The Government estimates 1.5 million beneficiaries of the Recovery Plan two weeks after its closure

The Spanish government has confirmed that approximately 1.5 million businesses, self-employed individuals, and other entities have benefited from its Recovery Plan, just two weeks before the deadline for completing all investments and reforms linked to European Union funds. These projects must be finalized by August 31, according to officials. The five-year initiative was launched to revitalize Spain’s economy after the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, and government sources say they are satisfied with the results so far. Despite the slowdown in administrative activity during August, the administration aims to complete all committed reforms and maximize their economic impact within the set timeframe. According to the latest data available to the government, over one million companies, organizations, and individuals have already received support through EU funds. Among these, the most successful program has been the Digital Kit, which provides €3,000 for business modernization. This initiative has reached 921,962 small and medium-sized enterprises and self-employed individuals in 90 percent of Spanish municipalities. A related program, the Consulting Kit, offering advisory services for digital transformation to firms with 10 to under 250 employees, has been awarded to 23,429 recipients. Additionally, nearly 55,000 businesses have received financial guarantees from the state-owned CERSA company, akin to a bank guarantee. These figures include around 400,000 professional training placements funded by EU money, which have contributed to improved employability and helped reduce Spain's youth unemployment rate to its lowest level since 2008. Other initiatives include the acceleration of new business creation following the approval of the Crea y Crece Law and the development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem via the Startups Law. Government officials aim to counter criticism from the opposition, which claims the Recovery Plan has mainly financed public spending or even routine expenses, such as the controversial use of EU funds to pay pensions, a practice that drew scrutiny from the European Commission. One key document the government must publish is a list of the top 100 recipients of EU funds, which includes ministries, regional governments, and public companies such as Adif. However, many of these entities act as intermediaries rather than end beneficiaries, as demonstrated by the distribution of Digital Kits. As the final phase of the EU funding program approaches, the government is preparing for the seventh and last disbursement request, which will be submitted to Brussels in September. This request amounts to €25.8 billion, including both transfers and loans. Last week, the European Commission made a payment of €6.234 billion as part of the sixth disbursement and approved the final addendum to the original plan, adjusting some of the remaining 148 milestones to provide greater clarity for evaluation purposes. Among the changes, the government has decided against implementing a tax benefit reform that would have generated an additional €1.7 billion in revenue due to a lack of parliamentary majority. It has also opted not to increase the diesel tax, a move that could result in a loss of around €200 million. Furthermore, the government has notified the European Commission that it will not request €1.25 billion in loans. If the European Commission does not raise objections to the final disbursement, Spain will have received more than €100,000 million in EU funds by December 31 of this year. Looking ahead, the government has established the Spain Grows fund, managed through the Official Credit Institute (ICO), aimed at preventing a sudden drop in public investment once the Recovery Plan expires. The goal is for this fund to mobilize €120,000 million.