Audit office: EU subsidies have not led to lasting growth or higher competitiveness

European subsidies in Czechia often go to tens of thousands of small, economically marginal projects that bring little added value and fail to boost long-term growth or competitiveness, the Supreme Audit Office (NKÚ) said in its EU Report 2025. The auditors noted that while Czech GDP per capita in purchasing power parity rose from 72 to 91 percent of the EU average since 2004, Poland improved from 47 to 80 percent. NKÚ president Miloslav Kala said the potential of EU funding has not been fully used and called on the new political leadership to focus on fewer, well-chosen priorities to make every euro count.