[Publication] Revitalising Inclusive Blue Economies. Strategies for employment and entrepreneurship in disadvantaged coastal and outermost regions

Background

Coastal and outermost regions play a strategic role in Europe’s economy, environment and territorial cohesion, yet many face persistent challenges linked to remoteness, insularity, demographic decline, limited economic diversification and growing climate-related pressures. At the same time, emerging blue economy sectors offer significant opportunities for innovation, entrepreneurship and quality employment. Ensuring these opportunities translate into inclusive and resilient development for disadvantaged coastal communities is therefore an important challenge for EU Cohesion Policy, particularly in the context of the ongoing 2021–2027 programming period and the preparation of the post-2027 framework.

Aim

This study examines the structural challenges and barriers to employment and entrepreneurship in innovative blue economy (BE) sectors in the EU’s disadvantaged and transitioning coastal regions and outermost regions (OR). Through in-depth analysis, it assesses the alignment and adequacy of the main Cohesion Policy funds and derives recommendations to inform both the residual 2021–2027 implementation and the design of the 2028-2034 framework.

Structural challenges faced by disadvantaged coastal and outermost regions

Four interconnected structural challenges shape territories’ capacity to create and sustain BE-related economic activity:

• Climate change and environmental degradation directly influence marine assets. Coastal flooding and erosion, sea-level rise, ecosystem degradation, biodiversity loss and pressures on water and other natural resources affect settlements, infrastructure and economic activities that rely on coastal ecosystems.
• Socio-economic pressures further constrain the resilience and diversification of certain coastal economies, with dependence on seasonal activities, ageing and population decline, housing pressures and unequal access to essential services affecting labour-market resilience and territorial attractiveness.
• Remoteness and insularity create a structural accessibility gap, as reliance on a limited number of connections can raise transport and logistics costs and restrict access to markets, services and employment.
• Geopolitical tensions and the growing interconnection of maritime, energy and digital infrastructure have made security an increasingly important component of territorial resilience.

Their intensity varies across territories, and coastality or insularity should not automatically be equated with disadvantage. Diversified coastal metropolitan regions often absorb these pressures rising from those several challenges while smaller islands, fisheries-dependent and outermost regions tend to face them in combination.

Barriers to employment and entrepreneurship in innovative BE sectors

Building on these structural conditions, recurring and closely interconnected barriers constrain employment and entrepreneurship in the innovative BE sectors such as marine renewable energy, marine biotechnology and digital maritime services.

• Skills mismatches and shortages are reinforced by ageing workforces and declining labour-market attractiveness, making it harder to attract, train and retain the workers needed.
• These constraints can limit the effects of BE investment and affect innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems already weakened by the limited specialised infrastructure and underdeveloped connections with research institutions, business networks and investors.
• Access to finance and scaling up opportunities is particularly difficult for firms intending to move from research to commercial deployment.
• Gender inequalities persist in most BE sectors, where women represent around 29% of the workforce and remain underrepresented in operational, technical and leadership roles.

Ultimately, the nature and intensity of these barriers also vary across BE sectors and enterprises’ capacity due to varying workforce and skills capacity as well as technological and financing needs. Similarly, remote territories and small markets, where limited local capacity amplifies every constraint.

The contribution of Cohesion Policy funds to revitalising blue economies

The 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy provides a broad framework for BE revitalisation that contributes through both direct support to maritime sectors and BE value chains and enabling support that strengthens wider conditions for innovation, skills, connectivity and diversification. A targeted assessment of selected policy intervention fields related to the BE was conducted by identifying funding streams and intervention categories that can reasonably be linked to BE development and the enabling conditions required for economic diversification in coastal territories. It shows^[1]:

• ERDF is the largest source of BE support (EUR 9.42 billion of BE-relevant planned support, 72.9% in less-developed regions), mainly delivered through nature and biodiversity, climate, tourism and port investments: predominantly enabling conditions rather than direct BE support.
• ESF+ addresses the skills and labour-market barriers, with an additional EUR 372 million for OR. Its contribution is largely horizontal rather than sectoral.
• Interreg has a key role in addressing challenges which require strong regional (sea basin or sub-sea basin) cooperation. Euro-MED (EUR 77.5 M) and Italy‑Croatia (EUR 75.3 M) rank as the top 2 contributors to BE.
• Cohesion Fund and Just Transition Fund support infrastructure, connectivity, reskilling and diversification.
• Additionally, although strictly outside CP, EMFAF (≈EUR 5.2 billion) is the most direct instrument, combining sector competitiveness with coastal-community resilience (CLLD EUR 517 million; OR compensation EUR 175 million).

Cohesion Policy provides a flexible framework for supporting BE development, although there is still room to better channel direct support to maritime sectors. Territories heavily rely on investments that strengthen enabling conditions for innovation, entrepreneurship, skills, connectivity and territorial resilience more broadly. Evidence from programme implementation highlights the importance of place-based delivery mechanisms, which align funding with local development needs and assets.

Existing tools and governance frameworks, including Smart Specialisation Strategies, Community-Led Local Development or Fisheries Local Action Groups further support this objective by connecting investments with local innovation ecosystems, territorial assets and cross-regional partnerships. Overall, successful blue economy initiatives tend to emerge from integrated ecosystems that combine innovation, skills, finance, governance and collaboration rather than isolated interventions.

Looking ahead: policy recommendations for the 2028–2034 framework

1. Future Cohesion Policy Programmes should help the development of place-based support pathways for entrepreneurship in emerging blue sectors.
2. Make the European Ocean Pact a central strategic reference for the 2028-2034 Cohesion Policy in disadvantaged coastal, island and outermost
3. Establish blue skills and ocean literacy as integrated priorities of the 2028-2034 Cohesion Policy.
4. Use the 2028-2034 Cohesion Policy as a territorial delivery framework for the forthcoming Blue Generational Renewal Strategy.
5. Mainstream gender-responsive pathways across blue skills, entrepreneurship and innovation support.
6. Gather evidence and knowledge on gender-specific barriers.
7. Strengthening the innovation ecosystems that underpin economic diversification and adaptation.
8. Reinforce Smart Specialisation (S3) as a driver of long-term blue economy transformation.
9. Support spaces for multi-level governance and coordination on blue economy innovation, including maritime regional cooperation.
10. Scaling and deploying solutions that have already demonstrated their effectiveness during the 2021–2027 programming period.
11. Strengthen the territorial evidence base, monitoring and accountability framework for blue economy development.
12. Provide tailored, place-based support to disadvantaged and outermost coastal regions.
13. Cohesion Policy should empower coastal communities to play a more active role in shaping local blue economy transitions.

[1] The analysis should be understood as an assessment of the potential contribution of Cohesion Policy to BE revitalisation rather than a comprehensive measurement of all funding benefiting coastal territories.