Analysis of target setting for a selection of common indicators used under the European Regional Development Fund, Cohesion Fund and Just Transition Fund in 2021-2027

The study will assess the use of a selection of ERDF/CF/JTF common indicators in the 2021-2027 period, in particular: - the variety of underlying assumptions about unit costs, i.e. the relationship between planned financial allocations and expected achievements, and - the robustness of these assumptions when compared to implementation data. The analysis will be mainly desk-based, using datasets published on the Cohesion Open Data Platform and a sample of programme methodological documents detailing the assumptions used for target-setting in each programme. For each indicator, the contractor will analyse unit costs variations across programmes, both quantitatively and qualitatively.

Special focus will be placed on understanding why the same indicator appears to have very different unit costs across different programmes. The findings will be synthesised in several formats, including indicator fiches.