As part of the ongoing monitoring of the implementation of the rural development plan for the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg (MEPL III), the IfLS carried out an ad hoc study on ways to simplify and accelerate the LEADER funding process.
The periods of time between the selection of a LEADER funding project in the decision-making body of a local action group and the final settlement with the funding recipient by the paying agency of a federal state vary greatly and can sometimes be quite long. In Baden-Wuerttemberg, the question therefore arose as to how the process could be simplified and accelerated.
The IfLS investigated this question and compared the LEADER funding procedure in Baden-Württemberg with the procedures in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia. Experiences from Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony were also included in the study. Surveys of all approval bodies, the LEADER specialist departments and the representatives of the local action groups in the three federal states were used to compile strengths and weaknesses as well as examples of good practice and to draw up recommendations for Baden-Wuerttemberg.
As part of the annual exchange between the Ministry of Food, Rural Areas and Consumer Protection Baden-Wuerttemberg (MLR) and the local action groups, Dr Ulrich Gehrlein presented the results of the study in Stuttgart on 30 November 2023. In the ensuing discussion, both Ministerial Director Grit Puchan and the representatives of the specialist department as well as the representatives of the local action groups welcomed the suggestions and recommendations of the study. To select and implement individual recommendations, it is intended to set up a working group with representatives of the ministry, the funding agencies and the local action groups.
The study is available for download on the MLR website [in German].
Contact: Dr Ulrich Gehrlein (gehrlein@ifls.de), Oliver Müller (mueller@ifls.de), 069 9726683 23
