The European Commission is expected to present, on 27 May, a package of measures relating to the outermost regions (ORs), including the adoption of a new strategy for these regions and a simplification package for regulatory policies.
Article 349 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) identifies nine territories as outermost regions: Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, Saint Martin, the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands. Under the Treaty, the European institutions are responsible for adopting specific measures to adapt European policies to these territories, taking into account factors such as geographical remoteness, insularity, the small size of markets and economic dependency.
Around five million EU citizens live in these territories. Many are characterised by relatively young populations, vast maritime exclusive economic zones, high biodiversity and potential in renewable energy. Also noteworthy is the presence of strategic infrastructure, such as the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou and the Santa Maria Space Hub in the Azores.
Since 2004, the European Commission has adopted, approximately every four to five years, communications setting out its strategic approach to the ORs.
Since 2004, the European Commission has adopted, approximately every four to five years, communications setting out its strategic approach to the ORs. The most recent was adopted on 3 May 2022, under the title “Putting people first, securing sustainable and inclusive growth, unlocking the potential of the EU’s outermost regions”, in the context of post-pandemic recovery. Recent developments, such as the war in Ukraine, have exacerbated the vulnerabilities of these regions, particularly due to disruptions in supply chains and high transport costs.
The forthcoming initiative is intended to align the strategy with the political guidelines for 2024-2029, strengthening the integration of the ORs into the Union’s priorities and recognising the value of their strategic location in deepening cooperation with third countries.
At the High-Level Forum on the Outermost Regions, held on 2 December 2025, the Commission’s Executive Vice-President for Cohesion and Reforms, Raffaele Fitto, whose responsibilities include the Union’s territorial cohesion and, in particular, the specific situation of island territories and outermost regions, described the forthcoming strategy as a “true turning point in the partnership between the European Union and its outermost regions”.
EU legislation has established specific measures in favour of the ORs, for example in the field of agriculture. The European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) and the Cohesion Policy Funds for the 2021-2027 period, although general in scope, provide for a budget of EUR 315 million for structural investments in these regions. State aid is also one of the main support measures for the ORs, with aid intended to promote the economic development of these regions being considered compatible with the internal market.
As part of the public consultation launched by the Commission on 17 November 2025 and closed on 12 January 2026, representatives of certain regions identified the creation of funds for climate resilience and the energy transition as priorities, in view of these regions’ particular vulnerability to climate change and, in particular, to rising sea levels and the loss of marine biodiversity.
Other proposals put forward by stakeholders and official regional representatives include excluding flows intended for internal use or consumption in the ORs from the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), so as not to weaken local industries dependent on imports, as well as excluding maritime and air transport from the EU emissions trading scheme.
The Communication scheduled for 27 May is expected to seek to remove obstacles and regulatory burdens associated with the application of European legislation in these regions.
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