Improving transportation links, ending energy isolation and building more homes are some of the key initiatives the European Union’s executive arm is looking to enact under a pair of first-ever strategies designed to help the bloc’s islands and coastal communities flourish, EU officials said Friday.
Some 17 million people live in more than 4,000 islands across the EU, including three island members – Ireland, Malta and Cyprus. Another 95 million live along the coasts of 22 member states.
