The 22nd European Week of Regions and Cities that opened in Brussels today will be an opportunity to “look back on the many achievements of Cohesion Policy during the current Commission mandate”, the European Commission said in a statement, and to assess how it “can best continue to fulfil its EU Treaty mission of promoting economic, social, and territorial cohesion across the EU”. Cohesion policy is a broad strategy aimed at achieving “Europe’s convergence” by helping less developed regions. Data from the last five years show that Cohesion Funds have supported 2.7 million businesses; expanded education infrastructure and equipment benefitting around 18 million children and young people and contributed to the education and training of at least 12.8 million people; created 260,000 jobs in new enterprises; protected 13.5 million people thanks to flood protection measures; enhanced the energy performance of 380,000 households; and improved broadband connections for 3.1 million households. Cohesion Funds also helped to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and to welcome Ukrainian refugees. The work paving the way for the presentation of the Commission’s Cohesion Policy proposals for the 2028–2034 programming period is now to begin, and “discussions on the future design of the Policy are essential to ensure that it continues to fulfil its mission of reducing economic, social, and territorial disparities across the EU”.