The European Commission recently invited the European Parliament to vote on extending, expanding and reinforcing the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), an initiative that has been dubbed EFSI 2.0.

EFSI 2.0 is part of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s Investment Plan for Europe and was announced in his September State of the Union address. EFSI 2.0 would extend the fund’s timeline to 2020 and increase its target investment to $560 billion. The initiative would also place greater emphasis on the selection of projects, choosing those that would not be able to achieve the same scope or timeframe without EFSI funding.

"The European Fund for Strategic Investments has already proven to be an important tool to boost investment, support jobs and spur growth across all 28 Member States,” European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen, who is responsible for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness, said in an announcement. “The extension of the EFSI represents an opportunity to build on that success. I look forward to continue working with Members of the European Parliament and member states in the weeks to come to secure a final agreement."

European Parliament’s Budgets and Economic and Monetary Affairs committees will vote on the expansion.