Help by central government for regions with low per capita incomes or high unemployment. This may take the form of state funds for infrastructure investment, subsidies, or tax allowances to induce private firms to invest in depressed regions, or special assistance with projects such as technical education, designed to make the areas in need of aid more attractive to investors. The European Union also provides regional aid to depressed regions in member countries, through the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund. In spite of large amounts of regional aid, some regional differences in per capita incomes have been highly persistent.