Europe’s next budget: competitiveness, cohesion and global ambition

The next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028–2034 is being negotiated at a moment of profound transformation for the European Union. Over the past decade, the EU budget has been repeatedly stretched to address overlapping crises from the pandemic and energy shocks to geopolitical instability and the war in Ukraine - while simultaneously supporting long-term priorities such as the green and digital transitions.The 2028–2034 MFF will need to reconcile competing, but potentially complementary, demands: strengthening internal cohesion and competitiveness, enhancing strategic autonomy, and relaunching the EU’s external action in a rapidly evolving global order. This debate is further shaped by the legacy of Next Generation EU, the growing role of common borrowing, and discussions on new own resources.

Against this backdrop, Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) and Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) in cooperation with Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) will convene policymakers, institutional representatives, private stakeholders, and civil society to reflect on the EU’s next MFF strategic direction and discuss the priorities that should guide it, with a focus on EU-wide considerations and their broader policy implications. Drawing on a series of thematic papers drawn up by IAI and CEPS, the event will feature two thematic sessions, respectively, on the internal and external dimension of EU funding in the next MFF.