Leader

Public-private partnerships: (local action groups): LAGs have the objective to identify and implement a rural development strategy by taking decisions for the distribution of financial resources and their management.

It is expected LAG to be effective in the stimulation of sustainable development because they:

collect and combine available human and financial resources of the public sector, private sector, civil and volunteer sector;
unify local active individuals around collective projects and multi-sector activities in order to achieve synergies, joint ownership and critical mass, necessary to improve the economic competiveness of the region;
to increase the dialogue and cooperation between various active individuals in the rural area which have often a limited experience in their partnership; through decreasing the potential conflicts and easing the negotiation of decisions through consultations and discussion;
easing, through interaction between various partners of the processes of adaptation and change in the agricultural sector (for example quality products, food chains), the integration of care for the environment, diversification of rural economy and the quality of life;

Integrated approach (multi-sector): the local development strategy shall have a multi-sector (multi-branch) focus as integrates several activity sectors. The activities and projects, included in the local strategies shall be related and coordinated in one sector, all programme activities or specific groups of activities or, most importantly, the link between various economic, social, ecologic participants, acting individuals and sectors.

Innovation: stimulating new and innovative approaches for rural development. Such innovation is stimulated by providing wide borders for freedom and flexibility in taking decision for activities of:

Local Action Groups
Citizens, residents and their local organizations
Vocational organizations and cooperatives (being farmers; professional non-farmers and micro-firms)
Internal networks and surveys
Ecological associations
Local institutions and bodies
Suppliers of cultural and municipal services

The innovation may mean introducing a new product, a new process, a new organization or a new market. This common definition is not valid for the urban as well as for the rural area. The innovation in rural area may mean transfer and adaptation of new decisions of sustainable problems of the rural area which other political interventions could not have settled satisfactorily or in a long-term.

Cooperation: The cooperation may develop in something more than creating contacts. This includes Local Action Group which to undertake a joint project with another Leader group or a group, using similar approach in another region, member-state or even third country.

The cooperation may support the Leader groups to develop their local activities. It may allow them to settle some problems and add value to the local resources.

The cooperation projects shall include a specific joint project, in the best case managed under a joint structure.

Two types of Leader cooperation are possible:

inter-territorial cooperation: this means cooperation between different rural areas within one member-state. It may be between Leader groups and may be opened for other local groups as well, using similar participation approach;
the trans-national cooperation: this means cooperation between Leader groups from at least two member-states or groups in third member-states as used is a similar approach,

For Bulgaria and Romania the Leader measures enclose:

Applying local development strategies
Applying cooperation projects (for trans-national / between regions);
Management of local action groups /LAG/, acquiring skills and achieving public activity of the respective territory