  of  good  practices,  also  with  a  view  to  increasing  the 
visibility of the reform programmes, and to building a Union-wide platform and network of 
expertise; and  

e)  the promotion of mutual trust between beneficiary Member States and the Commission and 

of cooperation among Member States. 

2.4. 

Implementation of the Programme and forms of support  

The support provided under the SRSP is tailored to the country's needs. Experts accompany national 
authorities throughout different stages of the reform process (scoping, prioritising, designing, road 

5 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
mapping, implementing, evaluating). The support depends on the nature of the reform, the urgency 
of action, the resources available and the obligations deriving from the EU Financial Regulation.   

In concrete terms, the technical support can take the form of (Article 6 of the SRSP Regulation): 

 

long-term  or  short-term  presence  of  experts  and  cooperation  on  the  ground  with  the 
national authorities throughout the reform process or at certain stages; 

  diagnostic  analyses,  recommendations  on  how  to  address  the  situation  (adoption  of  a 
strategy,  draft  of  a  new  law/act  or  modification  of  an  existing  one;  adoption  of  (new) 
procedures  and  actions  to  enhance  the  implementation  of  reforms;  improved  internal 
working  procedures,  methodologies  and  processes,  organisation;  organisational  change, 
change management, improve human resource management); and/or  

  wider actions that increase administrative capacity – through seminars, training, working 
visits; development of methodologies, collection of data, establishment of benchmarks etc. 

In line with Article 13 of the SRSP Regulation, the measures of the Programme are implemented 
either directly by the Commission or, indirectly, by entities and persons other than Member States. 
The  financial  support  for  actions  can  take  the  form  of  grants,  public  procurement  contracts, 
reimbursement of costs incurred by external experts, contribution trust funds set up by international 
organisations,  and  actions  carried  out  in  indirect  management.  Individual  experts,  who  may  be 
invited to contribute to selected activities of the Programme, may also provide support. 

To carry out the Programme, the Commission adopts, by way of an implementing act, an  annual 
work programme, which serves as a financing decision and sets out measures to be implemented 
in a given year. A limited part of the annual work programme is envisaged for special measures in 
the  event  of  unforeseen  and  duly  justified  grounds  of  urgency  requiring  an  immediate  response, 
including a serious disturbance in the economy or significant circumstances seriously affecting the 
economic or social conditions in a Member State, going beyond its control. The special measures 
shall end within six months and may be replaced by standard SRSP support measures (cf. Article 13 
(6)).  

2.5.  Data collection  

All data on the implementation of the SRSP is stored within the Commission in an internal IT tool 
managed by the SRSS. The tool facilitates the monitoring and reporting on the implementation of 
support projects managed by the service. It has provided data for the present study. 

3.  IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAMME IN YEAR 2017 

3.1. 

Introduction  

Regulation  (EU)  2017/825  of  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  of  17  May  2017  on  the 
establishment of the Structural Reform Support Programme for the period 2017 to 2020 entered into 
force on 20 May 2017. 2017 was the first year of activities under the SRSP. As indicated before, the 
budget  available  for  support  measures  in  2017  amounted  to  EUR  22.5  million.  The  period  of 
implementation covered by the present report (of the support measures selected for funding in 2017) 
is from 31.08.2017 until 31.10.2018. 

6 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
On 28 August 2017, the Commission adopted the first annual work programme5. The annual work 
programme  set  out  priorities  for  the  year,  objectives,  expected  results  and  outlined  actions  to  be 
implemented  throughout  2017.  The  annual  work  programme  for  2017  was  transmitted  to  the 
European Parliament and the Council on 16 October 2017, in line with Article 13(5) of the SRSP 
Regulation. 

3.2.  Requests for support submitted by the Member States 

Given  the  late  entry  into  force  of the  Programme  in  2017, Member  States  were invited to  submit 
their  requests  for  support  by  31  May  2017.  In  line  with  Article  7(1)  of the  SRSP  Regulation, the 
requests  for  support  submitted  by  the  Member  States  provide  information  on  the  following 
elements:  

a)  problem/need to be addressed with the requested support measures;  
b)  the breadth of the problems identified (impact on other areas in the economy);  
c)  and depth of the problems identified (severity);  
d)  the urgency of the request for support;  
e)  relevant  socio-economic  indicators  to  be  taken  into  consideration  when  analysing  the 

request, the indicative duration and estimated cost;  

f)  expected results/use of the results of the support measures requested;  
g)  information on the administrative capacity of the Member State to implement the results of 

the support measures and potential providers. 

In accordance with Article 7(3) of the SRSP Regulation, in their request for support, Member States 
identify the relevant circumstances under which they submit the requests:  

a)  the  implementation  of  reforms  undertaken  by  Member  States  at  their  own  initiative,  in 

particular to achieve sustainable economic growth and job creation;  

b)  the  implementation  of  economic  adjustment  programmes  (for  Member  States  that  receive 

Union financial assistance); and  

c)  the  implementation  of  growth-sustaining  reforms  in  the  context  of  economic  governance 
processes,  in  particular  of  European  Semester  country-specific  recommendations,  or  of 
actions related to the implementation of Union law.  

The  requests  for  support  from  interested  Member  States  were  submitted  centrally,  by  designated 
coordinating  authorities6,  i.e.  authorities  responsible  for  submitting  requests  on  behalf  of  one 
Member State. Each coordinating authority prioritised requests for its Member State. The requests 
for  support  may  concern  the  national  authorities  of  the  Member  States,  i.e.  authorities  at  central, 
regional, local level, as well as independent authorities. 

5 Commission Implementing Decision on the adoption of the work programme for 2017 and on the financing of Structural Reform 
Support Programme and repealing Decision C(2017)3093 (Annex), 2017, C(2017) 5780 final. 

6  The  role  of  the  coordinating  authorities  is  defined  in  section  18.2  of  the  cooperation  and  support  plans  signed  with  all  Member 
States benefiting from the Programme. 

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
 
Once  the  requests  for  support  were  selected,  the  Commission  then  concluded  a  cooperation  and 
support plan with the coordinating authority of each beneficiary Member State (see section 3.5). 

Coordinating Authorities 

To  ensure  proper  coordination  and  efficient  communication  between  the  Commission  and  the 
Member States, Member States designate a coordinating authority to act as the interlocutor of the 
SRSS  for  the  overall  implementation  of  the  country's  cooperation  and  support  plan.  The 
coordinating  authorities  are  responsible  at  national  level  for  coordinating  and  prioritising  the 
requests for support submitted by the Member State, for coordinating the effective implementation 
of  the  measures  envisaged  and  for  coordinating  the  achievement  of  the  objectives  set  out  in  their 
cooperation  and  support  plan.  The  coordinating  authority  is  also  encouraged  to  initiate  corrective 
actions if needed. 

For  the  2017  round,  271  requests  for  support  were  submitted  by  16  Member  States  for  an 
estimated  amount7  almost  4  times  the  available  annual  SRSP  2017  budget  (EUR  83  million 
versus the annual budget of EUR 22.5 million). The following chart shows the number of requests 
submitted per Member State: 

34 

22 

19 

16 

15 

18  18  18 

11  12 

4 

5 

1 

32 

24 

22 

Figure 1: Number of requests submitted per Member State 

The distribution of the requests submitted by the Member States across the main broad policy areas 
was as follows: 

7 As estimated by the Member States. 

8 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
27% 

23% 

15% 

18% 

17% 

Revenue
Administration
and Public
Financial
Management

Labour
Market,
Education,
Health and
Social Policy

Financial
Sector and
Access to
Finance

Governance
and Public
Administration

Growth and
Business
Environment

Figure 2: Requests submitted by Member States – split per main broad policy area (in percentages) 

The  majority  of  the  requests  submitted  by  the  Member  States  related  to  the  EU  economic 
governance process (implementation of reforms in response to challenges identified in the European 
Semester Country-Specific Recommendations or in relevant documents of the European Semester). 
More than one fourth was submitted to receive support for implementing Union priorities (Capital 
Markets  Union,  Energy  Union,  etc.),  one  fifth  for  implementing  Member  States'  own  reform 
priorities, and the remaining requests for implementing reform priorities identified in the economic 
adjustment  programmes  (Greece  and  Cyprus  only)  and  EU  law  (such  us  in  relation  to 
infringements, or EU law implementation).  

