What makes a town a better place to live? What helps someone find a job, or gives children a better school? The Territorial and Settlement Development Operational Programme Plus (TSDOP Plus), co-funded by the European Union, supports projects that improve everyday life across Hungary.
Its Pillar projects cover several areas, including employment, schools, housing estates and energy-efficient public buildings. These projects help make towns and cities more modern, greener and better places to live. In our four-part series, we present some of these developments and show what they mean for local communities.
One important area of TSDOP Plus is employment and economic development. The aim is to help county authorities and local organisations work together to solve local labour market problems. The programmes help people find work and also help businesses find the workers they need.
Similar programmes were already supported in the previous funding period. More than 64,000 people took part, and by the end of 2023 around 36,000 of them had found a job. In the current period, all 19 counties in Hungary are running their own employment and economic development programmes. These projects have been active since 2024.
For the 2021–2027 EU funding period, employment and economic development was selected as one of the main Pillar areas of TSDOP Plus. A flagship project was also chosen to show more clearly how EU funding can support local communities.
The programme builds on local needs and cooperation. Its aim is to support economic growth, create more job opportunities and improve quality of life.
In Pest County, the programme is being carried out through the project “Employment and Economic Development Partnerships in Pest County”, project ID TOP_Plusz-3.1.1-21-PT1-2022-00001. The project received more than HUF 6.2 billion in funding.
It mainly supports people who are looking for work or want to return to the labour market. Special attention is given to people who may find it harder to get a job, especially in less developed areas with lower employment rates.
The project offers wage support, training, skills development, help for people who want to start a business and personalised employment services. These measures help people find jobs and help companies meet their staffing needs.
The programme also aims to bring employers and jobseekers closer together. Local authorities, businesses and other organisations work together to better match local jobs with available workers. In the long term, the project aims to increase employment, help people find work close to where they live, support inactive people in returning to work and help local businesses grow.
The project is progressing as planned. More training and labour market programmes are becoming available over time.
The programmes are designed around real local needs. Special attention is given to people over 50, inactive people, people with lower levels of education, parents with young children and people who have difficulties getting to work.
The training programmes have attracted strong interest and are available in 187 settlements across Pest County, helping the project reach as many people as possible.
