The Community Initiative LEADER I and the implementation and results of the Hungarian Pilot LEADER programme in rural development

ISSN 1732–4254 qua e ly Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio–economic Se ies No. 19 (2013): 87–97 Bulle in o geog aphy. Socio–economic Se ieS jou nal homepages: h p://www.bulle ino geog aphy.umk.pl h p:// e si a.com/bgss The Communi y Ini ia i e LEADER I and he implemen a ion and esul s o he Hunga ian Pilo LEADER p og amme in u al de elopmen csaba uszkai1, CDFMR, ibo Ko ács2, CDFMR Ka oly Esz e hazy College, H3300 Ege , Esz e házy é 1., Hunga y; phone: +3636 520 400/4216, ax: +3636 520467, e-mail: 1[email p o ec ed]m (co esponding au ho ), 2e-mail: ko acs ibo @ek .hu abs ac . Theaim o his s udy is o p esen he basic me hodological elemen s o he LEADER Communi y Ini ia i e in u al de elopmen es ablished in 1991 and i s p ac ical implemen a ion in geog aphy. Themos impo an p inciple o he LEADER p og amme is he e i o ial app oach and he appea ance o local communi ies in a ele an sub egional and landscape con ex . Thede e mina ion and c ea ion o ana u al and cul u al geog aphical amewo k is no a all an easy ask, al hough he LEADER cau iously pu s down basic p inciples and makes clea e e ences o spa ial de ini ion o local ac ion g oups. Theaim o LEADER Iis o demons a e he spa ial seg ega ion o hese communi ies and o e ol e apa icu- la image and akind o c i ical mass (popula ion, esou ces) o build a ela i e sel -su iciency. © 2013 Nicolaus Cope nicus Uni e si y P ess. All igh s ese ed. a icle de ails: Recei ed: 11 Ap il 2012 Re ised: 13 June 2012 Accep ed: 14 Decembe 2012 Key wo ds: Hunga y, u al de elopmen , egional planning, LEADER. con en s: 1. In oduc ion ....................................................................... 88 2. Me hods ........................................................................... 88 3. Thes a o he LEADER p og amme in EGK (EC) ...................................... 88 4. Ini ial posi ion, esul s and o e all impac o he p og amme .............................. 88 5. TheLEADER Ip og amme in Ge many, and he o e all expe ience in Ba a ia .............. 89 6. Launching o he Hunga ian Pilo P og amme LEADER in Hunga y, o he Hunga ian LEADER Ip og amme, pa icula ly in he No h-Hunga ian Region ....................... 92 7. Resul s o he Pilo LEADER p og amme in he No h-Hunga ian Region (Hunga ian Pilo P og amme LEADER) ............................................... 95 8. Conclusion ......................................................................... 96 Re e ences ......................................................................... 97 © 2013 Nicolaus Cope nicus Uni e si y P ess. All igh s ese ed. Ruszkai, C. and Ko ács, T., 2013: The Communi y Ini ia i e LEADER I and he implemen a ion and esul s o he Hunga ian Pilo LEADER p og amme in u al de elopmen . In: Szymańska, D. and Biegańska, J. edi o s, Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies, No. 19, To uń: Nicolaus Cope nicus Uni e si y P ess, pp. 87–97. DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.2478/bog-2013-0006 88 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 89 1. in oduc ion An examina ion o he esul s o he Communi y ini ia i e shows ha he e ec i eness o he p o- g amme is based on asolid pla o m o egional e i o ial planning. The esea ch analyses he base spa ial condi ions a communi y le el and compa es he si ua ion o an old membe s a e o ou coun y du ing he implemen a ion o LEADER Ibe ween 1991‒1994 and he Hunga ian Pilo P og amme LEADER be ween 2001‒2004. The la e p esen a ion o he LEADER p o- g amme esul s om he ac ha he Eu opean Commission wan s o e u n o he beginning o he LEADER when he p og amme exis ed as an in- dependen communi y ini ia i e. In he 2007‒2013 budge pe iod, acco ding o he opinion o he Commi ee o Regions, he LEADER de elopmen p og amme has los i s inno a i e and unique me hods in u al de elopmen and has been sub- o dina ed o he gene al Eu opean Ag icul u e and Ru al De elopmen policy. Be o e joining he EU as anew membe , Hunga y in oduced an ‘ins alla- ion’ es p og amme, bu he esul s we e no con- incing in ape iod o policy de elopmen when he LEADER me hodology los i s independen ole in he egion’s de elopmen . This s udy p esen s he planning implica ions and he impo ance o he LEADER me hodology. 