Complementarities between urban and rural areas in promoting ...

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONSeminar onComplementarities between urban and rural areasin promoting employment and social inclusionWITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM:●Catherine de Borchgrave,Head of Unit,European Association for Information on Local Development (AEIDL)●Gerhard Bräunling,Administrator, DG Employment and Social Affairs,European Commission●Patrick Gates,Community Regeneration Officer,Dublin Inner City Partnership●Jussi Merikallio,Director of Social Services Department,City of Helsinki (FIN)●Jorma Palola,Permanent Representative,Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities, Brussels●Dr. Matthias Schulze-Böing,Head of Department for Employment, Statistics and European Affairs,Municipality of Offenbach (D), and Chair of the CEMR Committeeon Employment & Social Affairs●Prof. Dr. Rolf-Ulrich Sprenger,Director of the Environmental, Regional and Transport Economics Department,at the IFO Institute for Economic Research in Munich●Paul Williams, County Rural Renewal Manager,Essex County Council (UK)Editor and researcher of report: Christoph Hermann, CEMR— 1 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONContentsINTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 4Jorma Palola, Permanent RepresentativeAssociation of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (AFLRA)PART 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 6Initial thoughts on a balanced urban and rural developmentin promoting employment and social inclusion1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 62. Defining urban-rural relationships and developing indicators for further research . . . . . . . . p. 73. How should balanced urban and rural policies forpromoting employment and social inclusion be implemented? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 8PART 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 11Exposés des OrateursSESSION 1Promoting employment in urban and rural areas: some case studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 11Measures to tackle long-term unemployment in urban and rural areas:examples of good practice in Germany . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 11Matthias Schulze-Böing, Head of Department for Employment,Statistics and European Affairs, Municipality of Offenbach (D),and Chair of the CEMR Committtee on Employment & Social AffairsRural Employment in Essex: resolving the negative impactof unemployment in Essex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 13Paul Williams, County Rural Renewal Manager,Essex County Council (UK)SESSION 2Social inclusion in urban and rural areas: some case studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 16Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 16Jorma Palola, Permanent Representative,Association of Finnish Local & Regional Authorities (AFLRA) (FIN)— 2 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONCombating social exclusion in the City of Helsinki . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 17Jussi Merikallio, Director of Social Services Department,City of Helsinki (FIN)Social inclusion in Northern Karelia: a substance free life - an ongoing project . . . . . . . p. 18Jorma Palola, Permanent Representative, AFLRA (FIN)The role of local development in meeting the challenges of unemploymentand social inclusion: the EQUAL Initiative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 19Gerhard Bräunling, Administrator, DG Employmentand Social Affairs, European CommissionSESSION 3Partnerships, networking and project management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 21IntroductionBuilding and driving partnerships: how does it work? “The Essex Experience” . . . . . . . . . p. 21Paul Williams, County Rural Renewal Manager,Essex County County Council (UK)Networking partnerships in rural areas (LEADER) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 21Catherine de Borchgrave, Head of Unit: Organisation of Events,European Association for Information on Local Development (AEIDL)Social and economic inclusion through area-based localdevelopment: the Dublin Inner City Partnership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 22Patrick Gates, Community Regeneration Officer,Dublin Inner City Partnership (IRL)Territorrial bottom-up initiatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 23Rolf-Ulrich Sprenger, Director of the Environmental, Regionaland Transport Economics Department, at the IFO Institute forEconomic Research in Munich (D)REFERENCES, LITERATURE FOR FURTHER READING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 24— 3 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONIntroductionJorma Palola, Permanent Representative, Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (AFLRA)This seminar, jointly organised by CEMR and theAssociation of Finnish Local and RegionalAuthorities, sought to bring together two importantareas of CEMR’s work: employment andsocial policy with cohesion policy. These areasaddressed the common theme of complementaritiesbetween urban and rural areas in promotingemployment and social inclusion. Representativesfrom regional authorities, academiaand the European Commission participated inthis event.Globalisation, the EU’s internal market policyand enlargement all strongly affect conditionsof social and economic welfare. Employment,social inclusion and regional development, themain topics of this seminar, are essential for thewell being of all citizens. It is important toemphasise that these areas are closely interconnected.The role of regional and local authoritiesis also significant in the practical application ofthese policy areas. Local democratically electedbodies have a specific role in translating the EU’sinitiatives into local actions and in channellinglocal and regional needs into national and EUdecision-making. There is significant overlapbetween these different areas of policy.Problems of employment and social inclusioncan have specific rural and urban features.However, it is evident that these problems areinterdependent. For example, in Finland, consequencesof substance abuse are often visible inboth cities themselves and in their surroundingrural communities. This is one symptom of theinterrelations between urban and rural problemsthat needs to be tackled today. These problemsraise the question of how we could createmutually supportive policies and practical measuresof implementation to achieve a balancedurban and rural development.The fact that the European Union is revising itsemployment, social; cohesion and agriculturalpolicies, in view of the forthcoming enlargement,gives a particular pertinence and contextto these discussions today. In the comingmonths, member states will also discuss and— 4 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONdecide on many national plans and objectivesaffecting particular EU policies.CEMR’s Cohesion Working Group is working oncohesion policy and regional development, examiningthe need for a balanced rural and urbandevelopment within the European Union andassessing how regions in the next structuralfunds post-2006 period need to develop theircomparative advantages.CEMR’s Committee on Employment and SocialPolicy is also working in this area. In October2001, a CEMR conference was held on the OpenCoordination Method. Open coordination is amutual feedback process of planning, examination,comparison and adjustment of the policiesof EU member states. This is all done on the basisof common objectives.The Open Coordination Method leads to nationalaction plans (NAPs) which then result in newguidelines in the areas of employment or socialinclusion. CEMR regards the Open CoordinationMethod as an instrument having the capacity tolink European strategy to innovation on theground. It is a means through which local andregional authorities are facing the challenge ofinfluencing policy outcome. Employment andsocial inclusion are issues of great concern tolocal government. It should be added that localauthorities have developed new forms of governancewithin their territory to drive forwardinnovative actions in the areas of employmentand social inclusion.This seminar focused on how a balanced developmentbetween urban and rural can be encouragedin the areas of employment and socialinclusion. The first part of the seminar focusedon employment, the second part looked at socialinclusion, and the third part addressed the coordinationof local and regional governmentapproaches to promoting social inclusion andemployment in rural and urban areas. Emphasisis on a bottom-up approach. The seminar lookedat practical examples and discussions aimed atdrawing out common themes.— 5 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONPART 1Initial thoughts on a balanced urbanand rural development in promotingemployment and social inclusion1. IntroductionBalanced urban and rural development is animportant element to be considered in tacklingemployment and social inclusion and should betaken into greater account in the EU funded programmespost-2006. While the prevailing socialcontexts differ, urban and rural development donot exist in isolation and the practical measurestaken to address these problems are often thesame. Cooperation and coordination betweenlocal government in cities and rural areas cancontribute to mutually beneficial solutions andcan improve the living conditions of the populationin both areas.Interdependencies between rural and urbanareas vary from region to region and are dependanton the spatial and structural context oftheir respective areas.1.2. TOWARDS A COMPLEMENTARY APPROACHCooperation between urban and rural areasshould create comprehensive social and economicbenefits. These areas can provide a valuablecomplement to each other. Urban and rural areascan benefit and learn from each other in termsof the tools and processes used in order to tacklesocial exclusion and unemployment.1.1. INTERDEPENDENCIES BETWEEN URBANAND RURAL AREASTraditionally, urban and rural areas have oftenbeen seen as exclusive areas. EU structural fundsprojects have, to date, not laid a particularemphasis on integrating the different processesof rural and urban employment and social inclusion.Nevertheless, interdependencies betweenrural and urban areas have always existed andthese have become more complex over recentdecades. The increasingly complex relationshipbetween urban and rural areas is caused bygreater mobility and accessibility between townand country.Cooperation and complementary learning processescan be promoted through networks ofurban and rural areas. These networks can be ofa regional, interregional or trans-national character,and can help to create a more even economicand social development. However, meansof cooperation between urban and rural areasmight differ according to the varying structuraland spatial relationships existing between thesetwo areas.— 6 —Interdependencies between urban and ruralareas can be described in terms of populationflows such as movement of people in search foremployment, education and training, or recreation.It is also evident that these interdependenciescan be described in terms of structures.

