LEADER (”Liaison Entre Actions de Développement de l’Économie Rurale” meaning ’Links between the rural economy and development actions’) is a local development method which allows local actors to develop an area by using its endogenous development potential. In Sweden the Leader approach is implemented in four funds and there by called Community-Led Local Development.
The area of Skånes Ess covers four municipalities in the southern part of Sweden: Bromölla, Kristianstad, Osby and Östra Göinge. The entire area is marked by its diversity when it comes to nature. The surroundings comprise deep forests, ridges, open plains, cultivated land and richness of water. Residents live more spaciously and closer to nature than in the rest of the region. The industrial life is dominated by small-scale businesses. The level of unemployment, in particular amongst youths, is higher in this area than the national average.
Skånes Ess implement Community-Led Local Development in the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Regional Development, the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund. The adjacent Leader area, LEADER Sydöstra Skåne, implement the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund in the same geographical area. In so doing the Leader areas overlap each other while the funds don’t.
Our vision and target is that by the year of 2020 Skånes Ess will be a model area where sustainable usage of locally determined resources creates a quality of life for everyone.
Can I apply for funding?
LEADER funding is available for communities and associations, organisations, businesses and corporations as well as authourities in the Leader area of Skånes Ess.
What can be funded by community-led local development?
Funding is available for activities and investments of broader benefit to the Leader area that contributes to business development, living conditions, education, service etc. and support the local development strategy.
How do I apply?
You apply by using the e-service Mina sidor with a Swedish e-ID. Please contact the Leader Office before you apply.
When is it possible to apply?
Any time during the year. The Local Action Group (LAG) prioritize the applications approximately six times a year.
CLLD and Leader
The LEADER approach has been an important component of EU Rural Development Policy for over 20 years. Since 2007 it has been funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). In the period 2007-2013 it was successfully applied in fisheries areas as Axis 4 of the European Fisheries Fund and since 2014 this approach, called “Community-Led Local Development” (CLLD) can be implemented not only in the EAFRD (where it is still called LEADER), but also in the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF), the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF).
[https://enrd.ec.europa.eu/en/leader]