The following chart shows the split according to relevant circumstances under which the requests 
for support were submitted: 

8% 

28% 

38% 

7% 

19% 

Economic adjustment
programmes

Economic governance (e.g.
CSRs)

Member States' own
reform priorities

Union law (e.g.
infringements)

Union priorities (e.g. CMU,
Energy Union, etc.)

Figure 3: Requests submitted by Member States – split according to circumstances of the request (in percentages) 

3.3.  Application of the assessment criteria 

In accordance with Article 7(2) of the SRSP Regulation, the assessment by the Commission of the 
requests for support submitted by Member States is based on 2 sets of elements:  

  general principles: transparency, equal treatment and sound financial management; and  

9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  criteria for the analysis of requests: urgency, breadth and depth of the problems, support 
needs  in  the  policy  areas  concerned,  analysis  of  socio-economic  indicators  and  general 
administrative capacity of the Member State.  

The Commission analysed the requests for support submitted by the Member States in terms of their 
eligibility and compliance with these principles and criteria.  

A practical two-step approach was undertaken:  

a)  screening for eligibility and analysis of requests; and  
b)  prioritisation of requests for selection.  

As part of the assessment, the Commission undertook a broad internal consultation with all relevant 
Commission services in order to ensure complementarity and avoid that the same actions are funded 
by  several  Union  funds/programmes  (in  particular  by  the  European  Structural  and  Investment 
Funds, ESIF). The process (including the broad consultation which fed into the assessment) resulted 
in the steps described below: 

Consultation 

Screening 

Analysis 

Prioritisation 

Selection 

3.3.1.  Step 1 – screening and analysis of the requests for support 

Screening 

Prior  to  assessing  the  requests  submitted  under  SRSP  2017,  the  Commission  first  established 
whether  the  requests  met  the  legal  requirements  of  the  SRSP  Regulation  ("eligibility"  check). 
Requests which included elements that were not "eligible actions" under the SRSP Regulation (cf. 
Article 6, e.g. purchase of equipment, provision of IT software, budget-support measures, measures 
consisting of paying for running costs, etc.) were excluded from further assessment.  

As  a  result  of  the  first  screening,  6%  (17  requests)  were  excluded,  and  94%  (254  requests)  were 
subject to further analysis (eligible requests). The following chart shows the percentage of requests 
subject to further analysis and requests excluded from further assessment (exclusion concerns non-
eligible and withdrawn requests): 

10 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6% 

94% 

Requests subject
to further analysis

Requests excluded
from further
assessment

Figure 4: Requests subject to further analysis and requests excluded from further assessment (in percentages) 

Analysis of the requests for support 

Following  the  exclusion  of  ineligible  and  withdrawn  requests,  the  purpose  of  the  analysis  was  to 
identify those requests that merit support under the SRSP. The analysis was based on the principles 
and criteria set out in Article 7(2) of the SRSP Regulation. 

A. General principles 

Throughout  the  selection  process,  the  general  principles  mentioned  in  the  SRSP  Regulation 
(transparency, equal treatment and sound financial management) were applied.  

a) Transparency:  

The  Commission  maintained  a  dialogue  with  the  Member  States  prior  to  the  submission  of  their 
requests.  This  allowed  to  provide  clarifications,  refine  Member  States'  requests  and,  after  the 
selection, provide adequate feedback on the assessment process, in particular on requests which had 
not been selected.   

b) Equal treatment:  

The  Commission  applied  the  assessment  criteria  in  an  equal  manner  to  all  requesting  Member 
States. There was no set pre-allocation of funding – the amount of funding allocated per Member 
State  was  determined  based  on  the  compliance  of  the  request  with  the  principles  and  assessment 
criteria  and  on  the  quality,  focus  and  expected  result  of  the  support  measures.  In  order  to  ensure 
equal treatment, a scoring system was put in place (see sections below). 

c) Sound financial management 

The  principle  of  sound  financial  management  requires  that  EU  financial  resources  are  used  in 
accordance with the principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness. The Commission used the 
principle of sound financial management to prioritise requests to be selected based on quality, focus 
and expected results (of the requests submitted and considered eligible). 

B. Assessment criteria 

The criteria defined in Article 7(2) of the SRSP Regulation were applied in the following way: 

i.  Urgency of the request 

The Commission assessed urgency of a request, as initially presented by the Member State. It also 
took into account the following elements: 

11 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  whether the urgency was linked to a crisis;  
  whether the urgency was related to a deadline or a time-bound schedule derived from Union 
law,  or  from  Union/Commission  policy  priorities  (e.g.  European  Semester,  Economic 
Adjustment programmes, CMU, Energy Union, Digital Single Market, etc.) 

ii.  Breadth and depth of the problems identified  

The Commission assessed the severity (breadth) and extent (depth) of the problem, as presented by 
the Member State. It also took into account the following elements:  

 

the Commission's own knowledge and assessment of the prevailing situation in the Member 
State;  

  Country  reports,  Country-Specific  Recommendations,  annual  reports  on  the  application  of 
EU  law  and  other  relevant  documents  related  to  Union/Commission  priorities  (Energy 
Union, CMU, etc.), as well as to Member States' own reform priorities, as known. 

iii. 

Support needs in respect of the policy areas concerned 

The Commission analysed the support needs, as described in the requests by the Member States. In 
addition, it took into account the following elements: 

  at which stage of the reform process the support would be required (whether in the design 
phase  or  in  the  implementation  phase)  and  how  appropriate  the  solution  proposed  by  the 
Member States would be to address it;   

  whether  the  requested  support  measures  were  covered  by  already  existing  support 

measures/instruments (under national, or Union (e.g. ESIF) programmes). 

iv. 

Socio-economic indicators 

The  Commission  took  account  of  relevant  socio-economic  indicators  (as  they  had  been  brought 
forward by the Member States in their requests for support, or in other manner as appropriate) to 
back-up the assessment of the requests for support8. 

v.  General administrative capacity of the Member State 

The  Commission  assessed  the  capacity  of  the  Member  State  (i.e.  the  capacity  of  the  national 
authorities requesting support) to implement and absorb the support measures to be provided, and 
ensure adequate follow-up. The following elements were notably taken into account:  

  existence of a structure in the requesting Member State that would coordinate and follow up 

on the support measures; 

  staff that would be made available to follow up on the support measures; 
  capacity (also based on past experience) to manage support measures/projects. 

8  These  socio-economic  indicators  may  be:    macro-economic  indicators;  general  indicators  or  indicators  related  to  the  policy  area 
concerned:  e.g.  unemployment  rate,  number  of  early  education  leavers,  number  of  people  in  or  at  risk  of  poverty  and  social 
exclusion, investment rates, non-performing loans rates, etc. 

12 

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
RATING SYSTEM 

In  order  to  ensure  equal  treatment,  a  rating  system  was  put  in  place  to  assess  how  the  eligible 
requests complied with the criteria indicated above. 

Analysis based on general principles and criteria: rating system  

Every request for support  considered eligible received rating scores (A to C) which evaluated the 
fulfilment  of  the  assessment  criteria.  Scores  were  attributed  for  each  of  the  following  criteria:  (i) 
urgency  of  the  request,  (ii)  breadth  and  depth  of  the  problems  identified,  (iii)  support  needs  in 
respect of the policy areas concerned, (iv) general administrative capacity of the Member State. 

