Missions and Cohesion Policy: is there a Match?

This paper explores possibilities for cross-fertilisation between the mission-oriented approach (MOA), informing the EU Missions, and Cohesion Policy (CP). It argues for mutual policy learning between CP and MOA to address their shortcomings: CP faces a gradual erosion of its identity, while MOA lacks a territorial perspective. MOA can offer a theoretical "blueprint" for: reorganising and clarifying CP's ever-expanding and blurred thematic scope; providing direction to strengthen CP's result-orientation; encouraging the adoption of "whole-of-government" approaches to streamline CP's complex governance relationships. MOA can benefit from adopting the CP architecture, which allows for common broad priorities to be adapted to territorial contexts and to regional strategies. MOA could also learn from CP's goal of maximising equity and efficiency, its focus on empowering regions, and its redistributive approach for fostering the full potential of all regions to address societal challenges to support the objectives of the EU Missions.