Horizontal principles
All projects supported by the EU’s regional and structural policy programme must be implemented in accordance with and respectfully of the programme’s horizontal principles. Horizontal principles include fundamental rights and principles in accordance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, gender equality, non-discrimination, equality in general and sustainable development, also taking into account the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the principle of ‘do no significant harm.’
Horizontal principles have two meanings in projects.
- The obligation to observe horizontal principles means that the objectives, results, outputs, measures and the definition of target groups of the project must not include actions or procedures that violate the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights or the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Beneficiaries must also implement projects in full compliance with EU and national environmental legislation.
- In addition to the need for all projects to comply with and respect the horizontal principles, the main development content of the project may focus on the promotion of one or more horizontal principles or one of their aspects, in particular. Horizontal principles are included in the special selection criteria for all specific objectives of the EU’s regional and structural policy programme, which are used to score and prioritise project applications at the project selection stage.
To meet the horizontal selection criteria, the project must support
- gender equality,
- the principles of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, including equality, non-discrimination and accessibility,
- the principles of sustainable development and the EU’s environmental policy, and the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region.
The funding authority scores the horizontal selection criteria on a scale of 0 to 3.
The realisation of the principles is monitored during the implementation of the project. The beneficiary must report on the realisation of the horizontal principles in the final project report.
All the above-mentioned horizontal principles are described in more detail in their own sections.
The EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is included as a new horizontal principle to be assessed in project applications for EU regional and structural policy funds. The EU Charter of Fundamental Rights brings together certain individual, civil, political, economic and social rights of EU citizens and residents, which are enshrined in EU law. The Charter of Fundamental Rights contains both rights and principles. The rights are subjective rights that can be invoked directly, for example in courts.
The Charter contains a preamble and 54 articles, divided into the following seven chapters. See the Charter of Fundamental Rights: Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2000/C 364/01)
The following rights, which are the most relevant from the point of view of the EU’s regional and structural policy programme, have been selected from the Charter for assurance in the project application. Implementation of the programme should pay particular attention to articles 8 and 20–37 of the Charter, as set out in the following headings:
- safe working conditions;
- prohibition of all forms of discrimination;
- integration of persons with disabilities;
- protection of personal data;
- environmental protection; and
- gender equality.
Information on the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights on the website of the Human Rights Centre
Human Rights Centre lecture series: Perustiedot haltuun (Master the basics) (in Finnish)
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol entered into force in Finland on 10 June 2016.
The Convention aims to
- ensure full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for persons with disabilities,
- promote and protect these rights and freedoms, and
- promote respect for the inherent dignity of persons with disabilities.
National Action Plan on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2020–2023
Information on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on the website of the Human Rights Centre (in Finnish)
Gender equality refers to the equal rights and opportunities of people of different genders. The Constitution of Finland decrees that no one shall, without an acceptable reason, be treated differently from other persons on the grounds of sex. The Act on Equality between Women and Men (609/1986) prohibits discrimination based on gender, gender identity and gender expression in almost all areas of life.
Gender mainstreaming means that the impact of the project’s operating models is assessed from the perspective of gender equality. The aim is to promote gender equality and eliminate discrimination based on gender.
The gender perspective must be integrated into the activities of all projects funded by the EU’s regional and structural policy funds. The application must describe how differences in the position, opportunities, needs and vulnerabilities of men, women, girls, boys and/or representatives of other gender identities have been taken into account during the planning phase of the project.
The beneficiary must report how the gender perspective has been taken into account in the implementation of the project. The beneficiary must ensure that the measures of the project do not have the effect of increasing inequality.
Provisions on equality and non-discrimination are laid down in the Finnish Constitution, the Non-Discrimination Act, the Criminal Code and legislation concerning various areas of life. Provisions on gender equality and gender diversity are laid down in the Act on Equality between Women and Men.
Equality means that all people are equal. The implementation of the EU regional and structural policy programme must observe all principles of equality. This means that the selection, implementation, monitoring, reporting and evaluation of projects are carried out in a manner that does not discriminate against any group of people.
The recognition of discrimination is a basic prerequisite for the realisation of equality. As a rule, the quality of activities improves when people’s diversity is taken into account.