- requests with only high and medium scores and a majority of high scores fell into the category 
high scores (for most of the criteria) 

- requests with only high and medium scores and a majority of medium scores fell into the category 
medium scores (no low score) 

- requests with one low score fell into the category one major weakness  

- requests with more than one low score and medium scores for the rest fell into the category 
several major weaknesses 

71% of the 254 requests analysed for SRSP 2017 fell into the category of "high scores", 8% into 
the category "medium scores", 10% into the category "one major weakness" and 11% fell into 
the category "several major weaknesses". The chart below shows the breakdown in percentages: 

11% 

10% 

8% 

71% 

High scores

Medium scores

One major
weakness

Several major
weaknesses

Figure 5: Requests per categories of rating (in percentages) 

Requests with "high scores" had in general the following characteristics:  

 

 
 
 

the problems/needs identified were sufficiently relevant/important and not covered by other 
Union funds/programmes;  
the solutions proposed were suitable for addressing the problems/needs; 
relevant socio-economic indicators underpinned the problems/needs at stake; 
the requesting Member State had sufficient administrative capacity to follow up the measure 
funded by the SRSP. 

13 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3.3.2.  Step 2 – prioritisation of the requests for support 

The results of the screening and analysis stage were used to select requests within the limits of the 
budget  for  2017  (EUR  22.5  million  available  as  opposed  to  EUR  83  million  in  value  of  requests 
received).  

The  requests  were  prioritised  based  on  the  criterion  of  sound  financial management  (in  particular 
taking into account their maturity, focus and expected results). 

Priority was given to: 

  measures  that  were  mature  enough  to  allow  for  quick  delivery  of  support  and  rapid 

 

implementation of reforms on the ground; 
targeted  measures  addressing  defined  objectives  (as  opposed  to  requests  that  were  more 
generic or preparatory); and 

  measures with a strong expected results on the ground. 

3.4. 

Selection of requests 

After the analysis and prioritisation of the 254 eligible requests for technical support, 159 requests 
from 16 Member States were selected for funding under the available annual SRSP 2017 budget of 
EUR 22.5 million. Per Member State, the distribution of the selected requests was as follows: 

13  14 

10 

9 

18 

13  11 

9  9  10 

3  1 

15 

13 

7 

4 

Figure 6: Number of requests selected for funding under SRSP 2017 per Member State 

The distribution of requests selected for funding under the SRSP 2017 across the main broad policy 
areas was as follows: 

14 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
28% 

29% 

18% 

16% 

9% 

Financial
Sector and
Access to
Finance

Governance
and Public
Administration

Growth and
Business
Environment

Labour
Market,
Education,
Health and
Social Policy

Revenue
Administration
and Public
Financial
Management

Figure 7: Requests selected for funding under the SRSP 2017 – split per main broad policy area (in percentages) 

The  following  chart  shows  the  breakdown  of  the  request  selected  split  according  to  relevant 
circumstances under which the selected requests were submitted: 

4% 

51% 

27% 

7% 

11% 

Economic adjustment
programmes

Economic governance
(e.g. CSRs)

Member States' own
reform priorities

Union law (e.g.
infringements)

Union priorities (e.g.
CMU, Energy Union,
etc.)

Figure 8: Requests selected under the SRSP 2017 – split according to circumstances of the request (in percentages) 

88% of the requests selected for funding under the SRSP 2017 were rated with "high scores". The 
chart below shows the rating of the selected requests in percentages: 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5,0% 2,5% 

4,4% 

High scores

Medium scores

One major weakness

Several major
weaknesses

88,1% 

Figure 9: Rating of requests selected for funding under the SRSP 2017 (in percentages)9 

3.5.  Cooperation and Support Plans concluded 

Once  the  requests  for  support  are  selected,  in  line  with  Article  7  of  the  SRSP  Regulation,  the 
Commission  concludes  a  Cooperation  and  Support  Plan  with  each  Member  State  benefiting  from 
the Programme. 

Cooperation and Support Plans 

Member  States  and  the  Commission  are  working  closely  together  to  carry  out  actions  financed 
under the SRSP. After a Member State submits its request for support, the coordinating authority of 
every  requesting  Member  State  and  the  Commission  agree  on  the  priorities,  the  objectives,  an 
indicative timeline, the scope of the support measures and the estimated financial contribution for 
such  support. This agreement is  reflected in a cooperation and support plan (CSP). The CSPs are 
multiannual  documents,  signed  and  amended  each  year  (if  need  be)  by  the  Commission  and  the 
Member States requesting support from the SRSP.  

The  implementation  of  the  support  measures  requires  full  involvement  and  ownership  by  the 
Member  State.  The  CSP  is  not  a  legally  binding  document,  and  it  does  not  serve  as  a  financing 
decision  (the  estimated  global  financial  indication  is  only  indicative).  However,  through  this 
document,  the  Commission  and  the  Member  States  express  their  commitment  to  engage  in  the 
implementation of the support measures10. Subject to the consent by the Member States, the CSPs 
are transmitted to the European Parliament and the Council. 

9 When requests of lower score (one or several major weaknesses) were selected this was because of the importance of the reform 
and relative urgency in that particular country. 

10 The content of the CSPs is further defined in section 18.2 and in part VII of the cooperation and support plans. 

16 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
In  2017,  16  cooperation  and  support  plans  were  concluded  between  the  Commission  and  the 
Member States. They were transmitted to the European Parliament and the Council on 16 October 
2017 (in line with Article 8 of the SRSP Regulation): 

Country 

Bulgaria 

Croatia 

Indicative  timeline  of  the  delivery  of 
Estimated 
contribution11 
the support measures 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 4th quarter of 2019  EUR 1,035,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 4th quarter of 2018  EUR 1,860,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 3rd quarter of 2019  EUR 820,000 

global 

Cyprus 
Czech Republic  3rd quarter of 2017 – 4th quarter of 2019  EUR 1,147,000 

Estonia 

France 

Greece 

Italy 

Latvia 

Lithuania 

Malta 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

Slovakia 

Slovenia 

EUR 50,000 

4th quarter of 2017 – 4th quarter of 2019  EUR 400,000 
2nd quarter of 2018 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 2020 
EUR 2,930,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 2nd quarter of 2019  EUR 1,203,800 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 3rd quarter of 2020  EUR 1,605,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 1st quarter of 2019  EUR 1,155,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 4th quarter of 2020  EUR 975,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 4th quarter of 2019  EUR 1,356,200 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 3rd quarter of 2019  EUR 1,515,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 1st quarter of 2019  EUR 3,215,000 
4th quarter of 2017 – 3rd quarter of 2020  EUR 1,360,000 
3rd quarter of 2017 – 4th quarter of 2018  EUR 1,535,000 

3.6.  Reform partners and special measures 

In line with Article 9 of the SRSP Regulation, in coordination with the Commission, the beneficiary 
Member State may enter into partnership with one or more other Member States which shall act as 
reform partners to support specific areas of reform. In 2017, none of the requesting Member States 
entered into partnership with a reform partner. 

In  line  with  Article  13(6)  of  the  SRSP  Regulation,  a  limited  part  of  the  2017  annual  work 
programme is set aside for special measures in the event of unforeseen and duly justified grounds of 
urgency requiring immediate response for a maximum period of six months. In 2017, none of the 
requesting Member States requested support under special measures. 

11  The  estimated  global  contribution  per  Member  State  is  purely  indicative.  The  final  amounts  depend  on  the  evolution  of  the 
contracts, withdrawals, cancellations, etc. 

17 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
3.7. 

