Romania was earmarked EUR 1.3 billion (3.3% of total EUR 39.6 bln) under the European Union's REACT-EU program that tops up the cohesion budget, aiming to alleviate the pandemic's social impact, Economica.net reported.

The bulk of the money (EUR 22 bln, more than half) went to Italy and Spain - the countries worst hit by the crisis.

The end date for the eligibility of expenditure for REACT-EU projects is December 31, 2023, in line with the 2014-2020 legislative framework. The program also retroactively covers expenditures made by the member states after February 1, 2020, to mitigate the pandemic's effects, encompassing both physically completed and fully implemented operations.

REACT-EU allows a pre-financing level of 50% so that sufficient liquidity is available for support to quickly reach the real economy (to help people and businesses).

andrei@romania-insider.com

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