The application must describe how the project will take into account the prevention of discrimination based on gender, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation, in particular in terms of accessibility.
None of the project’s measures or their method of implementation may have the effect of increasing inequality.
Sustainable development is promoted to ensure that the activities contribute to the community’s social, environmental, cultural and economic sustainability objectives and that the overall impact on the environment, the climate and human wellbeing is positive.
Sustainable development is divided into three themes.
- Environmental sustainability includes the sustainability of the use of natural resources, the reduction of risks caused by climate change, the reduction of greenhouse gases, and the state of biodiversity and water bodies.
- Economic sustainability means a low-carbon, resource-efficient and energy-efficient economy, taking into account in particular materials and waste, the use of renewable energy sources, the sustainable development of the local economic structure, the development of intangible products and services, as well as mobility and logistics.
- Social and cultural sustainability and equality refer in particular to the integrity of communities and society, the realisation of fundamental and human rights and gender equality, as well as functioning democracy, and their preservation from one generation to the next.
The application must assess the expected impacts of the project from the perspective of these three themes of sustainable development, and justify the assessments presented. The main areas of social sustainability (gender equality, non-discrimination and equality in general) are considered as separate horizontal principles.
Legislation and instructions for environmental protection (in Finnish)
The Paris Climate Agreement is an international, legally binding agreement on climate change. It aims to limit the rise in global average temperature to well below 2 °C relative to the pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts by which warning could be limited to below 1.5 °C. The Agreement was concluded on 12 December 2015 and it entered into force on 4 November 2016. It supplements the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change concluded in 1992.
The projects funded under the programme must contribute to the general objective of the Paris Agreement on climate change.
The principle of ‘do no significant harm’ (DNSH) is a practical tool for examining the environmental impact of projects. In the Innovation and Skills in Finland 2021–2027 programme, the authority handling project applications must carry out a review of any projects funded with enterprise development grants that involve material investments or, in the case of the Just Transition Fund (JTF), investments related to the increasing use of biomass or the restoration and reuse of peatlands. A review should also be carried out for transport projects funded under the programme. This review is based on the model of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). Projects are assessed against six environmental objectives:
- climate change mitigation;
- climate change adaptation;
- sustainable use and protection of water and marine resources;
- transition to a circular economy (including waste prevention and recycling);
- pollution prevention and control; and
- biodiversity and the protection and restoration of ecosystems.
The assessment is carried out in two stages. The first step is to carry out a general assessment to identify the environmental objectives to be covered by a more detailed DNSH assessment. A more detailed DNSH assessment with justifications is carried out for environmental objectives that may be subject to significant impacts.
Commission Notice. Technical guidance on the application of ‘do no significant harm’ under the Recovery and Resilience Facility Regulation
Application of ‘do no significant harm’ in the Finnish RRF Programme (in Finnish)
In June 2009, the European Commission presented a Communication on an EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) and a detailed Action Plan. It was adopted by the European Council as the EU’s first macro-regional strategy in October 2009. Based on the experience gained from the EUSBSR, three other regional macro-regional strategies have since been developed. The current EUSBSR Action Plan was updated in 2021. It is based on 14 policy areas:
- reduce nutrients entering the sea (PA Nutri);
- reduce the use of hazardous substances (PA Hazards);
- bioeconomy (PA Bioeconomy);
- maritime safety (PA Safe);
- clean and efficient shipping (PA Ship);
- transport (PA Transport);
- energy (PA Energy);
- spatial planning (PA Spatial Planning);
- societal stability and security (PA Secure);
- tourism (PA Tourism);
- culture (PA Culture);
- innovation (PA Innovation);
- health (PA Health); and
- education (PA Education).
The EUSBSR does not in itself include funding, but its implementation is funded from other existing funding programmes or instruments. Projects funded under the Innovation and Skills in Finland 2021–2027 programme can also support the EUSBSR and some of its policy areas. This has also been taken into account as one of the horizontal selection criteria of the programme. Activities in support of the EUSBSR can be projects, project groups or project platforms, and synchronised project applications with other Member States and programmes in the Baltic Sea region, for example, are also possible.
More information on the EUSBSR (in Finnish)
More information on the EUSBSR (in English)