Integrated territorial development in the context of Cohesion Policy 2014-2020

the case of Greece

Abstract

The need for a better understanding and integration of territorial aspects in European policy design has emerged over time. This need is growing, especially after the recognition, in the EU Treaty, of territorial cohesion as the third objective of Cohesion Policy. One of the results of the Cohesion Policy reform during the 2014-2020 Programming Period was to anticipate and encourage the use of an integrated and place-based approach, while promoting territorial governance, with the aim of improving the effectiveness and efficiency of policies.
This paper investigates the degree of integration of the territorial dimension in Cohesion Policy in Greece during the Programming Period 2014-2020 and seeks to evaluate the way and the degree of adoption of the place-based approach in the context of the Integrated Territorial Development policy. The paper is methodologically based on a qualitative approach, with the key element of the comparative analysis of the basic policy documents for the formulation and implementation of the EU Cohesion Policy for the Programming Period 2014-2020 in Greece, utilizing methods of qualitative analysis described in the relevant literature. In the conclusions, the territorial dimension of the Cohesion Policy and the degree of adaptation of the development planning of Greece to the change of the design perception are evaluated and relevant directions for the improvement of the approach for the Programming Period 2021-2027 emerge.