Implementation of support measures 

The 159 selected requests resulted in 145 projects (some selected requests were cancelled later on 
by the Member States, some were "merged" for implementation purposes into one project – the 145 
support measures are listed in Annex I). The distribution of support measures/projects per Member 
State is shown in the table below:  

Bulgaria 
Croatia 
Cyprus 
Czech 
Republic 
Estonia 
France 
Greece 
Italy 

9 
13 
9 
10 

3 
1 
9 
9 

Latvia 
Lithuania 
Malta 
Poland 
Portugal 
Romania 
Slovakia 
Slovenia 
Grand Total 

10 
14 
13 
11 
4 
13 
5 
12 
145 

By  31  October  2018  (but  still  referring  to  the  2017  SRSP  cycle),  6%  of  projects  were  under 
preparation  (contract  specification  and  selection  of  providers  still  ongoing),  82%  of  projects  had 
begun to be implemented on the ground (the projects had started but the delivery on the ground had 
not  yet  been  finalised)  and  12%  of  projects  had  already  been  finalised  (all  the  deliverables  were 
delivered). The chart below shows the state of play of the implementation by 31 October 2018: 

6% 

12% 

82% 

Under
preparation

Finalised

On the
ground

Figure 10: State of play of the project implementation (in percentages) 

The  distribution  of  projects  across  the  main  broad  policy  areas  is  illustrated  in  the  chart 
below: 

30% 

26% 

18% 

18% 

8% 

Governance
and Public
Administration

Growth and
Business
Environment

Labour
market,
Education,
Health and
Social Services

Revenue
Administration
and Public
Financial
Management

Financial
Services and
Access to
Finance

Figure 11: Number of projects per main broad policy area (in percentages) 

18 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The breakdown of specific actions (as launched in 2017) supported in each policy area in each 
Member State is described in the chart below: 

and 

Governance 
Public 
Administration  

and 

Growth 
Business 
Environment  

Labour  Market, 
Education,  Health 
and Social Services 

Revenue 
Administration 
and 
Financial 
Management  

Public 

Financial 
and  Access 
Finance 

Sector 
to 

trade, 

transport, 

Support  measures  in  8  Member  States  (Croatia,  Czech  Republic, 
France, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania and Slovenia), in particular 
in the fields of overall public administration, including management of 
human  resources,  procurement,  eGovernment,  judicial  system,  fight 
against fraud, corruption and money laundering. 
Support  measures  in  14  Member  States  (Bulgaria,  Croatia,  Cyprus, 
Czech  Republic,  Greece,  Italy,  Latvia,  Lithuania,  Malta,  Poland, 
Portugal, Romania,  Slovakia and  Slovenia), in particular in the fields 
of  investment  climate,  better  regulation,  licensing  and  permits,  state-
owned  enterprises  management, 
innovation, 
competition, small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs), management 
of  natural  resources  and  resource  efficiency,  and  Energy  Union, 
including climate change policy.   
Support  measures  in  12  Member  States  (Bulgaria,  Croatia,  Cyprus, 
Czech  Republic,  Greece,  Italy,  Latvia,  Lithuania,    Poland,  Romania, 
Slovakia and Slovenia), in particular in the fields of health, education 
and training, labour markets, pension and social welfare systems. 
Support  measures  in  10  Member  States  (Bulgaria,  Croatia,  Cyprus, 
Czech Republic, Italy, Latvia, Malta,  Poland, Portugal, Romania, and 
Slovenia),  in  particular  in  relation  to  revenue  administration,  budget 
preparation  and  spending  reviews,  budget 
implementation  and 
transition  towards  accrual  accounting,  and  fiscal  framework  and 
statistics. 
Support  measures  in  13  Member  States  (Bulgaria,  Croatia,  Cyprus, 
Czech  Republic,  Estonia,  Greece,  Italy,  Latvia,  Lithuania,  Malta, 
Poland,  Romania  and  Slovenia),  in  particular  in  the  fields  of  capital-
market  diagnostics  and  strategies,  capital  market  development, 
insolvency, financial stability, and means of payments. 

The largest proportion of support measures selected in 2017 and being implemented concern 
the following sector/action (see the figure below and cf. Annex I for more details): 

  Revenue administration (11%) 
  Capital markets (9%) 
  Health (9%) 
  Energy, including climate change (6%) 
  Education and training (5%) 
  Better regulation (5%) 

19 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Trade
State-owned enterprise management
Spending reviews
Social policies

Sectoral expertise (transport, logistics, tourism,…

Revenue administration
Public procurement
Pension and disabilities
Other
Management of human resources
Labour market policies
Judicial reform
Investment management and PPPs
Insolvency
Innovation
Healthcare system
Governance
Fiscal strategies and tax policy

1% 

2% 

1% 

2% 

1% 

1% 

3% 

3% 

4% 

3% 

2% 

3% 
3% 

1% 

2% 

1% 

Environment, circular economy, water, land…

4% 

Energy
Education and training
Digital Public Administration
Digital economy

Competition and small and medium-sized…

Capital Markets Union
Better regulation
Bank supervision and resolution
Anti-corruption / anti-money-laundering
Budget preparation
Accounting reform
Access to finance

6% 

5% 

2% 
2% 
2% 

5% 

3% 

1% 

1% 

1% 

3% 

11% 

9% 

9% 

Figure 12: Sectors/ actions covered by the support measures (in percentages) 

In 2017, the total number of beneficiary authorities (i.e. national authorities who benefit from 
the support measures) was 91 across all beneficiary Member States.  

The type of beneficiary authority receiving the support measures is shown in the chart below: 

7% 

Central government

3% 

17% 

9% 

64% 

Ministry

Public
authority/body
Regional/Local
authority
Regulatory/independ
ent authority

Figure 13: Type of beneficiary authority receiving support measures under the SRSP 2017 (in percentages) 

20 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The split of the type of the beneficiary authorities in each Member State is shown in the table 
below:  

Poland 

Ministry 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Portugal 

Ministry 
Public authority/body 

Romania 

Central government 
Ministry 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Slovakia 

Ministry 
Public authority/body 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Slovenia 

Ministry 
Public authority/body 
Regulatory/independent authority 

11 
8 
3 
4 
1 
3 
13 
1 
6 
6 
5 
3 
1 
1 
12 
8 
1 
3 

Bulgaria 

Ministry 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Croatia 

Ministry 
Public authority/body 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Cyprus 

Ministry 
Public authority/body 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Czech Republic 

Central government 
Ministry 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Estonia 

Ministry 

France 

Central government 

Greece 

Ministry 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Italy 

Central government 
Ministry 
Public authority/body 

Latvia 

Central government 
Ministry 
Regulatory/independent authority 

Lithuania 

Central government 
Ministry 

Malta 

Central government 
Ministry 
Public authority/body 
Regional/Local authority 
Regulatory/independent authority 

9 
3 
6 
13 
9 
3 
1 
9 
7 
1 
1 
10 
1 
8 
1 
3 
3 
1 
1 
9 
8 
1 
9 
1 
7 
1 
10 
1 
8 
1 
14 
2 
12 
13 
2 
3 
2 
5 
1 

21 

 
 
 
 
 
Means of implementation 

In line with Article 13 of the SRSP Regulation, the support measures of the Programme 
can  be  implemented  either  directly  by  the  Commission  or  indirectly  by  entities  and 
persons  other  than  Member  States.  According  to  Article  13  of  the  Regulation  (EU) 
2017/825,  the  financing  of  the  support  measures  can  take  the  form  of  grants,  including 
grants  to  the  Member  States'  national  authorities,  public  procurement  contracts, 
reimbursements of costs incurred by external experts, contribution to  the trust funds set 
up by the international organisations, and actions carried out in indirect management. 