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION2. Defining urban-rural relationships and developingindicators for further research2.1. THE DIFFICULTY OF ASSESSINGTHE URBAN-RURAL PHENOMENON2.2. INDICATORS FOR ANALYSINGURBAN-RURAL RELATIONSHIPSPrevious academic definitions were consideredsufficient to provide a consistent picture of thedistinctions between urban and rural areas.Nevertheless, today these differences betweenurban and rural areas are less clear-cut and thereare limits to the theories that have beenapplied to date. It would seem that no singleapproach provides an exact definition and thechallenge of defining what is ‘urban’ and what is‘rural’ remains.A new approach to classifying urban and ruralareas was recently presented by the EuropeanSpatial Observation Network in their first interimreport (1) in which they suggest that a distinctionis made between:■ regions dominated by a large city;■ polycentric regions with high urban and ruraldensity;■ polycentric regions with high urban density;■ networks of small towns;■ remote rural areas.In order to be able to analyse urban-rural relationships,it is necessary to develop territorialindicators and typologies capable of identifyingand measuring development trends as well asmonitoring political developments towards amore balanced and polycentric EU policy.To date, the ESPON network has developed acomprehensive list of indicators which serve asa pool for the selection of indicators, accordingto different requirements of the study. Theseindicators have been assigned to three categories.■ Basic indicators for the first tests of the delineationof urban and rural regions.■ Indicators for the quantitative analysis ofurban and rural developments and relationshipsbetween them.■ Indicators for qualitative analysis in case studies.On the one hand, this classification illustratesthe complexity of the different patterns of relationshipbetween urban and rural areas. It has,on the other hand, been pointed out that this isbased on physical agglomeration definition (ie.population density and/or land use) and not on amore functional definition that can potentiallyinclude more complex relationships withinterritories.Further analysis would be necessary in order torefine the quality of indicators that could be used.— 7 —1. The full first interim report of the European Spatial ObservationNetwork can be found at www.espon.lu

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION3. How should balanced urban and ruralpolicies for promoting employment andsocial inclusion be implemented?— 8 —3.1. POLICIES FOR COMBATING SOCIALEXCLUSION AND PROMOTINGEMPLOYMENT IN URBAN AND RURALAREAS SHOULD BE MUTUALLY SUPPORTIVE●●●Rural and urban development takes place inclose interaction and is mutually beneficial. Abalanced distribution of opportunities foremployment is crucial for sustainable developmentin urban and rural areas. Future structuralfunds programmes should encourage sustainableand integrated regional development andurban consolidation, the growth of small- ormedium-sized cities and sustainable rural developmentby creating labour-intensive projects,training for non-farming jobs and should ensureeffective transport, and communications andother essential infrastructures. Decentralisationof administration, expenditure, taxation andservices should be considered to facilitate localdevelopment.On the one hand, long-term unemployment andexperience of social exclusion in urban areas isdifferent from that of rural areas. However thepractical measures taken to resolving these problemsare largely the same, although the opportunitiesfor employment may differ greatly. Thetools and measures used in previous andongoing local employment URBAN and LEADERprojects have shown great similarities: they takeinto account local conditions, resources, networks,civic organisations and the existence oflocal community facilities. Urban and ruralmunicipalities could take account of eachother’s experiences in preventing long-termunemployment and social exclusion.Moreover, the opportunities offered by newtechnologies for ensuring continued employmentin rural and urban municipalities should beexamined. Telework and other new forms ofemployment could help to create new jobs andprovide opportunities for new ways of working.Telework also provides opportunities for existingemployees.3.2. THE OPEN METHOD OF COORDINATION AS ATOOL FOR A BALANCED URBAN AND RURALDEVELOPMENT●●●As already stated, a “one-size fit all” approachwould not solve the problems of social exclusionand employment in cities and the countryside, asthe situation varies from area to area. Culturalfactors and differences in the physical environmentfurther complicate comparisons. Nevertheless,it is very important to discuss issuesrelated to rural and urban development side byside, in order to be able to assess how EU actionsin these areas complement each other. Socialexclusion as well as unemployment requirescareful analysis in order to be able to assess theoften complex problems these phenomena entail.The Open Method of Coordination, as initiatedby the Luxembourg and Lisbon Summits, is thereforean important tool for combating socialexclusion and long-term unemployment in urbanand rural areas. Its methods and approachesshould be further developed.In addition, the national associations of localand regional authorities should be involved inthe setting up of the national action plans, aslocal and regional authorities are often key playersin implementing employment programmes andhave important knowledge on these matters.Likewise, CEMR, as their European representative,should be consulted in the definition anddevelopment of the European Employment Strategy.

