12.1.2022
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
C 15/131 Thursday 20 May 2021
17.
Underlines, on the other hand, that overconcentration of the population in certain urban areas has already led to negative side effects, such as congestion, rising housing and transport costs, pollution, insufficient water availability, waste-disposal problems, high energy consumption, deterioration of the quality of life, and urban sprawl, as well as a significant risk of poverty and social exclusion, and uncertainty for certain segments of the population; underlines these negative effects have thus led to local authorities being unable to provide services to all residents of urban areas; warns of some of the negative effects on public health of high population concentrations in urban areas, which have been highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic;
18.
Notes that migration has a direct impact on the inclusiveness of cities, requiring tailored policy responses and supporting measures in different territorial contexts; recalls in this regard that economic migrants contribute more in taxes and social contributions than they receive in individual benefits; highlights the need to strengthen inclusion policies and support local and regional authorities in this regard;
Tailored responses: finding solutions to the challenge of demographic decline
19.
Underlines the importance of current initiatives such as the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing, Ambient Assisted Living and the EIT Digital and Health Knowledge Innovation Communities; calls on the Commission to take into account the solutions already developed by these initiatives for accommodating the demographic shift when addressing the demographic challenges faced by European regions; stresses the importance of the European Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning as a way of supporting education and training in areas at risk of depopulation;
20.
Stresses that local, regional and national authorities, professional associations and NGOs are essential to identifying and assessing specific investment needs in rural and urban areas for mobility, territorial accessibility and basic services, and, therefore, to unlocking the potential of the areas concerned, including economic, social and demographic trends; believes, therefore, that they should play a decisive role as active participants in developing territorial strategies stemming from local communities; highlights the importance of including, when possible, a specific budgetary response for reversing demographic trends in relevant EU programmes, and of conducting impact assessments of public policies on demography; points out that a territorial approach to EU instruments, such as sustainable urban development, community-led local development strategies or Integrated Territorial Investments (ITIs) could be useful tools that can be used to maintain and create jobs, improve the attractiveness of the region, and increase accessibility to services at local level; recognises the great potential of the circular economy and bioeconomy in revitalising these areas, and calls for tailor-made technical assistance to support local and regional authorities in the design and the implementation of these strategies, including through the use of participatory methods involving local stakeholders, the social partners and civil society;
21.
Points out to the need to develop a European rural agenda aimed at improving the accessibility, attractiveness and sustainable development of rural and remote areas so as to have a positive impact on the smooth operation of the supply chain and the internal market; notes that the accessibility and attractiveness of these areas can be enhanced through access to capital for entrepreneurs and SMEs and investments in innovation ecosystems to support knowledge creation and technological diffusion, as well as through providing high-quality public and essential services, digitalisation, including for small businesses, digital innovation and digital connectivity and high quality transport services; believes that local and regional authorities should identify adequate provisions of services, in the most efficient way possible and that the concept of ‘rural-proofing’ should be used to address the specific needs of rural and remote areas with focus on policy implementation and the delivery adequate solutions;
22.
Reiterates that transport networks can play a decisive role in addressing demographic change and halting depopulation by reinforcing rural-urban connectivity, including through investments in public transport and other mobility services in rural areas; underlines, in this regard, the importance of improving transport infrastructure including through the maintenance and revitalisation of existing transport links and the provision of links to the TEN-T, which are especially important in rural, peripheral, insular and in the outermost regions, through support to the transition to sustainable and smart transport networks and strengthening interoperability in transport systems as part of the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy;