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The European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) is one of the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIFs), which are dedicated to improving social cohesion and economic well-being across the regions of the Union. The funds are redistributive financial instruments that support cohesion within Europe by concentrating spending on the less-developed regions.
It is the European Union's main financial instrument for supporting employment in the member states of the European Union as well as promoting economic and social cohesion, created by merging the existing European Social Fund with the EU Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) and the EU Programme for Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI) in 2021. ESF+ spending amounts to around 10% of the EU's total budget. The particular aim of ESF+ spending is to support the creation of more and better jobs in the EU, which it does by co-funding national, regional and local projects that improve the levels of employment, the quality of jobs, and the inclusiveness of the labour market in the member states and their regions.