The Regional Plan for 2010, which began to be debated at the Legislative Assembly today, estimates that the public investment in the Azores will reach to 815.7 million Euros in the coming year.

From this total, approximately 516.9 million Euros will directly allocated by the Government while the remaining 298.8 million Euros will be supported by other funds.

With a 281.2 million Euro budget, the goal “to promote the sustained growth of the economy” is the most important of the five major strategic goals of the annual plan for 2010. Agriculture and forestry, fisheries, tourism, industry, commerce and export, innovation and financial support to private investment are the intervention areas comprised by this goal, to which 34.5 percent of the total investment of the plan will be allocated.

The other two main strategic goals for next year include the “effective management of the territory promoting environmental quality,” with 30.4 percent of the funds of the plan and the “improvement of the qualifications and competences of the Azoreans, with 23.8 percent.

In the first case, there will be 248 million Euros to be invested in the areas of planning, geographic information systems, environment, energy, risk prevention, civil protection and accessibility, while in the second case the appropriation of 194.2 million Euros will be distributed among the areas of education, vocational training, youth, culture, sports, information and institutional communication.

The goal of “strengthening solidarity and social cohesion,” which integrates the area of health, social solidarity and housing is endowed with 66.1 million Euros, representing 8.1 percent of the total value of public investment estimated for the next year.

In order to “qualify the public management and cooperation,” a strategic goal that comprises the areas of public administration, planning and finance, including the external cooperation and communities, the regional plan for 2010 will allocate an amount of 26.3 million Euros, which corresponds to 3.2 percent of the total value. 
 
In addition to the actions directly promoted by the departments of the regional administration, the Regional Annual Plan also includes those that are carried out by public entities which, in conjunction with the respective governmental departments, promote strategic investment projects under the framework of development policy presented in the Medium Term Guidelines.