By 31 October 201812 (but still referring to the 2017 SRSP cycle), the SRSP 2017 budget 
of  EUR  22.5  million  for  projects  selected  for  funding  under  SRSP  2017  was  being 
implemented using the following means of implementation:  

Figure  14:  Breakdown  of  the  means  of  implementation  used  for  implementing  projects  under  the  SRSP  2017 
budget (in percentages) 

12 The execution of the SRSP 2017 budget is still ongoing. 

22 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
Grants 

By 31 October 2018 (but still referring to the 2017 SRSP cycle), a majority of grants that 
were being implemented13 were awarded to international organisations (52%) and public 
law bodies (26%): 

9% 

26% 

11% 

2% 

52% 

Bodies governed by
private law with a public
service mission
Government bodies

International
Organisation

Other (specify)

Public law bodies

Figure  15:  Typology  of  the  technical  support  providers  that  are  implementing  grants  under  SRSP  2017  (in 
percentages) 

Public procurement and TAIEX 

By  31  October  2018  (but  still  referring  to  the  2017  SRSP  cycle),  the  majority  of  the 
procurements  were  specific  contracts  based  on  framework  contracts  (52%)  and  direct 
procurement contracts for services (35%).  

A smaller part of the 2017 funding is being implemented under the TAIEX instrument14 
to provide expert exchange from other Member States' administrations, and another part 
through simplified expert contracts for private sector experts (AMI list). 

13 In accordance with the Commission Implementing Decision on the adoption of the work programme for 2017 and on 
the financing of Structural Reform Support Programme and repealing Decision C(2017)3093 (Annex) - C(2017) 5780 
final - direct  grants  may  be  awarded  to international  organisations  and  Member States' bodies and other  bodies  
with a public  service  mission, which,  in  view  of  the  nature  of  the  action,  have recognised and relevant technical 
competence, high degrees of specialisation or administrative power in various thematic areas under the SRSP. 

14  TAIEX  is  the  Technical  Assistance  and  Information  Exchange  instrument  of  the  European  Commission.  TAIEX 
supports  public  administrations  with  regard  to  the  approximation,  application  and  enforcement  of  EU  legislation  as 
well as facilitating the sharing of EU best practices, https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/tenders/taiex_en 

23 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
2% 

11% 

AMI list (Call for
expression of interest)

Framework contracts

37% 

51% 

Procurement
contracts for services

TAIEX

Figure 16: Types of procurement contracts and TAIEX actions – split based on value (in percentages) 

Delegation agreement 

By 31 October 2018 (but still referring to the 2017 SRSP cycle), 13 projects were being 
implemented  in  indirect  management  by  the  European  Bank  for  Reconstruction  and 
Development (EBRD). 

Administrative agreement 

In  2017,  one  administrative  agreement  was  being  implemented  with  the  European 
Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority – covering 1 project. 

4.  PROGRESS IN RELATION TO PROGRAMME'S OBJECTIVES 

Institutional,  administrative  and  growth-sustaining  structural  reforms  are,  by  their  very 
nature, complex processes, the design and implementation of which requires a complete 
chain of highly specialised knowledge and skills. In some Member States, the capacity to 
initiate and implement structural reforms is often not adequate to address the challenges 
ahead.  Inadequate  response 
to  economic  and  social  challenges  could  hamper 
competitiveness, growth, employment, and investment.  

Considering the European dimension of these challenges, the SRSP aims to reinforce the 
administrative  capacity  in  the  Member  States  and  by  doing  so,  helps  Member  States 
implement  institutional,  administrative  and  structural  reforms.  Enhanced  administrative 
capacity  can  increase  the  efficiency  of  the  administrative  structures  at  the  benefit  of 
citizens and businesses.  

To  this  end,  through  its  support  measures,  the  SRSP  aims  to  achieve  the  following 
results:  

  enhanced  ability  of  national  authorities  to  identify  and  address  economic  and 

structural weaknesses;  

24 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  strengthened  ability  in  developing,  designing  and  implementing  reform  policies 

according to priorities;  

  enhanced capacity of Member States' national authorities to define processes and 
methodologies to support reform design, management and implementation, and/or 
the efficiency and effectiveness of human resources; 
increased professional knowledge, skills and adaptability to change management 
processes;  enhanced  channels  of  communication  established  with 
the 
Commission, Member States and international organisations in order to improve 
communication and coordination of reform efforts; and  

 

  enhanced  capacity  to  ensure  progress  of  reforms  recommended  within  the 
European  Semester  cycle,  economic  adjustment  programmes,  Member  State's 
own-initiative reforms, and to ensure consistent and coherent implementation of 
Union law. 

Against this background, the intervention logic of the Programme can be illustrated in the 
chart  below:  the  activities  under  the  Programme  produce  outputs,  which  then  generate 
results.  The  results  then  contribute  to  the  achievement  of  the  specific  objectives  at  the 
project  and  programme  level.  This  in  turn  feeds  into  the  progress  towards  the 
achievement of the general objective of the Programme  – supporting growth-sustaining 
structural reforms in the Member States.    

25 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
General Objective of 
the Programme 

• Contributing to institutional, administrative and growth-sustaining 
structural reforms in the Member States by providing support to 
national authorities for measures related to institutional 
frameworks, governance, administration and socio-economic 
sectors 

Specific objectives 
of the 
programme/projects 

• Support to design reforms; 
• Support to the development and implementation of reform policies; 
• Support to the definition and implementation of processes and 
methodologies; 
• Support to more efficient and effective human resource management;  

Expected Results 

• Adoption of a strategy 
• Adoption of a draft of a new law, act or modification of an existing 
one 
• Adoption of (new) procedures and actions to enhance the 
implementation of reforms 
• Improved internal working procedures, methodologies and 
processes/organisation 
• Organisational change, change management, improved human 
resource management  

Output 

Activities 

• Action plan, Roadmap  
• Guidelines, Handbook  
• Recommendation  
• Terms of Reference  
• Legislative proposal  
• Analysis, report  
• Workshops (including material), training, training material 
• Study visit reports  
• Communication (including material) and other events  
• Action plan, Roadmap 
• Guidelines, Handbook  

• Short term expert mission(s); 
• Long term expert (resident expert and similar); 
• Study visit (of officials of the beneficiary MS); 
• Workshop/conference/seminar; 
• Training activity; 
• IT expertise/advice; 
• Collection of statistics; 
• Study, research, evaluation; 
• Communication activities 
• Compilation/dissemination of material (including through information 

technology systems) 

• Organisation of local operations 

Figure 17: Intervention logic of the SRSP 

26 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4.1. 

Progress in achieving the general objective 

As  spelled  out  in  Article  4  of  the  SRSP  Regulation,  the  general  objective  of  the 
Programme  is  to  contribute  to  institutional,  administrative  and  growth-sustaining 
structural reforms in the Member States, by providing support to national authorities for 
measures  aimed  at  reforming  and  strengthening  institutions,  governance,  public 
administration,  and  economic  and  social  sectors  in  response  to  economic  and  social 
challenges, with a view to enhancing cohesion, competitiveness, productivity, sustainable 
growth, job creation, and investment, in particular in the context of economic governance 
processes, including through assistance for the efficient, effective and transparent use of 
the Union funds. 

While it is not in the remit of this report to illustrate the possible outcomes of the support 
measures in relation to the ultimate effects of the reforms15 in which a Member State may 
have  embarked,  and  for  which,  some  support  may  be  or  is  being  provided  under  the 
SRSP,  in  general  terms,  it  can  be  stated  that  the  SRSP  is  on  track  when  it  comes  to 
delivering on its general objective16.  

The  support  measures  under  the  SRSP  represent  a  significant  tool  and  are  effectively 
used  to  deliver  assistance  to  national  authorities  in  the  design  and  implementation  of  a 
institutional,  administrative  and  structural  reforms  aiming  at 
whole  range  of 
strengthening  growth  fundamentals,  with  a  view  to  enhancing  cohesion,  boost 
competitiveness  and  productivity.  The  activities  under  the  Programme  provide  a 
contribution  to  strengthening  of  the  overall  capacity  and  sound  governance  of  the 
requesting Member States. 

Support measures are being implemented in those policy sectors for which institutional, 
administrative  and/or  structural  reforms  have  been  envisaged  and/or  should  be 
undertaken by the Member States, also thanks to the support provided.  