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION●●Here, benchmarking is a useful and importanttool for promoting employment and social inclusionprogrammes at the local and regional levels.The availability of comparative data or informationon the exchange of experience on particularfeatures of social problems in urban and ruralcommunities, and on approaches towards solvingthese, can contribute to the development ofmutually complementary approaches in differentpolicy sectors. It is important to furtherdevelop the tools applied here to make benchmarkingmore adaptable to the specific needs ofthe different areas and to simultaneously allowthe coordination of a balanced rural and urbandevelopment.The Urban Audit has produced a great deal ofinformation on the problems and developmentissues of cities. Although it is important tomonitor the development of large cities, theUrban Audit should be extended to includemedium-sized cities and the information should,in order to improve the urban - rural balance, bestudied from the perspective of the region/ruralareas adjacent to cities. Small and medium sizedtowns are important centres in predominantlyrural areas. They should receive more support inorder to maintain the viability of the surroundingcountryside.3.3. GOVERNANCE, NETWORKING ANDPARTNERSHIP AS CRUCIAL ELEMENTSFOR BALANCED RURAL AND URBANDEVELOPMENT●●Keeping in mind the principle of subsidiarity,there should be a greater recognition that localand regional authorities are at the forefront oftackling social exclusion and unemployment andthat they have an important role in finding practicaland immediate solutions. This has alreadybeen demonstrated by URBAN and LEADER programmeswhere municipalities are often themain actors in implementation processes.Cohesion policy should promote and strengthenthe roles of the local and regional authorities in●order to further develop its’ goal of social integrationand to disseminate best practice. Spatialregional planning as well as the creation andtesting of the new institutional forms and policyinstruments that integrate urban and ruralconcerns can lead to a better economic developmentof both areas. Only a comprehensive andintegrated network strategy can tackle urbanand rural issues. This should also be the natureof a European urban and rural policy, as opposedto a sector-based approach.Partnership and networking between rural andurban areas should not only be promoted atregional level but also at the interregional andtransnational levels. Good examples for this typeof cooperation have already been provided byINTERREG programmes. Networks between urbanand rural areas, especially on an EU-wide level,could facilitate mutual learning.3.4. THE CAP SHOULD EMPHASIZETHE CREATION OF A MORE DIVERSERURAL DEVELOPMENT●●There has been a strong emphasis on shifting thefocus towards rural development in the preparationsfor the reform of the common agriculturalpolicy (CAP). The CAP, as it is currently constituted,is unsustainable both within the EuropeanUnion and on a global level. It is therefore necessaryto include development measures outsideagriculture into these programmes and to supportthe experience rural areas have in the developmentof non-agricultural economic activitiesand other rural developments.The opportunities for establishing lasting andviable small and medium-sized businesses inrural areas should be supported. Such businessescontribute to a balanced development of ruralareas and their principal towns. Lessons shouldbe drawn from earlier experiences with Article33 so that development measures outside ofagriculture and forestry would be included inthis form of aid to a greater extent. This wouldmean that small businesses in rural areas would— 9 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION●receive support even though they are not directlylinked to farming. Extending the LEADER+initiative and allocating more resources to itwould also serve this purpose.A simplification of the legislation on rural development,its’ implementation and paymentrequirements is a central objective for strengtheningthe second pillar. This would mean anincreased delegation of decision making to themember states and regions to enable them tobetter respond to local needs.3.5. THE IMPORTANCE OF IMPROVINGTRANSPORT AND ACCESSIBILITY●The development of Trans-European Networks(TENs) of transportation provides one perspectiveon how rural areas and large urban growth●centres can both be given attention. Trans-EuropeanNetworks also give more peripheral regionsof the EU the possibility to have fast and efficienttransport access, thus improving their economiccompetitiveness. Transport connectionsare an essential factor in the development ofrural and urban areas. In order to achieve a moreeven development of regions, the promotion anddevelopment of complementary regional networksof transport could help to improve urbanand rural development.The economic structures of small and mediumsizedtowns play a crucial role in the viability ofthe region as a whole. In addition, the improvementof accessibility would enhance the inherentbenefits of these areas thus giving them abetter starting point for establishing new businessesand creating employment.— 10 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONPART 2Speakers’ presentationsSESSION 1Promoting Employment in Urban and Rural Areas:some case studiesModerator: Matthias Schulze-Böing■ Measures to tackle long-term unemployment in urban and rural areas:examples of good practice in GermanyMatthias Schulze-Böing, Head of Department for Employment, Statistics and European Affairs,Municipality of Offenbach (D), and Chair of the CEMR Committee on Employment & Social AffairsThe article provides an overview from theGerman perspective on measures to deal withlong-term unemployment and presents someexamples on how local authorities tackle thisproblem. In Germany, local authorities have overthe last 25 years faced increasing social welfareexpenses, which comprise around 40% of theannual budget. This in turn has resulted in anumber of innovative local employment programmes.A few examples of best practices arepresented. Nevertheless, it is concluded that it isnecessary to bring these different practices closertogether in order to create networks ofcooperation between local authorities.A special feature of the German structure of thewelfare state is the so-called dual system. Itconsists on the one hand of a centralised administrationfor labour market policy with labouroffices in all regions, which are run by federalagencies with labour offices in all regions state.Local authorities on the other hand are responsiblefor social welfare issues. Small cities, whichare hit by high rates of unemployment, canalso have a high percentage of social welfarerecipients. Severe financial problems are often aconsequence. As in the case of the City of Offenbacham Main, experience under this social systemcan lead to near bankruptcy. About 40% ofpublic expenditure by local authorities is currentlyspent on social welfare amenities.This situation was one reason for the localauthorities to start local employment initiativesin the late 1980s and in the 1990s. More than400,000 people in Germany are today employedby local job creation schemes set up by localauthorities. These are mainly funded by localbudgets, although in part refunded by the EuropeanSocial Fund. Another estimated 400,000people take part in job creation schemes providedby the local authorities.Local employment policy is today an integralelement of employment and labour market policyin Germany; some term it as the second pillar ofGermany’s employment and labour market policy.Many say that most of the important innovationin employment policy in Germany actually comesfrom this second pillar.The European Employment Strategy is consideredto be a good framework of reference for thelocal level. One of the basic principles is earlyintervention to prevent unemployment. Employmentpolicies should also be inclusive. Theyshould include all members of the potentialworkforce and they should enhance the functionof the labour market through measures that providea flexible response to change. The EuropeanEmployment Strategy is comprised of four mainpillars:■ employability;■ entrepreneurship;■ adaptability;■ equal opportunities.