Europe’s Outermost Regions are strategic assets for our common future
Europe does not end at the shores of our continent. From the Canary Islands and Madeira to the Caribbean, French Guiana and the Indian Ocean, the Outermost Regions extend Europe’s global reach and reinforce its economic, environmental and geopolitical strength.
Through this European initiative, the European Democratic Party, together with MoDem representatives from France’s overseas territories, Coalición Canaria and Juntos Pelo Povo, is highlighting both the strategic importance of the Outermost Regions and the specific challenges faced by their citizens.
The EDP welcomes the European Commission’s new strategy and, above all, its shift in perspective. These regions should no longer be viewed solely through the prism of their structural constraints, but recognised for what they are: geographically distant, yet geopolitically central to Europe and strategic assets for our common future.
“The reaffirmation of Article 349 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union is essential. The specific circumstances of the Outermost Regions must be fully reflected across all relevant EU policies, extending far beyond cohesion policy.”
This was the message from Sandro Gozi, Secretary-General of the European Democratic Party and Renew Europe MEP, who stressed that political recognition must now translate into concrete decisions.
The new strategic vision for the Outermost Regions must be fully reflected in the next Multiannual Financial Framework, with sufficient, dedicated and clearly identifiable resources. The specific characteristics of these territories must also be taken into account throughout all European policies and programmes affecting them.
This approach must equally apply to two challenges that increasingly shape the future of the Outermost Regions: access to housing and migration. Housing pressure is particularly severe in island territories, where land is limited and demographic and economic pressures are strong. European legislation must therefore allow responses tailored to these realities.
Likewise, regions located at the Union’s external borders and exposed to structural migration routes cannot be left to shoulder alone a responsibility that belongs to Europe as a whole.
“As Renew Europe’s shadow rapporteur for the European Parliament’s forthcoming report, I will work to turn this ambition into concrete measures, backed by adequate and clearly identifiable resources in the next EU budget. The five million European citizens living in the Outermost Regions must be given the means to fulfil their potential and transform their unique characteristics into a strength for Europe as a whole.”
Coalición Canaria: recognition must be matched by resources
For David Toledo, Secretary-General of Coalición Canaria, the new European approach reflects a position the Canary Islands have defended for years.
“Europe understands something that the Canary Islands have been arguing for far too long: our remoteness does not make us any less European. On the contrary, it makes the islands a strategic territory for the Union. But this recognition cannot remain just words; it must translate into sufficient resources in the next European budget and into policies that take our reality into account.”
Toledo stressed that the full implementation of Article 349 is not a demand for special treatment, but a matter of fairness.
“The Canary Islands are not asking for privileges or preferential treatment. We are asking for Article 349 to be fully applied and for our status as an Outermost Region to be taken into account in decisive areas such as housing, migration and our ability to compete on equal terms.”
JPP: territorial continuity and lower transport costs
Élvio Sousa, Secretary-General of Juntos Pelo Povo, emphasised that stronger European action on passenger and freight transport must be based on the principle of territorial continuity and the possibilities provided by Article 349.
“The European Union already recognises that the Outermost Regions face permanent additional costs due to their remoteness, insularity and small markets, allowing specific support measures to be adopted. In this context, JPP calls for stronger EU support to reduce the cost of maritime and air transport for both passengers and goods.”
Sousa also recalled the European Parliament’s position on the need to integrate the specific circumstances of the Outermost Regions into EU transport policy.
“The European Parliament has also called for the specific characteristics of the Outermost Regions to be properly taken into account in transport policies and in guaranteeing territorial continuity.”
From France’s overseas territories to the Canary Islands and Madeira, the EDP family shares the same objective: ensuring that geographical distance does not result in fewer rights, fewer opportunities or weaker access to the European project.
Recognising the strategic importance of the Outermost Regions is an essential first step. The next EU budget must now provide the resources needed to turn that recognition into reality.