The  table  below  shows  that  the  support  measures  underway  (across  the  requesting 
Member States, as part of the in 2017 SRSP round) contribute to the implementation of 
institutional,  administrative  and  structural  reforms  that  Member  States  face  in 
various  economic  and  social  sectors,  and  which  are  being  undertaken  in  response  to 
economic and social challenges: 

15 According to Article 16 of the Regulation (EU) 2017/825, the Commission shall provide an independent mid-term 
evaluation report with information on the achievement of the programme's objectives, the efficiency of the use of the 
resources and the programme's European added value, as well as the continued relevance of objectives and actions. 

16 Some external factors may influence the results of the support measures and there is therefore a risk that the sought 
reforms are not implemented in the end.  For this reason, the causal link between the support measures provided under 
the Programme and the achievement of the general objective has to be determined on a case by case and by taking into 
account the influencing external factors. 

27 

 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
N° of 
support 
measures 

Contribution to institutional and administrative reforms 

  Effectiveness of the judicial system 
  Efficiency and effectiveness of the public sector 
  Public financial management reforms 
  Anti-corruption / anti-money-laundering 
  Digital economy/ digital public administration 
  Reforms improving the regulatory frameworks (Better Regulation) 
  Reforms in public procurements rules 
  Spending reviews 
  Tax administration reforms 

Contribution to economic-related and social-related reforms 

  Acceleration of Trans-European Networks for Transport projects 
  Enhancing competitiveness and productivity of SMEs 
 

Implementing  legal  frameworks  in  environment,  circular  economy, 
water, land registry and spatial planning 

Investment management & public private partnerships 

  Making healthcare systems more accessible, effective and resilient 
 
  Legal Framework addressing insolvency 
  Monitoring and evaluation systems of labour market policies 

  Capital market development & Investment Plan for Europe 
 

Improving  the  quality  and  innovation  of  educational  and  training 
systems 

  Bank supervision and resolution frameworks 
  Pensions and disabilities schemes 
  Energy efficiency, energy poverty and renewables 
  Social assistance management information systems 
  Technological innovation 

TOTAL  

4 
9 
6 
1 
6 
7 
2 
2 
18 

1 
5 

6 
14 
3 
4 
5 

16 

8 
7 
5 
10 
4 
2 

145 

28 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4.2. 

Progress in achieving the specific objectives 

Support measures carried out under the SRSP 2017 are also contributing to the specific 
objectives of the Programme in the following way17 (cf. Annex II for more details): 

a)  41% of support measures contribute to the design of reforms. 

o  The majority of support measures contributing to this objective cover the 
following  areas:  capital  markets  union; 
revenue  administration; 
environment,  circular  economy,  water,  land  registry;  healthcare;  and 
energy. 

b)  63%  contribute  to  the  formulation,  development  and  implementation  of 

reforms; 

o  The majority of support measures contributing to this objective cover the 
following 
revenue 
administration;  environment,  circular  economy,  water,  land  registry;  and 
better regulation. 

capital  markets 

healthcare; 

union; 

areas: 

c)  61%  contribute  to  the  definition  and  implementation  of  processes  and 

methodologies; 

o  The majority of support measures contributing to this objective cover the 
following areas: revenue administration; healthcare; environment, circular 
economy, water, land registry; energy; social policies; and insolvency. 

d)  9%  of  support  measures  aim  to  help  improve  efficiency  and  effectiveness  of 

human-resources management. 

o  The majority of support measures contributing to this objective cover the 

following areas: healthcare; and education and training. 

4.3.  Expected results of the SRSP activities  

In line with the intervention logic of the Programme illustrated in figure 16, the support 
measures  carried  out  under  the  SRSP  2017  are  expected  to  achieve  results  that  will 
ultimately  contribute  to  the  achievement  of  the  SRSP  objectives  (general  and  specific 
ones) in the following way.  

a)  24%  of  support  measures  are  expected  to  lead  to  an  adoption  of  a  strategy, 

draft of a new law, act or modification of an existing one;  

17 Each support measure can contribute to more than one specific objectives. See Annex II for a more detailed listing. 

29 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
b)  38%  of  support  measures  are  expected  to  lead  to  an  adoption  of  (new) 

procedures and actions to enhance the implementation of reforms; 

c)  44%  of  support  measures  strive  to  deliver  improved  internal  working 

procedures; methodologies and processes/organisation; 

d)  8% of support measures aim at an organisational change, change management, 

at improving human resource management;  

e)  28%  of  support  measures  are  expected to  lead to  other  result  (putting  in  place 
monitoring  and 
improved  understanding  of 
alternatives,  ability  to  respond  to  requests  from  other  Member  States,  defining 
technical requirements, etc.). 

implementation  measures, 

4.4.  Examples of finalised (or close to finalisation) support measures 

An  analysis  of  the  actual  results  of  the  support  delivered,  or  of  the  possible  expected 
impact  of  the  measures  can  be  carried  out,  case  by  case,  for  the  support  measures  that 
have  already  been  finalised  (or  which  are  close  to  being  finalised).  Some  illustrative 
examples are reported below: 

  Housing and special protection for children which are victims of crime 

o  Guidelines  promoting  coordination  and  teamwork  that  is  required  to 
ensure  a  timely,  comprehensive,  coordinated  and  child-friendly  response 
by the State towards child who are victims of crime endorsed by several 
ministries. 

o  A roadmap for the establishment, operation and evaluation of a house for 

children. 

  Improving the efficiency of the health system 

o  Reports  on minimum volume thresholds for selected hospital treatments; 
on  competencies  of  general  practitioners  and  scope  for  change;  on 
expanding  competencies  of  general  practitioners  (policy  routes  and 
recommendations);  and  on  key  issues  and  good  practices  for  improving 
value-for-money in medical equipment.  

o  A review of the evidence on the volume-outcome relationship and country 
experiences  using  minimum  volume  standards,  as  well  as  exchange  of 
good practices in the procurement of medical devices. 

o  The  support  measures  are  expected 

to  contribute 

to 

improving 

effectiveness and efficiency of the health system. 

  Regulatory impact assessment 

o  Review  of 

the  current  regulatory 

impact  assessment  system  and 
recommendations  for  its  improvement;  review  and  recommendations  on 
the  regulatory  cost  calculator  currently  used  by  the  national  authorities; 
and a statistical study on regulatory costs. 

30 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
o  As  a  result,  the  national  administration  upgraded  its  tools  for  regulatory 
impact assessment and should in the coming months increase the staffing 
of the unit. 

  Strengthening the effectiveness of the judicial system 

o  Exchange  of  experiences  among  judges  from  other  Member  States  to 
share their national practices with the national authorities: focus on court 
administration,  individual  evaluation  of  judges  and  certification  of 
professionals assisting the court as experts, interpreters and appraisers.  
o  As  a  result,  several  proposals  for  laws  were  drafted.  Finalisation  and 
follow-up by the Ministry of Justice of the Member State is underway. 

  Supporting  the  state  revenue  service  in  implementing  its  mid-term  tax 

strategy 

o  Identification  of  discrepancies  between  potential  VAT  collectable  and 
actual VAT collected to analyse the main kinds of VAT fraud committed 
(in cooperation with the state revenue service).  

o  Through  improved  working  methods  and  enhanced  taxpayer  compliance 
regime, the support measures are expected to increase the tax revenue and 
improve taxpayer compliance.  

  Capital markets diagnostic 

o  A  study  diagnosing  the  status  of  capital  markets  at  national  level, 
providing  an  analysis  on  how  to  support  companies  via  other  than  bank 
financing. 

o  The  support  measures  are  being  delivered 

the  context  of  a 
Memorandum  of  Understanding  signed  by  several  Member  States, 
committing to develop regional capital markets. 

in 

In some cases, the support measures provided have also generated a leverage of funding 
from other Union programmes (e.g. technical support provided to national authorities of 
a  Member  State  to  develop  a  strategic  roadmap  for  the  digitisation  of  industry  which 
helped the authorities secure funding from the ESIF to implement a strategic roadmap).  
In  other  cases,  the  support  measures  provided have  helped  developing  greater  potential 
for identifying investment projects that can blend EU-level financial instruments, such as 
the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), with national financial instruments 
and the structural funds. 