— 11 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION— 12 —FIRST PILLAR: EMPLOYABILITYIn the area of local employment policy inGermany, this pillar is the best developed of thefour and has the greatest importance in quantitativeterms The starting point for many localauthorities is to tackle long-term unemploymentand dependency on social welfare. As aconsequence, there have been a number ofemployment schemes created such as: youthinsertion schemes and job creation programmesfor the long-term unemployed. These providethe unemployed with the skills to return to thelabour market and firms in the local communityor region go on to recruit the beneficiaries ofthis training. Cologne, in particular, is wellknown for its good practice in this area. This cityalso serves as a model for the current discussionof the social system in Germany. Other examplesinclude Bielefeld, Bremen, Offenbach and GiessenCounty. Inclusion policies are also important inthis context. In Offenbach, for example, 30% ofthe population are immigrants and considerableeffort is made to bring them into the labour market.Measures include inter-cultural job coachingand specific job creation.SECOND PILLAR: ENTREPRENEURSHIPA recent development is the training and coachingof new and potential entrepreneursamong the former unemployed. In Germany therehas been surprising success through the buildingof business incubators. Recent innovationsin the field of local employment policy by microloanschemes are still at an early stage due torestrictive national law. Nevertheless, local strategiesare available to facilitate the building ofmicro-schemes that can be used by new businesses.University spin-offs are also becomingvery important. Local authorities in Offenbachwork closely with a local college to try to supportstudents while they receive training inentrepreneurship. Neighbourhood renewal initiativesare being implemented in most Germancities and it is becoming increasingly importantto incorporate an economic element to theserenewal strategies. One feature of this economicdimension is to support business initiatives andnew local businesses.THIRD PILLAR: ADAPTABILITYAdaptability can be supported on the local levelthrough the provision of local counselling servicesfor those in employment. Information isprovided on successful adaptation to changingrequirements within the workplace. The idea ofopen learning centres has been adapted from theUK and the USA, creating learning facilities indowntown areas in inner cities where people canhave free access to e-learning and self-learningmaterial and counselling services. In a number ofcities, tailor-made training measures have beendesigned especially for small and medium-sizedenterprises and local authorities. Good practiceexamples for this can be found in Graz, Offenbachand Stuttgart.FOURTH PILLAR: EQUAL OPPORTUNITIESThe final pillar of the guidelines prioritises equalopportunities, with the twin social and economicobjective of modernising societies so thatwomen and men can work on equal terms withequal responsibilities, to develop the full growthcapacities of European economies. It recognisesboth the social need to counter discriminationand inequalities between women and men, andthe economic loss resulting from not making fulland effective use of the productive capacities ofall sections of the population.In addition to this focus on closing the gendergap in Europe’s economic and social life, thispillar emphasises the integration of people withdisabilities into working life. This is an importantfirst step towards recognition that the full integrationof disabled people is a fundamental issueof equal opportunities. This, in turn, is also amove towards a wider implementation in theemployment field of the important new antidiscriminationclause of the Amsterdam Treaty.

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONAN INCLUSIVE LABOUR MARKET POLICYLabour market policy should consist of an integratedpackage of policies. There are manysynergies that can be used by the local levelapproach. This makes local employment policynot only more effective but also more cost-efficient.An example of good practice for this is theintegrated approach taken by the City of Leipzigin Saxony, eastern Germany. In the region ofLeipzig, the unemployment rate is very high.However, as a result of local policy, Leipzig isnow some steps ahead in tackling unemployment.The City of Leipzig set up a strategy ofcluster management and succeeded in locatingtwo industrial plants of BMW and Porsche. Theyhave embedded this into an overall cluster strategy,exploring what the supply industries andthe services around these automobile plants areand what kind of skills will be needed in theseautomobile factories and the suppliers aroundthem. Leipzig started this initiative long beforemeasures were taken for these plants to trainpeople in cooperation with BMW, Porsche andother companies for future jobs. A large numberof this new workforce is recruited out of the formerunemployed. The whole project was moderatedand coordinated by the City of Leipzigrather than by the National Labour Office or byindividual companies. This is therefore anexample of successful practice for local employmentpolicy and this model should be adapted inmore cities, not only in Germany but withinEurope.CONCLUSIONIn conclusion, there is a great variety of practicalmodels in Germany. It is necessary to bringthese different practices closer together to createnetworks between cities with their respectiveemployment policy departments, to enable themto learn from each other, to maybe benchmarkpractical models against each other and to makeimplementation of local employment policymore effective and more efficient.■ Rural employment: Resolving the negative impact of unemployment in EssexPaul Williams, Rural development Manager, Essex County Council (UK)The Essex Rural Partnership (ERP) was establishedby Essex County Council as a direct response tothe crisis caused by Foot and Mouth Disease. TheERP is an action orientated group. It brings togetheractors from different levels of governmentas well as interest groups in order to improve theliving and working conditions of the people inrural Essex.Urban White Paper and the Rural White Paper.This means that local authorities are now obligedto encourage growth in their counties. TheEssex County Council met these demands by settingup a community regeneration departmentthat focuses on three separate activities: urbanregeneration, rural regeneration and socialinclusion.Why did the Essex County Council getinvolved in rural partnerships?Essex County Council got involved in rural partnershipsas a result of new local government responsibilitiesto provide access to local servicesand facilities, following publication of the UKFive priority areas were identified: the ThamesGateway (from London to Southend), the HavenGateway (from Harwich to Felixstowe), the M11Corridor alongside the Stanstead Airport developmentarea, the Harlow urban district and theRural Renewal Area. Rural Essex comprises allareas outside the major towns and the coastline,including all estuaries and islands.— 13 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONThe changing nature of the rural communitiesin EssexRural communities in Essex have recently changed.22% of the workforce commutes daily outof the county, which means that rural settlementshave largely become dormitory towns.There is an overall reduction in affordable housingas people from London are purchasingsecond properties as holiday homes or weekendlets. As a result of the loss of agricultural subsidiesand markets, there has been a reduction infarm incomes, a loss of traditional rural skillsand there are changing skill requirements. Allthese aspects have a negative impact on therural economy.Local government is particularly involved in providingbasic social amenities, education andcommunication, access to rural transport facilities,ensuring availability of affordable housing,maintaining public rights of way as well as theremoval of rural social isolation barriers.This is done in cooperation with districts,boroughs, and town and parish councils. Thereare 2-way liaisons on all key issues includingeconomic development, social services, environment,transport, planning and tourism.lost. As a result, a number of farmers and farmworkers left the farming industry. The impact ofthe Foot and Mouth Disease on tourism was feltto a much stronger extent. The number of visitorsto the countryside fell. This was furtheramplified by the impact of 11 September 2001.The result was a huge loss in revenue for thecounty and an immediate reduction in seasonalemployment.In this very difficult situation, the Essex RuralPartnership was established, which has currentlyover 160 representatives and decision makersfrom the rural economy and rural organisations.It is a communication network including all keystakeholders from both inside and outside theEssex County Council, and serves as a forum forthe exchange and dissemination of information.One of the first tasks of the Essex Rural Partnershipwas to subdivide itself into manageableareas such as rural economy, employment, community,transport, the environment and conservation.It has three secretariats for the threesub-groups as well as a coordination body and arural strategy group which takes advice frompeople at the ground level as to the form longtermpolicy should take.MEASURES TAKEN AND FIRST OUTCOMESThe Foot and Mouth Crisis 2001There has recently been the challenge of theFoot and Mouth crisis. The County Council initiatedemergency procedures by closing allpublic rural rights of way and the County Councilmonitored and evaluated disease control togetherwith the Department for Environment, Foodand Rural Affairs (DEFRA) which made recommendationson measures to be taken to the UKParliament.●The establishment of a rural economy and employmenthub called Waymark Essex. This serves as apartnership of 150+ agencies, providing adviceand training. It is a signposting and problem solvingfacility which is free of charge.● Specific help for the tourism industry: £50,000was invested in an advertising campaign. Supportfor Agro-Tourism schemes was given ie. craftfairs and food fairs to create extra-seasonalemployment.— 14 —The Foot and Mouth Disease had a severe impacton the social and employment situation of the●The Essex Farm Attractions Group was establishedto encourage farm diversification, givingcountryside. Farmers were not allowed to movefarmers the possibility to earn extra income whiletheir cattle but they still had related expenses.continuing with their usual farming activities. InMoreover, some of the traditional markets wereaddition, they intended to create further jobs

