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European Week of Regions and Cities

Advancing the Rural Pact: Fostering local action for the future of rural areas

The long-term vision for the EU’s rural areas aims for stronger, resilient, prosperous and connected rural areas. To untap the potential of rural communities through local action, the Rural Pact is designed to amplify rural voices in policy agendas, enhance local governance and boost cooperation (including interregional) and peer learning. The lab will look into inspiring initiatives that empower rural communities to achieve their ambitions, and will draw recommendations on ways forward.

  • Territorial | Rural | Local and regional | National | INTERREG | EU/ European | Energy | Climate and environment | Sustainable | Mobility and Transport | Governance and Public administration | Cohesion | Housing | Demographics (depopulation and ageing) | Health | Food | Social inclusion and Equality | Migration | Education and culture | Tourism and Heritage | Youth and citizens engagement | Digital and ICT | Industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs (enterprise/ startup/ business) | Circular economy | Jobs and Employment
  • Code: 08PL241721
  • Albert Borschette Conference Centre, AB-3B

Speakers

Moderator

Practical information

When
Tue 08/10/2024, 09:30 - 11:00 CET
Where
Albert Borschette Conference Centre, AB-3B
Type of partnership
Partnership
Format
Participary Labs/Hackathon
Theme
Regions strengthening European Democracy
Language
English
Website
https://ruralpact.rural-vision.europa.eu/index_en

Reporting

Session summary

The session organised by the Rural Pact Support Office (RPSO) in partnership with DG AGRI, DG REGIO and Interreg Europe in the context of the European Week of Regions brought together around 85 participants. It looked into inspiring initiatives from France, Spain and the Netherlands that empower rural communities to achieve their ambitions. The event provided a space for reflection to draw recommendations on ways forward to empower local action.

The EU’s rural vision & Pact: Ways ahead: Mihail Dumitru (Deputy Director General, DG AGRI, European Commission)

The Rural Pact has made significant progress, notably by gathering a community of over 3 000 members and advancing key actions such as Rural Proofing and the establishment of the Rural Observatory. Looking ahead, a major challenge will be mobilising current financial resources available for rural communties, ensuring effective use of CAP, Cohesion Policy, and Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) funds, while preparing for the next Multiannual Financial Framework and future EU policy proposals.

Empowering local communities to take action for the rural vision: Urszula Budzich-Tabor (Rural Pact Support Office)

The Rural Pact seeks to amplify rural voices in political agendas and improve policy coordination across all levels to better meet rural needs. The Rural Pact Support Office highlights the importance of national and regional policymakers recognizing local actors as key partners, simplifying funding mechanisms, and supporting capacity-building. Additionally, the RPSO is developing a new policy briefing, set for publication in December, to provide guidance on enhancing the impact of the Rural Pact at the local level.

The local vision of El Priorat to mobilise the community and plan action (Spain): Sergi Mendez (President of El Priorat region in Catalonia, Spain)

Priorat, a small Catalonian region known for its wine production, faces common rural challenges such as depopulation, housing, and economic diversification. Through a participatory approach, local actors and policymakers have developed a shared vision, aligned with broader strategies like UNESCO World Heritage and the Catalan Rural Agenda, to ensure efficient governance and action.
To coordinate these efforts, the region established the Landscape and Sustainability Commission, which brings together over 20 public and private stakeholders to drive initiatives such as sustainable tourism, renewable energy, and strategies to reverse depopulation while promoting local development.

The Rural Pact in the region Grand Est to support local action (France): Marie Clotteau (Environment, climate and agriculture adviser, Grand Est-Europe - Région & collectif régional)

The ‘Pact for Ruralities’ was launched in April 2024 to support the 2 million residents of the Grand Est region in France, where 89% of villages have fewer than 2 500 inhabitants. With a budget of EUR 800 million from EU and regional funds, the Pact aims to address rural needs by implementing 100 measures focused on quality of life, environmental protection, mobility, and rural attractiveness.
Key initiatives include improving healthcare with new doctors, medical centers, and mobile services, supporting sustainable agriculture with 200 pilot farms, and enhancing mobility through car-sharing and local transport networks. The Pact also promotes local entrepreneurship and seeks to establish 300 new enterprises by 2027.

Governing Community Resilience - GOCORE (Interreg Europe initiative)(The Netherlands). Dorrit Jorritsma (Province of Friesland, The Netherlands), Richt Sterk (Province of Friesland, The Netherlands), Elena Ferrario (Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform)

This Interreg-funded project, launched in 2023, aims to boost the resilience of local communities by promoting engagement and participation, aligning with the Rural Pact's goals. It focuses on three key principles: involving communities in policymaking, empowering them to take action, and showcasing the impact of grassroots initiatives on local development.
The project established a regional stakeholder group to share interregional practices and organised learning events and peer reviews. Key lessons emphasise the value of fostering dialogue, supporting existing initiatives, and actively reaching out to communities, offering tailored guidance to local authorities to overcome challenges and enhance local capacity. The project benefit from support from Interreg Europe wihtin their peer review process which offers local and regional authorities tailored advice to address specific challenges, providing hands-on support and expert guidance to build capacity and resolve development issues.

Main conclussions: What is needed from policy to enable rural communities to take action?

Empowering local participation and governance

 Involve all societal groups in decision-making: Rural policy should actively include youth, women, and other underrepresented groups, ensuring they participate in shaping local policy. This fosters a continuous dialogue that enhances democratic processes and strengthens community cohesion.
 Build local capacity for decision-making: Policies should provide tools and capacity-building initiatives for local communities, enabling them to take ownership of their future. This includes offering technical and expert support and ensuring young people have the skills needed to contribute effectively.

Enhancing access to resources and funding

 Simplify funding processes and broaden scope: Policies should make it easier for rural communities to access funding, with simplified procedures, especially for smaller projects. Additionally, funding should be expanded to cover a wider range of development areas, enabling communities to take action across various sectors like services, innovation, and local governance.
 Raise awareness and provide incentives: Local communities need better guidance and awareness about existing funding schemes. Incentives should also be introduced to motivate local participation in policy and funding applications, encouraging community-led development projects.

Fostering coordination and innovation

 Promote local structures and coordination: Policy should leverage existing local structures like LAGs and ensure better coordination between local, regional, and national levels. This can enhance the development of locally tailored solutions and empower communities to take strategic action.
 Encourage knowledge exchange and innovation: Supporting exchanges between communities to learn from best practices can drive innovation. Policies should create spaces for local governance, fostering local innovation and enabling communities to address their unique challenges through participatory and creative approaches.

Concluding remarks:

Mihail Dumitru (Deputy Director General, DG AGRI, European Commission)

The event highlighted successful examples that demonstrate the importance of strong political coordination across governance levels to meet the diverse needs of rural communities. The Rural Pact is essential in facilitating this exchange and encouraging public authorities to collaborate, enhancing support for rural development and shaping future policies at national, regional, and local levels.

Quotes

Additional links

https://ruralpact.rural-vision.europa.eu/events/advancing-rural-pact-fostering-local-action-future-rural-areas_en