Think Tank

This study examines how the European Commission and the European Investment Bank measure the impact of their external action programmes and investments on decent and sustainable job creation in Sub Saharan Africa, with particular attention to the Global Gateway. This paper summarises current employment impact assessment practices, recognising their capacity to capture high level direct and indirect employment effects while also identifying clear limitations, especially in harmonising job quality ...

This study examines the perpetrators and methods of transnational repression within the European Union (EU) and suggests possible counter-strategies for EU institutions. The study explains how transnational repression relates to associated issues faced by the EU, such as foreign interference, disinformation, abuse of migration frameworks and hybrid threats. Whilst the scale, scope and methods of transnational repression comprise a global phenomenon, this problem is specifically prevalent within the ...

This briefing has been prepared for the exchange of views with the Chair of the European Fiscal Board (EFB), scheduled for 29 January 2026. It provides background information on the EFB’s mandate, and summarises the Board’s two main annual publications - the Annual Report and the Assessment of the euro area fiscal stance - as well as other relevant contributions recently published by the EFB. Further information on the EFB’s revised role within the reformed governance framework is available in a ...

The Commission’s NRPP proposal seeks to preserve core features of the Cohesion Policy Funds (regional and local authority involvement under shared management) while drawing on RRF innovations (integration of reforms and investments, performance-based disbursement linked to milestones and targets). • The proposed governance model and oversight regime is a potentially credible hybrid. But some modifications are needed to ensure fairness and comparability in Commission assessments of national Plans ...

The RRF has promoted investments and reforms in nearly any area of domestic policy. The legal framework governing the RRF is broad and undefined, with little practical guidance, leaving the Commission wide discretion to negotiate fund allocation with national governments. In practice, this has led to large amounts of EU funding being directed to national projects without clear EU-level impact. The RRF’s wide scope and strict confidentiality regime, combined with the performance-based delivery mode ...