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION●●●●and sustain those jobs that were already there.There was also an educational spin-off and thisgroup succeeded in raising awareness amongurban visitors of farming practices.The Essex Farm and Country AccommodationsGroup started its work in order to encouragemore tourist accommodation, agro-tourism, ecotourism, the possibility to work together withdifferent interest groups and a re-training schemefor rural workers.The Essex Association of Farmer Markets whichaims to encourage people to buy locally grownproduce. In addition there was a Young Farmersshow in May 2002, financially supported by theCounty Council, whose aim is to raise awarenessof current farming activities.A further aim is to save and sustain rural communityfacilities. Village shops and post officeswere revitalised. From April 2002, a new pilotprogramme with Community InformationCentre Points was set up.Training schemes and work-based courses wereinitiated. For example, Adult Community Colleges,schools and libraries are used outside the normalopening hours to set up training schemes inrural areas. There are also mobile facilities suchas buses travelling around rural communitiescontaining IT equipment with Internet access fortheir use. It is intended that no one should bemore than 10 to 15 km from an accessible trainingcentre. Courses comprise basic skills suchas literacy, numeric skills, key life skills and ITimprovement skills.●Specific rural job creation and training undertakenby incubator units and “Rural EnterprisesCentres” making use of old farm or utility buildings,water works and so on, turning them intorural enterprise centres and units where smallbusinesses can be set up and have a subsidisedrent for one year. New employment opportunitieshave been created in the tourism sector,subsidised training schemes were establishedfor SMEs and training given in the developmentof business plans for new and existing enterprises.In the area of farming, there has beenwide scale cooperation with other training providerssuch as the National Farmers’ Union. Inaddition, farm diversification seminars wereheld in cooperation with the UK Department forEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA)and other groups and agencies. Some managementtraining programmes were also run.CONCLUSIONEssex County found that the best and most costeffectivelong term solution to tackling ruralunemployment and social deprivation was toengage all of the major stakeholders in the ruraleconomy in a strong and vibrant working partnership,supported by targeted government fundingand delivered by local agencies workingtogether to meet local needs.The Community Regeneration Department ofEssex County Council aims to consistently createthese partnerships with all levels of localgovernment, representatives of rural and urbancommunities, support agencies, charities andcommercial organisations for the common good.— 15 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONSESSION 2Social inclusion in urban and rural areas:some case studiesModerator: Jorma Palola■ IntroductionJorma Palola, Permanent Representative, Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (AFLRA)The reason for raising the issue of social inclusioninto today’s discussion is that, from a Europeanperspective, the Open Method of Coordinationhas been developed for social inclusionpolicy. New National Action Plans (NAPs/incl)are being prepared for social inclusion measuresat the national level and working groups have, atleast in some of the member states, already beenset up for this purpose. It would be interesting toconsider how well and to what extent regionalauthorities are involved in preparing theseNational Action Plans. The Council of Ministersrecently decided to prepare a guide for goodpractice in facilitating these new NationalAction Plans. The Social Protection Committee,which consists of high officials from memberstates, is also preparing common objectives forNational Action Plan preparations in memberstates. National reports are also expected fromhealthcare services and services providing carefor the elderly. This is a good time to start reflectingon the role of regional and local authoritiesin a social inclusion policy and on the design,implementation and evaluation of such a policy.Mrs Odile Quintin, Director-General of the EuropeanCommission’s DG Employment & SocialAffairs recently stated that the Open Method ofCoordination should be streamlined and shouldbe given an official status. There is a socialdemand for this and a need to strengthen thiskind of welfare policy dimension at the EU level.This is something new for local authorities,especially in the Nordic countries where localgovernment is the level of government responsiblefor healthcare, education and social policy.An extensive approach can be taken with socialinclusion. In the first session, the focus was onemployment policy. It is possible to say that localgovernment has three kinds of roles with regardto employment policy measures: the first of theseis the role of local authorities and local governmentas an employer. The second is local authoritiesacting as supporters or facilitators of businessesby providing the infrastructure necessary to supportthese enterprises. The third is the social responsibilityof local authorities to assist the mostvulnerable in the labour market. This is the linkbetween social inclusion policy and employmentpolicy at the local level. There is also a wholerange of other issues of importance to socialinclusion policy and its measures at the nationaland local level such as the integration of refugees,crime related problems, provision of housing,and access to children’s daycares services.— 16 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION■ Combating social inclusion in the City of HelsinkiJussi Merikallio, Director of Social Services Department, City of Helsinki (FIN)Since the beginning of 1990’s, the social problemsthat are typical to urban areas in Europehave increased considerably in Helsinki. Severalfactors have combined to aggravate the situation:economic recession in the early 1990’s whichbrought about funding problems in the publicservices, the rapid spread of drug use and increasingnumbers of immigrants. This has lead to anincrease in the number of the socially excluded.Two case studies were presented: a project forimproving the employability of young homelesspeople in a suburb and a project for improvingthe employability and participation of the longtermunemployed in a single suburb.THE SITUATIONHelsinki is one of the fastest growing urbanareas in Europe. It has a population of about1 million people, 500,000 of whom live inHelsinki and 500,000 who live in the surroundingareas.demand for jobs that require highly skilledlabour. However, while there were many jobs forpeople with a high level of skills, at the same timethere was a large number of long-term unemployedwho were not able to find employment.Combating social exclusion in Helsinki focuseson tackling long-term unemployment and examiningwhat happens in the labour market. Furthermore,the long-term unemployed are in adisadvantaged position in terms of their individualcircumstances and it is extremely difficultfor them to regain employment. The result is thecreation of sub-cultures which further distancethem from the labour market and participationin society. Most social workers in the SocialServices Centre in Helsinki provide help for thehomeless and mentally ill as well as immigrants.Unemployment and social inclusion are mattersof economics as well as of individual well-being.These two dimensions have to be linked in orderto find new ways to help the unemployed.Until the early 1990s, Helsinki was a very sociallyhomogeneous city with a low crime rate andwithout any real segregation. In the early 1900s,however, there was a strong economic declineand unemployment rose to 18% in 1995. Whenthe economy started to improve, the unemploymentrate decreased to 9% with the long-termunemployment rate rising to 3%. The recessiongenerated a large mass of long-term unemployed.At the same time, drug abuse increased.Immigrants from Russia and the Baltic countriescame to Helsinki. This in turn resulted in anincrease in organised crime and drugs becamemore widely available. Mental health problemsalso increased dramatically. As a consequence,social problems increased rapidly. The economybegan to recover again because of the developmentof IT technology and the subsequentMEASURES TAKENWhile classic amenities of social service exist ie.the provision of healthcare and day-care forchildren, these services are insufficient in themselvesto meet the needs of the long-termunemployed.A special programme funded by the EU and theCity of Helsinki is applying new approaches. Thisprogrammes caters for 8,000 people. One of its’sub-projects is designed for the under 25-yearold homeless who have never been employed,have received very little education, are drugaddicts and homeless. Another project that hashad positive results in fighting suburban drugaddiction targets middle-aged men who werelast employed in the early 1990s.