Study supporting the ex-post evaluation of the 2014-2020 Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) : final report

The Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) was introduced in 2014 with the aim of tackling the high numbers of people in or at risk of poverty and social exclusion in the EU. At the time of adoption of the FEAD Regulation, almost 118 million people were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU. FEAD was amended to adapt to the challenges imposed by the COVID-19 crisis and the total available budget increased to EUR 5.2 billion which Member States could use either to deliver food/basic material assistance and accompanying measures (Operational Programme (OP I) or social inclusion measures (OP II). The European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) continues to provide these types of support to the most deprived during the programming period 2021-2027. This study contributes to the ex-post evaluation of FEAD by assessing its effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence, EU added value and the visibility of actions funded by FEAD. The analysis was based on a wide range of evidence: FEAD monitoring data, secondary sources including national evaluations of FEAD, analysis of socioeconomic indicators on poverty and social exclusion, JRC quantitative analysis, public consultation, targeted interviews and focus groups with key FEAD stakeholders.