4.5.  European Added Value 

Actions selected under the SRSP 2017 round are designed to ensure complementarity and 
synergy  with  other  programmes  and  policies  at  national,  Union  and  international  level; 
contribute to further promote mutual trust and cooperation between beneficiary Member 
States  and  the  Commission;  and  ensure  a  consistent  and  coherent  implementation  of 
Union  law.  In  addition,  some  actions  should  allow  for  the  development  and 
implementation  of  solutions  that  address  national  challenges  but  also  have  a  positive 
cross-border impact and/or for the Union as a whole.  

31 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The  Commission  is  in  a  better  position  than  any  single  Member  State  to  identify  and 
channel good practices. Thus, in  many instances, the support  measures delivered to the 
Member States have been enhanced through the exchange of good practices among the 
Member States and by international organisations. This also enabled efficiency gains, as 
positive results in one Member State can often be implemented in another one. 

Support measures implemented under the SRSP 2017 are expected to generate European 
added value in the following way18: 

  53%  of  support  measures  are  expected  to  have  an  impact  on  cross-border  or 

Union-wide challenges; 

o  e.g. some support measures provided under the SRSP in the area of capital 
markets  or  the  health  system  reforms  (pan-regional  covered  bond 
framework, framework for assessing the performance of health systems in 
two countries) address cross-border issues with cross-border solutions and 
respond to Union-wide challenges. 

  29% are expected to contribute to the consistent and coherent implementation 

of Union laws and policies; 

o  e.g.  some  support  measures  provided  aim  to  help  the  a  Member  States 
develop  capital  markets,  or  to  assist  them  in  developing  their  2030 
national energy and climate plans. 

  40%  of  support  measures  are  expected  to  contribute  to  the  sharing  of  good 
practices, also with a view to increasing the visibility of the Programme; 

o  e.g. support measures provided under the SRSP which enabled exchanges 
of  best  practices  between  several  countries  on  supplementary  pension 
schemes. 

  37%  are  expected  to  promote  mutual  trust  between  the  beneficiary  Member 

State and the Commission and between the Member States. 

o  e.g.  support  measures  enabling  exchange  of  experts  between  a  national 
ministerial  energy  authority  and  another  administration  to  help  better 
understand, measure and combat energy poverty. 

18 Each support measure can contribute to more than one element relevant for the European added value. 

32 

 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
5.  CONCLUSION 

Structural  reforms  are  crucial  to  modernise  Member  State's  economy,  encourage 
investment,  generate 
living  standards.  The  overall  successful 
implementation  of  reforms  requires  good  administrative  capacity  a  great  sense  of 
ownership of the reform process, including the technical support thereof by the recipient 
national authority.  

jobs  and  raise 

In  implementing  the  SRSP,  the  Commission  has  proceeded  to  the  selection  and 
implementation  of  support  measures  in  accordance  with  the  principle  and  criteria  laid 
down in the SRSP Regulation and of the other relevant and applicable pieces of EU law. 
This  report  provides  an  account  of  how  the  Commission  has  implemented  the 
Programme and how it is monitoring its actions in 2017.   

Overall, the first year of implementation of the SRSP shows that it can offer a significant 
contribution to the national authorities of the Member States in their continued efforts to 
identify  and  overcome  certain  structural  weaknesses  and  bottlenecks  in  the  design  or 
implementation  of  reforms,  and  in  the  reform  prioritisation.  Likewise,  the  Programme 
has so far proven to be a significant tool in enhancing Member States' capacity to define 
more  efficient  processes  and  methodologies  and/or  to  progress  towards  more  effective 
human resource management. 

While  results  of  the  support  actions  are  related  to  the  specific  projects,  the  effective 
follow-up on such actions in terms of concretisation of reforms remain a prerogative of 
the recipient Member State.  

33 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
ANNEX I 

LIST OF SUPPORT MEASURES IMPLEMENTED UNDER SRSP 2017 

Governance and Public Administration 

Improvement of the national public procurement system 
Human resources management within the national planning authority 
Improvement of EU law enforcement: joint events between Member states and SOLVIT 
centres – promotion of best practices 
Enhancement of the efficiency of the public sector 
Introduction of evaluation of all judges for the period of 3 years 
Feasibility study for setting up a "House for Children" 
Preparation of a strategic document for the development of judiciary 
Strategy for internal audit and training internal auditors at the level of local government 
Communication of the priority reforms of the government 
Preparation of the General Data Protection Regulation 
Anti-money-laundering training programme 

Growth and Business Environment 

Technical assistance for energy planning, renewable energy and energy efficiency 
Creation of a statistical model for the study and monitoring of energy poverty 
Inspections and market surveillance framework reform 
Technical support for Compliance Assistance Digital Tools [for SMEs] 
Competition Council 
State ownership policy review 
Accelerated building of the Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T) 
Family businesses 
Export credit guarantees 
Awareness raising framework on the principles, objectives and implementation effectiveness of 
maritime spatial planning and integrated coastal zone management 
Research on SMART cities 
Review of National Policy Framework for Alternative Fuel Infrastructure in Transport – gap 
analysis 
Urban regeneration and reform in the implementation of projects, operations and management  
Strengthening the administrative capacity of the planning authority to implement the Strategic 
Environmental Assessment (SEA) Directive 
Enhancement of competitiveness and productivity analysis 
Service market liberalisation 
Integral  system of evaluation of all Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) activities 
Introduction and implementation of the principles of digital construction for planning, design, 
construction and use of public real estate 
Industry transformation (digitalisation) 
Capacity building in formative evaluations 
Enforcement of aid expense recording within the national aid register 

34 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Support for the establishment of special economic zones in in less developed areas  
Open laboratory for test and validation of innovative technologies and application 
Improvement of regulatory framework quality 
Regulatory impact assessment 
Improvement of regulatory framework quality 
Simplification methodology standard cost model 
Impact assessment of integrated national energy and climate plans 
Increasing competitiveness through internationalisation and better stimulating arrivals of  
"proper & fit" foreign direct investment 
Function analysis of coordinating agencies of state-owned enterprise governance 
Support to the Independent Authority for Public Revenue for the implementation of the trade 
facilitation roadmap 
Cooperation mechanism – joint projects – statistical transfer under Renewable Energy 
Directive – transport target 
Development of a methodology for calculating the obligatory cumulative end-use energy 
saving target and comprehensive study on the optimal combination of energy saving measures 
Development of the 2030 national energy and climate plan 
Support to elaborate legal and regulatory frameworks on closed distribution system and self-
consumption assessment 
Strengthen the analytical, administrative and marketing capacity in relation to attracting direct 
foreign investment 
Development of the Open Source Energy Modelling System (OSeMOSYS) to account for 
atmospheric pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions 
Building Information Modelling (BIM) implementation for transport infrastructure projects 
Restructuring of state-owned enterprises 
Investment promotion 
Improving environmental monitoring system 
Energy efficiency 
Simplification – Study Legislation 
Economic and environmental regulation in water and wastewater sector 
Request for embedded experts tasked with a project pipeline development for the purposes of 
the Investment Plan for Europe 

Labour Market, Education, Health and Social Services 

Development of pension modelling capacity 
Design of the budget negotiation strategy of the Health Insurance Organisation with healthcare 
providers 
Creation and implementation of the national eHealth centre 
Developing health system performance assessment  
Support on the implementation and effective operation of the new health procurement authority 
Education (curriculum) reform 
Developing health system performance assessment 
Developing capacity planning for the Ministry of Health 
Functional integration of hospitals 
Capacity building for management of projects to build regional hospitals 
Improving health system efficiency 
Elaboration of procurement specifications for the development of a e-accreditation system of 
the Ministry of Labour 