— 17 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONMeasures have been combined that are normallyquite separate from each other. Drug addicts areprovided with therapy to counter drug abuse andare provided with training in life managementskills to enable them to manage everyday life. Atthe same time, they are provided with an apartmentand a package of services is tailored toeach individual.For the target group of long-term unemployedmiddle-aged men in Northern Helsinki, the basicideas are similar. This project has been runningfor 2 years and has reached about 120 persons,around 30 of whom now have a ‘sheltered job’with a couple of them employed within the normallabour market. The represents a considerableachievement given the extent of the problemsthese people have had.attitude that provides the motivation for helpingthese people enter employment and mainstreamsociety and that argues that these schemes areworthwhile regardless of the number of peoplethey assist.Secondly, the services system for the targetgroups mentioned above is directed at individualclients. Social workers have to carefully assessthe individual circumstances of their mostexcluded clients.Thirdly, we can learn from the cooperation ofdifferent types of authorities i.e. local authorities,the Ministry of Labour, healthcare institutions.While these authorities do not alwayswork together, during our project they neverthelessco-operated closely with each other.WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THE EXPERIENCESIN HELSINKI?Tackling problems of social exclusion is, firstly,more a question of attitude than of method. It isHowever, one large problem remains. The labourmarket does not need people with low productivityand it remains a considerable challenge topersuade labour markets to accept low-qualifiedpeople on to the labour market.■ Social inclusion in Northern Karelia:a substance free life - an ongoing projectJorma Palola, Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (AFLRA)— 18 —Drug addiction and crime are phenomena presentnot only in urban but also in rural areas.A cross-border programme in the Finnish andRussian parts of Northern Karelia tries to tacklethis problem. Several programmes have beenlaunched such as drug awareness courses forpupils and training schemes for Russian doctors.One project dealing with social inclusion in ruralareas in Finland deals with young drug-addicts.It is a cross border programme comprising theFinnish and Russian parts of Northern Karelia.A joint survey revealed that in one place, inSortavala, Russian Karelia, adolescents and children,as well as the healthcare services and educationand social services employees, where notespecially well informed about the adverseeffects of drugs. Furthermore, knowledge of substanceabuse prevention and the treatment ofsubstance abuse patients were lacking. In addition,there were no proper facilities for youngpeople to spend their leisure time.The project was set up with the objectives ofincreasing expertise on how to deal with substanceabusers, increasing children’s and adult’sknowledge of substance abuse and strengtheningtheir social skills. In addition, it aimed tosupport civic activities in Russian Karelia. Theproject is fed by Finnish government funds forcross border cooperation. There are severalactors involved, such as the Regional Council of

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONNorthern Karelia, a number of municipalitiesand the Finnish Nurses’ Association, who allwork together on this project. Results so farinclude the training of four nurses in substanceabuse prevention and the preparation of materialfor inclusion on the school curriculum ondrug prevention. The organisation “Mothersagainst Drugs” has been founded in RussianKarelia. Cross-border student exchange visitshave been organised which deal with the themeof preventing substance abuse. There have alsobeen activities to promote social inclusion skillsamongst students. A computer classroom withten computers was established in a school. Therehave been a number of indirect results as well asthose, which are already visible. The streets havebecome safer as anti-drug education in schoolshas increased in Russian Karelia.■ The role of local development in meeting the challenges of unemploymentand social inclusion: the EQUAL InitiativeGerhard Bräunling, DG Employment and Social Affairs, European CommissionEQUAL tests new ways of solving discriminationand inequality experienced by those in work andthose who are unemployed. The key principals ofEQUAL are: transnational co-operation, innovation,empowerment, thematic and partnershipapproach, dissemination and mainstreaming.Activities are structured on the four pillars of theEuropean Employment Strategy: Employability,Entrepreneurship, Adaptability and Equal Opportunitiesfor women and men. It is funded by theEuropean Social Fund (ESF).THE AIM OF THE INITIATIVEThe EQUAL initiative is a response by the EuropeanCommission to a number of questions ontackling exclusion, discrimination and inequalityin relation to the labour market. It is also designedfor those members of the workforce whohave problems starting new work due to theirsocial, health or family situation. EQUAL promotesnew means of combating all forms of discriminationand inequalities in connection withthe labour market through transnational cooperation.EQUAL is an experimental programme to develop,validate and mainstream new means of deliveringemployment and social inclusion policyand to undertake this at the local and regionallevel. This is also a means by which to empowerlocal and regional actors. In other words, EQUALis a laboratory for new forms of integrativeinclusive employment. As Ms Diamantopolouonce said: “If we were a production company,then EQUAL would be our laboratory, our developmentarm which develops and tests userorientedelements and implements them intothe mainstream policies at regional, nationaland European level.”At the European level, two major strategiesexist: The European Employment Strategy, currentlybased on the four pillars (employability,entrepreneurship, adaptability and equal opportunities)and the European Social Inclusion Strategy.Both strategies follow a similar pattern ofopen coordination and try to integrate local andregional actors and their experience. The problemis how this is done and one of the solutionsto this is through learning.EQUAL initiatives bring together all relevantactors. Transnationality is illustrated through acombination of experience, learning from othersand learning from experiences in other memberstates. Secondly, there is the aspect of partnership:there are no single projects. These individualprojects are part of a set of projects whichare driven by partnership of local and regionalauthorities, social partners, training agencies, aswell as NGOs. It cannot be assumed that partnershipswork. Consequently the funding arrangementwas changed and a preparation periodof at least 6 months was decided on. The idea— 19 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONbehind this concept was to establish the partnershipduring these six months in order todevelop a joint strategy, to mutually define thenature of the problem, and to assess whatoptions for solutions and resources exist andhow they can be mobilised. The first instance ofthis process was undertaken between November2001 and May 2002.EQUAL is built on the principles of transnationality,partnership and empowerment. In additionthere is also the principle of innovation whichmeans that one has to find new ways of organisingand connecting work with other aspects oflife: a new means of working which facilitates abalance between family life, leisure, training andwork is being initiated. Finally an important elementthat has to be integrated from the beginningis mainstreaming, that is to say the integrationof what has been learnt should be putinto practice at every level. Under ADAPT, therewere a number of projects in the field of jobrotation. This was first developed in Denmarkwhere unemployed people are recruited for alimited period of time to work in companies, ona temporary basis, to replace existing staff whowere being trained. This again is an interface ofhow to combine those