​On 2 March in the presence of the H.E Ambassador of Malta to Poland, Natasha Daudey, COTER approved the opinion of EA Group member Marie-Antoinette Maupertuis, member of the executive council of the territorial community of Corsica.

In the report, requested by the Maltese Presidency, the EA member highlighted the challenges and constraints entrepreneurs (and citizens more in general) face when doing business in islands. Despite showing great creativity and resilience, she said,  they have to bear additional costs due to the limited size (of market), their remoteness, and vulnerability.

In the framework of the future cohesion policy, we call upon the Commission to pay particular attention to islands and to provide them with tools and assistance to compensate for the economic effects deriving from their structural geographic handicaps.

In her opinion, Ms Maupertuis asked to include islands in the new territorial typologies and to develop new indicators complementing GDP that take into account factors such as regional competitiveness and  accessibility.