35 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Early warning system for early school leaving 
Improved exchange of data for social assistance 
Delivery of an integrated management information system for active labour market policies - 
monitoring and evaluation system 
Reclassification of social benefits using European System of Integrated Social Protection 
Statistics (ESSPROS) methodology 
Addressing the labour market segmentation through development of appropriate analytical 
tools 
Reform of the state pensions system 
Technical support to the Ministry of Labour and Social Justice 
Public loan support system 
Capacity building for implementation of new long-term care act 
Patient reported experience measures and patient reported outcome measures  
Monitoring and implementing measures for sentinel and other adverse events 
Training of public administration in health  
Assessing the effect of large support schemes to innovative investments in terms of ability to 
absorb high-skilled labour force 
Reform of the medical assessment service 
Support for the implementation of the national qualification framework 
Implementation of the action plan for tackling undeclared work 
Best practices from other countries in the context of establishment of new National Institute for 
Technology 
Implementation of the Diagnosis-Related Group (DRG) system in the health sector 
Exchange of best practices on adjusting supplementary pension schemes 
New IT solutions for pension calculation and financial processing of pensions 
Support on the reform of the disability assessment system 
Support for the setting the criteria for reimbursement of the results of health care technology 
assessment 
Development and implementation of labour migration strategy 
National information system for adult education 
Development of monitoring system for school teachers' demand at local level 
Bullying - reducing violence among minors 

Revenue Administration and Public Financial Management 

Strengthening the management of business processes of the National Agency for Fiscal 
Administration 
Comprehensive spending review 
Changing the approach to collecting overdue public claims 
Establishment of an expenditure review process 
Excise tax gap analysis 
Reform of taxpayer services 
Government accounting reform – transition to accrual accounting reporting 
Comprehensive budgetary system reform 
Development of a new corrective and compensatory mechanism for local government units 
Implementation of the compliance risk management model 
Development and implementation of the measurement, monitoring and evaluation system in a 
national revenue administration 
Technical support to improve the quality of customer services through the development of 

36 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
services aimed at persons with special needs 
Strategy for voluntary tax compliance 
Transfer pricing seminar 
Acquiring specific skills and introduction to the good practices in the field of transfer pricing 
Statistics – monitoring of statistics, quality assessment and breach reports 
Design of the accrual accounting reform based on International and European Public Sector 
Accounting Standards (IPSAS/EPSAS) 
Enhance experience and knowledge on automated processes in the control of movement of 
goods for tax purposes 
Strengthening the projects portfolio management within the national agency for fiscal 
administration 
Strengthening the strategic planning activity and functions of the national agency for fiscal 
administration 
Increase the knowledge and skills of the revenue administration officials and develop working 
documents for using the information exchanged through the Mini One-Stop-Shop (MOSS) 
system 
Obtaining technical knowledge on transition to accrual accounting 
Technical assistance in the implementation of the mid-term tax strategy 
Strengthening the administrative capacity on monitoring and control over e-commerce 
Develop organizational change management competences/abilities in the context of 
implementation of a new integrated information system 
Public financial management reform: budget framework law implementation 

Financial Services and Access to Finance 

Supporting the new framework for insolvency administrators 
Supporting the Framework for Insolvency and Restructuring Practitioners 
Preparation of SME equity support instrument 
Addressing corporate insolvency reform 
Operationalisation of resolution tool – Special Purpose Vehicle asset management 
Capital market diagnostic 
Developing a communication strategy on financial literacy 
Analysis of business angels and promotion of business angels 
National strategy for electronic payments 
Legal and regulatory covered bond and securitisation framework reform 
Moving towards emerging market status 
Drawing up a strategy for capital market development 
Setting up a national promotional bank  
Improvement of investment environment for institutional investors 
Development of a single entry point for disclosure and distribution of information by market 
participants (‘single entry point’) 
Preparation of a national strategy on the development of the national capital market 
Supporting the new framework for insolvency practitioners 
Effective modelling of non-maturing deposits to manage liquidity and interest rate risk 
Consolidating risk based supervision across all sectors – insurance and issuer's transparency 
Organizational effectiveness of financial sector regulator – value added benchmarking 
Opening the national regulatory framework for innovative technical solutions 

37 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Integration and improvement of risk based supervision in financial services supervisory 
authority 
Legal and regulatory framework for creation of structured products (covered bond and 
securitisation) and enforceability of hedging instruments (close-out netting for derivatives and 
repos) 
Capital markets and the capital markets union – access to finance 
Strengthening the institutional and administrative capacities of the financial supervision 
authority to address the new supervisory tasks resulting from the implementation of the 
European Union law 
Preparation of a feasibility study for building a new cash centre 

38 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
ANNEX II 

PROGRESS IN ACHIEVING SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME 

Support  measures  carried  out  under  the  SRSP  2017  are  expected  to  contribute  to  the 
specific objectives of the Programme in the following way19: 

a)  41% of support measures contribute to the design of reforms; 

Trade
Spending reviews
Social policies

Sectoral expertise (transport, logistics,…

Revenue administration
Pension and disabilities
Other
Management of human resources
Labour market policies
Investment management and PPPs
Insolvency
Innovation
Healthcare system
Governance

Environment, circular economy, water, land…

Energy
Education and training
Digital Public Administration
Digital economy

Competition and small and medium-sized…

Capital Markets Union

Better regulation, licensing, permits and…

Bank supervision and resolution
Anti-corruption / anti-money-laundering
Budget preparation
Accounting reform

1 

1 

1 

1 
1 

1 

1 
1 

1 

1 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 
2 

5 

5 

3 

3 

3 

4 

4 

7 

19 Each support measure can contribute to more than one specific objectives.  

39 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
 
 
 
b)  63% contribute to the formulation, development and implementation of reforms; 

Trade
State-owned enterprise management
Spending reviews
Social policies

Sectoral expertise (transport, logistics, tourism,…

Revenue administration
Pension and disabilities
Other
Management of human resources
Labour market policies
Judicial reform
Investment management and PPPs
Insolvency
Innovation
Healthcare system
Governance

1 

1 

1 

1 

Environment, circular economy, water, land…

Energy
Education and training
Digital Public Administration
Digital economy

Competition and small and medium-sized…

1 

Capital Markets Union

Better regulation, licensing, permits and…

Better regulation
Bank supervision and resolution
Anti-corruption / anti-money-laundering
Budget preparation
Accounting reform
Access to finance

1 

1 
1 

2 
2 

2 

2 
2 

2 

2 
2 

2 

2 

2 

7 

5 

3 

4 

3 

9 

12 

6 

4 
4 

5 

40 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
c)  61%  contribute 
methodologies; 

to 

the  definition  and 

implementation  of  processes  and 

State-owned enterprise management
Spending reviews
Social policies

Sectoral expertise (transport, logistics,…

Revenue administration
Public procurement
Pension and disabilities
Other
Management of human resources
Labour market policies
Judicial reform
Investment management and PPPs
Insolvency
Innovation
Healthcare system
Governance
Fiscal strategies and tax policy

Environment, circular economy, water,…

Energy
Education and training
Digital Public Administration
Digital economy

Competition and small and medium-sized…

Capital Markets Union

Better regulation, licensing, permits and…

Better regulation
Bank supervision and resolution
Anti-corruption / anti-money-laundering
Accounting reform

4 

4 

4 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

3 

3 

3 

3 

3 
3 
3 

3 

3 

3 

10 

8 

6 
6 

d)  And 9% of support measures aim to help improve efficiency and effectiveness of 

human-resources management. 

Revenue administration

2 

Public procurement

Judicial reform

Healthcare system

Fiscal strategies and tax policy

Environment, circular economy,…

Energy

Education and training

Bank supervision and resolution

3 

3 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

41