The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, announced on Wednesday 13 April that the first instalment of the funds allocated to Italy under the recovery plan was on its way.

Italy is the largest beneficiary of the Next Generation EU fund. After China, Italy was the first country to be affected by the rapid spread of COVID-19 at the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

To repair the economic and social damage caused by the pandemic, the EU funds will help in delivering key investments and reforms listed among the objectives in Italy’s recovery and resilience plan. By the end of June, Rome must achieve the 45 objectives proposed in the plan and have to implement all the planned steps within five years.

Italy to receive first funds from NextGeneration EU | EURACTIV