The European Social Fund: What it is and why it matters

What is happening with the European Social Fund? 

If the “Europe of the people” represents the social approach of the European project, the European Social Fund (ESF) is the main tool for turning that idea into concrete policies that provide opportunities to millions of people.

Behind many employment and entrepreneurship programmes, training initiatives, social inclusion actions or support for vulnerable groups, there is a common financing structure: the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+). This EU fund is designed to improve job opportunities and reduce social and territorial inequalities between European countries and regions.

But now, as the European Union negotiates its new budget for the 2028–2035 period, the future of this instrument is also up for debate.

What exactly is the European Social Fund?

The European Social Fund was officially created in 1957 with the Treaty of Rome, and today it is one of the historical pillars of European social policy.

Its current role is defined in Article 162 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which states that the ESF aims to “improve employment opportunities […] and contribute to raising the standard of living” seeking to “promote employment opportunities […], facilitate adaptation to changes through vocational training and retraining.”

In other words, it is the tool through which Europe finances common social policies.

Through the ESF+, the European Union supports programmes related to employment and labour market integration, training and professional upskilling, entrepreneurship, the fight against poverty and social exclusion, equal opportunities, support for young people, inclusion of migrants, and the improvement of digital skills, among many other initiatives.

In the 2021–2027 period, the ESF+ had a budget of €142.7 billion and absorbed four previous EU social instruments: the European Social Fund (ESF), the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD), the Youth Employment Initiative (YEI), and the EU Programme for Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI).

In addition, current EU regulations require that at least 25% of these resources be allocated specifically to social inclusion and the fight against poverty.

Shared management between Europe and the territories

One of the defining features of the European Social Fund is its shared management model. The European Commission sets common frameworks addressing structural inequality factors such as poverty, unemployment, exclusion, the digital divide or lack of access to opportunities, while Member States develop programmes adapted to each territory. In Spain, this process also involves specialised social organisations, public administrations, business organisations and social partners.

This model makes it possible to maintain a common European strategy while adapting interventions to very different social realities. And this is precisely why the role of social organisations is essential.

Organisations such as Acción contra el Hambre implement ESF+-funded projects aimed at improving employability and reducing situations of social vulnerability through close, specialised and personalised support. In Spain alone, the organisation has supported more than 50,000 people since 2013 through employment, entrepreneurship and food security programmes targeting young people, women, long-term unemployed people, migrants, people over 50 and vulnerable families.

And although the European Social Fund is often associated only with employment, its impact goes much further. The European Union argues that investing in social inclusion and access to employment is far more effective —also economically— than assuming the long-term costs of chronic poverty, exclusion or structural precariousness.

What is changing now?

The debate arises from the initial proposal for the new Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028–2035, which suggests reorganising EU funds by integrating the current ESF+ into the so‑called National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPPs). These would be large budgetary instruments bringing together different EU‑funded policies under a more flexible, less specific framework, managed entirely by national governments.

The proposal also includes a budget reduction for the ESF+, which would decrease from €142.7 billion in the current period to €121 billion in the next budget cycle.

Although EU institutions defend this reform as a way to simplify procedures and increase efficiency, many social organisations and specialised entities —such as Acción contra el Hambre— have expressed concern about its potential effects:

• loss of independence for European social policies,
• weaker budget protection for social inclusion and the fight against poverty,
• risk that social priorities become subordinated to national interests,
• and the weakening of the shared management model and the role of specialised social organisations in programme implementation.

Negotiations on this new budget will continue until the end of 2026 to determine the place that social inclusion, cohesion and equal opportunities will occupy in the future European project.