REACT-EU (2021-2023)
REACT-EU had been established by the European Union as a recovery assistance plan to mitigate the economic and social consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic in Europe. REACT-EU, which stands for Recovery Assistance for Cohesion and the Territories of Europe, was the second largest funding instrument in the framework of NextGenerationEU.
The European Union was bringing together its measures against the economic and social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic under the umbrella NextGenerationEU (NGEU). The recovery instrument with a budget of 750 billion euros in 2018 prices was without precedent in the history of the European Union. This amounts to a budget of more than 800 billion euros when you take the development of the respective price level in the coming years into account. The measures receiving funding not only addressed the immediate consequences of the pandemic, but also looked to the future, so that Europe emerges stronger from this crisis ready for future challenges. All total, there were seven individual instruments that make up Next Generation EU. They support the EU’s economy and people through concrete measures that focussed on different aspects.
Recovery Assistance for Cohesion and the Territories of Europe (REACT-EU) was the second largest Next Generation EU funding instrument with 47.5 billion euros in 2018 prices (50.6 billion in current prices). REACT-EU provided additional funding to the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) through 2023. The ESIF thus contributed to addressing the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and support the transition to a digital, environmentally sustainable economy and society. Around 2.3 billion euros in current prices were expected to be available to Germany from REACT-EU to support measures under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF).
In the field of ESF, REACT-EU was promoting the creation and safeguarding of jobs for both the self-employed and the employed, especially for young people and those in precarious situations. It also promoted investment in education and vocational training.
Overview of the REACT-EU funding programmes
At the federal level, REACT-EU was implemented by the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action.