institutions dealing withunemployed people and those institutions thatdeal with training, as well as how to find fundingarrangements combining the two. Differenttypes of models have been applied to small companies,large companies, and to urbanised ruralareas. These experiments have been successfulwhere they have found a way to validate theresults and discovered an approach to overcomingthe obstacles in the current legislativeregime. In some member states, platforms andassociations were formed to lobby parliamentarians.This in turn resulted in new legislation, forexample in Portugal, Italy and Germany.WHAT HAS BEEN ACHIEVED SO FAR?In the first round of the EQUAL initiative, memberstates who implement this programme haveselected 1,500 development partnerships in ninethematic fields which were agreed upon bymember states as being problem areas where itis necessary to cooperate and to learn from oneanother. Between November 2001 and spring2002, 1,500 development partnerships havebeen established. They have developed a strategyand have agreed on a work plan that commits allpartners for the next two years. Thematicallyspeaking, there is a concentration on the facilitationof access to the labour market, especiallyfor the long-term unemployed. More than halfof these partnerships are regional or local partnerships,which means that they all work in thesame region and they tackle a specific problemthat is evident in one of these regions. Approximatelyten partners work together in each of thepartnerships and most of them include a local orregional authority, one or more have strategic oroperational partners, and a number of them havemanaged to include NGOs. In addition, platformshave been set up for the validation of experienceand for the identification of good practice alreadyimplemented. It is intended that European networks,where the coordinators of the partnershipsmeet organisations working at Europeanlevel, work together on a number of specificissues which are relevant to the political agenda.These platforms are also intended to provide anexchange of best practice. Different memberstates have different experiences. Some of themare outside EQUAL and the Commission is tryingto integrate these in order to facilitate progress.It should not be forgotten that although EQUALrepresents only 5 percent of the European StructuralFund in absolute terms, this programmeaccounts for around 3 billion euro. Complementarynational funding also exists.— 20 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONSESSION 3Partnerships, networking and project management■ Building and driving partnerships: how does it work? “The Essex Experience”Paul Williams, Essex Rural Partnership●●Traditionally, it has been difficult to organisecooperation between different levels of government.One of the achievements of the partnershipin Essex is that it brings together technicalexperts from local and regional levels. In addition,the end customer is present in these discussions.If, for example, a member of theagricultural community has difficulties in diversifyinghis farming interests ie. moving fromproduction to tourism, technical experts areavailable to discuss the problems he is facing.Within this partnership, representatives of allregional bodies of national agencies are included,e.g. the Government Office of the EasternRegion, the Department of Environment, Foodand Rural Affairs (DEFRA), the CountrysideAgency East of England Development Agency,and the Environment Agency.Each district and borough in Essex has its ownforum for discussing rural development. Infor-●mation from these forums is fed into a largerpartnership with Essex County Council. At thevillage and town levels, parish and town councilsserve as a means by which the general publiccan be involved. This is a mechanism throughwhich Essex Rural Partnership can provide inputfrom the local level to national government. Forexample, information is distributed upwardsfrom towns and parishes, through districts andthe county level to a regional rural affairs forum.This forum, in turn, presents the information toa national forum, which provides input togovernment policy.One of the key aspects of the success of ruralpartnership in Essex is publicity. It is also importantto have local rural information points todistribute information. Furthermore, events orcampaigns, organised in connection with otheractors from either the private or public sectors,can help to create better publicity.■ The partnership in the LEADER rural development programmeCatherine de Borchgrave, European Association for Information on Local Development (AEIDL)The AEIDL (European Association for Informationon Local Development) has been mainly workingon the LEADER programme, for which partnershipis an essential concept. LEADER I was a pilotprogramme launched by the Commission in 1991and covering 217 territories, mainly in objectives1 and 5b areas. LEADER II generalised this programmefrom 1994 onwards, covering more than1,000 territories in objectives 1, 5b and 6 areas.One of the main features of the LEADER programmesis the instrument of partnerships, bringingtogether different social and economicpartners.The LEADER+ initiative is based on 7 aspects:1. area-based approach (area of less than100,000 inhabitants, which has excluded theparticipation of medium-cities with whichsome rural-urban partnerships could havebeen developed);2. bottom-up approach;3. partnership approach and intervention formanagement and animation of a local actiongroup (LAG);4. innovation;5. integrated multisectoral approach;6. networking and co-operation;7. local financing and management.— 21 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONThe LEADER approach is based on two principles:■ the convergence between those responsiblefor interventions and potential beneficiaries;■ and establishing links between the activities ofthe territory, between the territories and betweenthe sectors (for instance between thetourism and production sectors).The partnership in LEADER is an obligation. Atdecision-making level, the economic and socialactors and the associations must represent atleast 50% of the local partnership. Partnership isthe expression of a group of players (public andprivate), established in a variety of differentforms (legal forms, historical forms, etc.), who allgive concrete expression to forms of collectiveinvolvement at the level of a given territory. Allof these have to demonstrate, in conformity withtheir member state legislation, a legitimacy tomanage public funds.We have noticed that the partnership is very diverseand this diversity has been adapted to the respectivecontexts. There is a diversity in the origin:■ initiatives emerging from a group of persons,as is often the case in Portugal and Ireland;■ from enterprises and professional groups, ashas been observed in Spain or Italy;■ and from public authorities.There is also a diversity in the type of mission:■ management, with financial and administrativeaspects, more frequent in initiatives of a publicorigin;■ partnerships constituted on “animation”, whichhighlight the aspect of mobilisation of thepopulation. In these “animation” partnerships,a local dynamic appears, which allows the initiativesto last longer and to be more able toevolve, although this is sometimes at theexpenses of the management aspect.■ Social and economic inclusion through area based local development:the example of DublinPatrick Gates, Dublin Inner City Partnership— 22 —Dublin Inner City Partnership is a local developmentorganisation operating in inner city Dublin,Ireland. This area is one of the most disadvantagedareas of Ireland, with high rates of poverty,unemployment and social problems. The partnershipapproach involves a collaboration betweenstatutory, private and community sectors tobring about regeneration of local areas.WHAT ARE THE IDEAS BEHIND THE DICP?The Dublin Inner City Partnership (DICP) wasestablished over ten years ago. It emerged out ofthe European Union’s first anti-poverty programmeand coincided with the unprecedentedeconomic growth of Ireland. Partnerships haveplayed an important role in terms of stimulatingand sustaining economic growth.The DICP’s vision is to build a more equal andsocially just inner city for Dublin by investing inpeople and communities, and in an inclusivedemocratic process. It is important to improvethe quality of life and to secure the rights of lowincome inner-city residents through increasedaccess to quality education, employment opportunitiesand by increasing public and privateinvestment in disadvantaged areas. The DICP’sapproach is to provide a strategic and integratedframework for local development that includesinvestment from both public and privatesources, including the EU. The partnership principleis aimed at giving direct benefits to innercity residents experiencing poverty.ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGESOF AREA-BASED APPROACHESPolitical empowerment of excluded sections ofthe community enables collective social interactionand the political participation of civic community-basedorganisations and individuals.

