Author Description

The principles of partnership and multi-level governance are key features for the programming and implementation of Cohesion Policy and rural development. Partner involvement enhances the delivery of European programmes by providing ownership and making investments place-based. EU regulations for Cohesion Policy and rural development require the involvement of public authorities at national, regional and local levels as well as economic and social partners and bodies representing civil society according to the partnership principle. This partnership applies to all stages in the programming process, namely the preparation of programmes, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. Practices to ensure good partner involvement in these stages are further detailed in the European Code of Conduct on Partnership. This report presents findings on the application of the partnership principle and to what extent partners are well involved in the preparation of the 2021-2027 Partnership Agreements and programmes for Cohesion Policy and rural development. Ongoing partnership processes have been reviewed on the basis of desk research, survey and interview findings. Particular attention was paid to the perceived selection methods of partners, perceived balanced representation of partners, involvement of partners per section of the document, challenges and benefits, conditions for good partner involvement, and expectations for implementing Cohesion Policy and rural development. Where possible, findings on the application of the partnership principle are compared with insights on the perception of 2014-20 Cohesion Policy and rural development.