BRUSSELS. Nov.17 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) would spend more money to tackle refugee problems and boost economic growth and create new jobs in 2017, according to the agreement reached on the 2017 EU budget on Thursday.
After 20 hours of discussions, the Council of the EU,representing the bloc's 28 member states, and the European Parliament reached an agreement on a 2017 EU budget. Total commitments were set at 157.88 billion euros (169.35 billion dollars) and payments at 134.49 billion euros.
Among the budget, a total of nearly 6.0 billion euros will be spent to reinforce the protection of EU external borders and to address the migration and refugee crisis. The commitments increased by around 11.3 percent compared to 2016.
The money will be used to help the EU member states in the resettlement of refugees, the creation of reception centers, the support for integration measures and the returns of those who have no right to stay, the Council said in a statement.
It will also help to enhance border protection, crime prevention, counter-terrorism activities and protect critical infrastructure, the statement added.
Moreover, 21.3 billion euros will be spent to stimulate growth, employment and competitiveness. This is an increase of around 12 percent compared to 2016.
Among this part of budget, 2.1 billion euros will go to programs such as Horizon 2020, Erasmus+ and Connecting Europe Facility. Besides, the commitment for European fund for strategic investments (ESIF), which is the core and financial vehicle of the Investment Plan for Europe, will be raised by 25 percent to 2.7 billion euros.
The budget also includes 42.6 billion euros support to European farmers.
"The 2017 EU budget will thus help buffer against shocks, providing a boost to our economy and helping to deal with issues like the refugee crisis," said Kristalina Georgieva, vice president of European Commission in charge of budget and human resources.
With the agreement, the 2017 EU budget is expected to be formally adopted by the Council on November 29 and the Parliament on December 1.
