The new Objective also covers the most remote regions (the French overseas departments, the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands) as well as the areas eligible under the former Objective 6 created pursuant to the Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden. As was previously the case, two thirds of the Structural Fund operations come under

Objective 1. Almost 20% of the Union's total population should benefit from the measures taken under this Objective;

Objective 2 contributes to the economic and social conversion of regions in structural difficulties other than those eligible for the new Objective 1. This Objective brings together the former Objectives 2 and 5(b) and other areas facing the need for economic diversification: overall it will cover areas undergoing economic change, declining rural areas, depressed areas dependent on fisheries and urban areas in difficulty. No more than 18% of the Union's population will be covered by this Objective;

Objective 3 gathers together all the measures for human resource development outside the regions eligible for Objective 1. This Objective carries over the former Objectives 3 and 4. It is the reference framework for all the measures taken under the new Title on employment in the Treaty of Amsterdam and under the European Employment Strategy

In addition to the expenditure under these objectives, the Commission has set up separate “Community Initiatives”, which are also funded by the structural funds. E. G. to stimulate cross-border, trans-national and inter-regional cooperation; to promote rural development through the initiatives of local action groups; to provide for the development of new ways of combating all forms of discrimination and inequality as regards access to the labour market; to encourages the economic and social regeneration of towns, cities and suburbs in crisis. In addition to the structural funds, there was established a Cohesion Fund in 1994. Two types of projects are supported by the fund: environmental protection, and transport and other infrastructure networks.

Through cohesion policy, there are significant fiscal transfers through the EU budget from taxpayers in the wealthier regions of the EU (in Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg, Austria, northern Italy, the Paris basin, southern Germany, the south of England and southern Scandinavia) to the four cohesion states (Ireland, Portugal, Greece and Spain) and the poorer regions in the wealthier states (particularly Southern Italy and Eastern Germany).