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONSuch actions foster integrated development,local partnership and promote trust betweenpolitical and socio-economic stakeholders.Nevertheless, state agencies can undermine initiativesby circumventing or duplicating existingcommunity infrastructure. Due to a lack ofresources, capacity development may be weakvis-à-vis leadership, organisation and institutionalgovernance. Furthermore, the democraticlegitimacy and accountability of partnershipsmight be called into question from locally electedpolitical representatives. Duplication of developmentfora places increasing demands on theability of networks to participate effectively.■ Territorial bottom-up initiatives aimed at sustainable developmentRolf-Ulrich Sprenger, College of Europe, Bruges (B) and the ifo-Institute, Munich (D)Territorial bottom-up initiatives build on theexpertise of local/regional stakeholders Theypromote and enable the participation of localcommunities in processes of change within theeconomy, society and environment. In practice,these initiatives have proved to be a veryvaluable complement to top-down approaches.However, they are not useful in order to tacklemass-unemployment.WHAT ARE KEY ELEMENTSOF THESE INITIATIVES?First of all, a common motivation among stakeholdersof the respective region is necessary. Itis important to have the support of the principlelocal stakeholders; if some of these key-institutionsrefrain from participating, the success ofthese programmes is not secured. Professionalmanagement is also a key element. There is alsoa need for the appropriate legal framework toprovide incentives for such initiatives, especiallywhen third sector activities and voluntary activitiesare involved.There are a number of examples of success storiesfor ADAPT employment projects. However,these projects are not a solution for tackling massunemployment. By their very nature, initiativesare selective. The number of jobs maintained orcreated is relatively small. Apart from traditionalsuccess indicators such as the number ofjobs maintained or created, a number of otherpositive factors should be taken into account indealing with social inclusion.The wider policy impacts in terms of a better verticalcoordination of policy areas that have beensegmented in the past should also be considered.There is now a better horizontal cooperationbetween institutions working in the same area.It is also possible to identify some synergies, e.g.the double benefit of improving the environmentand tackling unemployment.The European Commission is keen on supportingprogrammes that have developed the idea ofterritorial employment pacts. A number of theseprogrammes have been instrumental in contributingto the development of networking andcreating governance structures.It is evident that those bottom-up approacheshave proved to be very valuable and that theyprovide an important complement to the deliveryof top-down approaches. Nevertheless, they do notoffer a sufficient answer to the current problems ofstructural unemployment and social exclusion.While these should not be seen as alternativegovernance structures, they are neverthelessimportant complementary activities.— 23 —

COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONReferences,literature for further reading●CEMR (2002): The Added-value of European Union Cohesion Policy,CEMR position paper.●Daniels, Isobel, et al. (2000). Interdependence between urban and rural areasin the West of England. University of the West of England, Bristol.●Davoudi, S. and Stead, D. (2002). Urban-rural relationships - an introductionand history. Built Environment [forthcoming].●European Commission (1999). European Spatial Development Perspective, towards abalanced and sustainable development of the territory of the EU. Office for OfficialPublications of the European Community, Luxembourg.●European Commission, DG Agriculture (2000). Fighting unemployment and socialinclusion in rural areas. Rural Innovation, LEADER Dossier Nr. 8.●European Commission (2001). Second Report on Social Cohesion. Office for OfficialPublications of the European Community, Luxembourg.●European Spatial Observation Network (2002). Urban-ruralrelations in Europe, first interim report.http://www.espon.lu/online/documentation/projects/thematic/266/.ir-1.1.2.pdfUSEFUL WEB PAGES●European Commission: Inforegio homepage on Spatial Planninghttp://europa.eu.int/comm/regional_policy/themes/spatial_en.htm●European Spatial Planning Observation Network:web page of the research project “Urban-rural relations in Europe”http://www.hut.fi/units/separate/YTK/research/UR/index.html●European Spatial Planning Observation Network(Finnish Contact point)http://www.ymparisto.fi/tutkimus/espon/espon.htm— 24 —

C ONSEILDES C OMMUNESET R ÉGIONSD ’EUROPEBureau de Paris - Paris Office :15, rue de Richelieu F - 75001 ParisTél. +33 1 44 50 59 59 • Fax +33 1 44 50 59 60Bureau de Bruxelles - Brussels Office :rue d’Arlon 22-24 B - 1050 BruxellesTél. +32 2 511 74 77 • Fax +32 2 511 09 49Email : cemr@ccre.org Web : www.ccre.orgT HE C OUNCILOF E UROPEANM UNICIPALITIESAND R EGIONSConception graphique : René Bertramo 01 53 36 19 12Le CCRE remercie la Commission européenne pour son soutien financier / Thanks to the European Commission for its financial support