Latvia Rolling Up Its Sleeves To Tweak Recovery Fund Plan

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 19. On September 16, Latvia's Ministry of Finance and representatives of the European Commission held their quarterly meeting to assess the progress of Latvia's Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) plan, Trend reports.

The talks revolved around the markers hit so far, the hurdles on the horizon, and the tweaks in the pipeline to smooth out the process.

The European Commission has initiated changes aimed at simplifying the justification of results, with the goal of reducing administrative burdens while maintaining the plan's overall ambition. Latvia confirmed its readiness to submit an additional payment request this year for milestones reached earlier than scheduled. The Commission expressed conceptual support for many of Latvia's proposed clarifications, which will help ensure the achievement of agreed targets.

“The implementation of reforms and investments under the 1.97 billion euro Recovery Plan is largely on track, with projects underway and risks managed under strict oversight. Planned amendments will cut administrative burdens and allow more effective use of RRF resources. These will be submitted to the European Commission by November, following government approval,” said Armands Eberhards, Deputy State Secretary for EU Funds at the Ministry of Finance.

By September 2025, Latvia had signed contracts worth 1.8 billion euros, or 93 percent of the total allocation, disbursed 933 million euros to project implementers, and achieved 60 percent of the plan's indicators. To date, 90 indicators have been met, resulting in over 1 billion euros received from the EU budget-around 55 euros of Latvia's allocation.

All milestones must be reached by the end of August 2026, with Latvia planning to submit its fourth payment request of at least 302 million euros at the end of 2025.

Amendments now in preparation cover climate and environmental measures, digital transformation, social inclusion, healthcare, economic growth, and rule of law. They include simplified documentation, indicator adjustments, faster reporting, extended deadlines where necessary, and broader access for beneficiaries.

Financial reallocations will direct additional funds to schools for teaching equipment, affordable housing projects, and electricity network modernization.

Notable results achieved under the RRF include Latvia's first biomethane injection point in Džūkste, restoration of flood protection levees on the Mazā Jugla and Ogre rivers, investments in spinal surgery capacity at North Kurzeme Regional Hospital, and the creation of a genome reference database for more than 3,500 residents by the Biomedical Research and Study Center.

Latvia's Recovery Plan will continue driving record-level investments through 2025 and 2026, with annual inflows from the RRF and EU funds exceeding 1 billion euros-nearly double previous levels.

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