Role of Leader in creating local alliances by Jean–Michel Courades

DG Agriculture and rural development, European Commission

National Rural Network Annual Conference

1st December 2009 -Dublin

European Commission

Community Strategic Guidelines for Axis 4

Strategic role of Leader :• To involve Local actors (better governance at the

local level)• To mobilize Local actors (endogenous development

for growth and jobs - mobilization of local resources)

Community Strategic Guidelines for Axis 4

• How to involve and mobilize local actors ?• LAG key actions:

– local capacity building – establishing partnerships (public-private partnerships and local

networks) – local initiatives being a win-win for both business and community:

“mutually supportive actions between agriculture, the environment and the wider rural economy and population”

– community-led local development strategy

• Leader is contributing to the creation of local alliances – at the LAG level– at project level

• Local territorial alliances play a key role for– sustainable development – integrated development – innovation

Alliance at LAG level: which actors ?

• Mix of public and private actors – At decision-making level representation of the economic and social

actors and civil society (at least 50 % of the local partnership)• Local actors

– Representative of partners from the economic and social partners, as well as other representatives of the civil society, such as farmers, rural women, young people and their associations

– Local public authorities (e.g. communes and/or association of communes)

Alliance at project level Indicators used in Leader+ MTE (Schleswig-Holstein) Level of

cooperation in local projects• Number of projects with several

partners • Type of project partners

Source: LAG management

no project partner

project group and

public partners

private partners from

similar areas

private partners from

different areas

public and private partners

from different areas

public and private partners

from similar areas

several publicpartners

0

5

10

15

20

25

Schlei SHS Steinburg Westküste ETS Holsteins Herz

Nu

mb

er o

f P

roje

cts

Governance indicators used MTE (Schleswig-Holstein)

• Results

– Cooperation of actors from different sectors/institutions

• In the LAG

• In projects

• Impact

– New organisational structures

– Cooperation beyond LEADER

– View of LAG members and outsiders on changes

Local alliances formalized in local development strategy

• Local development strategy – Shared values « living together », « solidarity »

and « consolidated links in rural areas « – Common vision

• Common priorities• Common project for the territory

• Themes: Innovation and diversification

Local alliances for innovation

• Alternative food networks/direct marketing; care farming

• rural innovation system are based on local networks, on the collaboration of partnerships among diverse public and private groups.

Local alliances formalized in LAG structure

• Public-private partnership is a formal local network

• In the majority of RD programmes LAGs have a legal statute

Life cycle of a LAG alliance• Forming the alliance : Establishing the ground rules by finding

out what procedures are acceptable regarding the task ahead; solving the internal conflicts

• Local development strategy is established. The members accept a common set of expectations constituting an acceptable way of doing things.

• Implementation/Performing: The group is ready to work. Having fully developed, the group may now devote its energy to getting the job done.

• Maintaining/sustaining: This phase is characterised by the intention of the group to stay together although the principle task (i.e. the programming period) has been fulfilled.

Analysis of Leader+ good practices results

• Examples of activities involving farmers and links with measures for diversification of the rural economy are numerous and varied, and involve all countries

• There was little evidence in Leader+ of linkages between first and second axis (agriculture and environment)

Thank you for your attention!