Commission supports 135 new projects to help Member States implement their reform agenda

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

Today, the Commission has approved a new round of 135 projects under the Technical Support Instrument (‘TSI’), to support Member States to prepare, design and implement a total of 390 reforms in 2025.

The selected projects will help the Member States address reforms in key priority areas to strengthen the Union’s resilience and competitiveness and to improve citizens’ lives across the EU. Two-third of the projects are linked 15 flagship projects aimed at addressing common reform needs in the EU, such as impoving the quality of public administration, provide a better business environment for SMEs, or to make energy systems fit for the green and digital transition.

TSI helps Member States to deliver on key political priorities

In line with the key priority to strengthen the Union’s competitiveness, the TSI will support 109 reforms to help Member States improve their business environment, close the innovation gap, build a net-zero economy, and promote the Union’s economic security. For example, the TSI will support 38 reforms in 22 Member States to reduce unnecessary administrative burden for SMEs, to promote start-ups and scale ups and to enable them to be more productive, competitive and resilient.

More than 130 reforms to support the digital transition have been selected in 2025, with a strong focus on Artificial Intelligence (‘AI’) and innovative technologies. These will support Member States to reap the productivity gains from technology towards tomorrow’s economy. For example, with the project “FutureProof Education”, the TSI will support schools in Germany, Sweden, and Ireland to develop guidance for the responsible and meaningful use of AI in schools, as well as to set up AI literacy programmes.

Supporting collaboration among Member States towards a modern and efficient public administration

In 2025, 40 multi-country projects will address common challenges of Member States through the TSI. Multi-country projects promote the development of common approaches and include peer learning and the exchange of best practices. For example, 14 Member States will work together to effectively implement EU tax legislation to modernise and simplify tax and customs procedures and reduce the administrative burden for SMEs.

Enhancing the capacity of Member States’ public administrations and their cross-country collaboration is vital for the modernisation of our Union. This year, 119 reforms supported by the TSI will assist Member States in strengthening their public administrations to effectively tackle current and future challenges. In line with the ComPAct communication adopted in October 2023, TSI will support efforts of the Member States to converge on closing skills gaps, enabling digital transformation, and preparing administrations to lead the green transition.

Background

The TSI helps Member States deliver on their reform agenda in a wide range of policy areas. It provides tailor-made expertise to Member States’ authorities who apply for support on an annual basis. It does not come in the form of financial support but consists of the provision of high-quality and tailored expertise and knowledge and can take the form of strategic or technical advice, studies assessing reform needs, training, or in-country missions by experts.

The TSI has been providing technical support to all 27 Member States to implement more than 2000 cutting-edgereforms in a wide range of areas such as revenue administration and public financial management, public administration and governance, growth and business environment, labour market, education and social services, migration, and financial market and access to finance. So far, the TSI has supported close to 500 reforms linked to the Recovery and Resilience Plans.