Working together towards a circular Europe

The transition to a circular economy in Europe is still progressing slowly. Promising circular initiatives face a variety of investment barriers. To highlight the importance of investments in the circular economy and to propose solutions, the JICE members joined forces and submitted a series of recommendations to the European Commission.

The Joint Initiative on Circular Economy (JICE) is a collaboration of the largest National Promotional Institutions in Europe. The JICE members Bpifrance (France), BGK (Poland), CDC (France), CDP (Italy), ICO (Spain), EIB and Invest-NL jointly drafted a recommendation paper for the European Commission. The paper provides insight into barriers and solutions for circular investments.

European collaboration between public investors

JICE focuses, among other things, on the conditions necessary to realize circular business models and investments in Europe. As public investors, the JICE members can demonstrate how policy and financing can be better aligned. With these recommendations, they propose concrete measures to the European Commission.

The proposed measures focus on four areas:

Positioning the circular economy as a gamechanger for Europe.
Creating new markets and supporting innovations in the circular economy.
Simplifying rules and ensuring they support these circular models.
Improving access to finance and promoting investments.

Policy as a driver of change

The European Commission plays an important role in driving a circular economy within the EU. As a policymaker, the Commission can set up the right regulations and funding frameworks that truly support circular entrepreneurs.

“It is important to show the Commission where experts and parties such as the National Promotional Institutions see opportunities, bottlenecks, and solutions. The Commission can incorporate such recommendations when drafting or tightening strategies, legislation, or financial instruments,” says Jeroen Derkx of Invest-NL.

Download the paper