The European Social Fund (ESF) is a structural fund set up by the European Union (EU). It was established in 1957 in an effort to scale down the differences in living standards between people living in the various regions of the European Union.
Saxony also benefits from this structural fund. The benefits are felt in particular by businesses that are creating more permanent jobs, by unemployed individuals seeking to achieve commercial autonomy and by qualified specialists who wish to initiate well-grounded research projects. Since early 2004 SAB has gradually taken over the responsibility for managing European Social Fund activities in Saxony.