2. me hods Compa ing he LEADER I p og amme and he Hunga ian Pilo LEADER has no been in he ocus o scien i ic esea ch. Al hough he p og amme is no anew de elopmen , o he 2014‒2020 subsi- disa ion pe iod, he EU wan s o e u n o i s oo s and o apply he p inciples and he expe ience o he p og amme. In e ms o esea ch me h- odology, he i s s ep is o p ocess he epo ed communi y s a is ics, he second s ep consis s o analysing asu ey o Ba a ian local ac ion g oups which pa icipa ed in LEADER I, LEADER II and LEADER+. 3. Thes a o he leaDe p og amme in egK (ec) TheEu opean Communi ies launched an ini ia i e o u al de elopmen in 1991 which laid down inno a i e app oaches ha we e o enable u al a eas o implemen hei de elopmen plans wi h ela ionships wi h ele an spa ial uni s. Theim- po ance o he p og amme is based on wo heo- ies: i s , he e needs o be acen e o a ac ion in he ele an a ea; second, o ind loca ions and posi ions, as well as economic and social ene gies ha de ine he c i ical mass. This se lemen ’c owd’ will de e mine he ex en o he ca chmen a ea (Ray, 1998; Dubos , 2008). TheLEADER ICommuni y Ini ia i e ied o close up he 1, 5b and 6 a ge egions by ex ending he Pilo me hods o he Eu opean egional policy. LEADER became he e o m o s uc u al policies, and e en oday i is he key de e mining ac o o u al de elopmen policy. 4. ini ial posi ion, esul s and o e all impac o he p og amme LEADER has laid down an app oach which was no pa o he adi ional illage de elopmen policies and which can be de ined as ollows: (a) geog aphi- cally bo de ed, agglome a ion egion-minded ap- p oach; (b) bo om-up app oach, essen ial local pa icipa ion in de elopmen p ocess; (c) o mula- ion o new de elopmen needs and hei hema ic linking wi h all socio-economic subsys ems (global app oach); (d) ounding a Local Adminis a ion G oup (LAG); (e) o ganising ane wo king sys em a na ional and communi y le el; ( ) suppo ing coope a ion wi hin he communi y o wi h a hi d coun y ha helps he de elopmen o he LEADER egion; (g) independen inancial managemen (Shucksmi h, 2000; S öh , Schenk, 2001;) The Eu opean Commission app o ed 217 lo- cal ac ion g oups o LEADER I de elopmen plan o he 1989‒1993 pe iod. A he end o he p og amme 215 we e e alua ed. The p og amme included a o al a ea o 362.000 km² and 11.3 mil- lion inhabi an s, and i a ec ed 60% o he a ge egions: Spain, F ance, Po ugal, I aly, I eland, and G eece. TheLEADER p og amme is in many ways in- e es ing o applied geog aphy. Thep io (ex-an e) si ua ion analysis, he de e mina ion o spa ial a - angemen s and ela ionships mean an excellen p o essional ask o highe educa ion ins i u ions (including Ge man uni e si ies) ha we e ac i ely in ol ed in inno a i e local de elopmen plans and comple ed sec ions o ex-pos e alua ion. Science he eby con ibu ed o aposi i e ision o he u- u e whe e he idea o he Regions o Eu ope could be ealised. LEADER Ime hodology and i s e ec on geog aphy had he ollowing esul s: (a) he designa ion o he LEADER a eas was enabled by geog aphical, economic, social, and adminis a i e dema ca ion. O cou se, du ing he dema ca ion o a eas anumbe o condi ions we e aken in o ac- coun (Fig. 1); (b) based on he geog aphical en i- onmen i can be s a ed ha ins ead o coas al and insula a eas asligh dominance o hilly-moun ain a eas eme ged. In he No h ishe ies while in he Sou h ou ism we e he dominan ac i i ies. Fu he mo e, i can also be s a ed ha egions cha ac e ized by pe iphe al and he so-called ul a- pe iphe al posi ion ( emo e, disad an aged a eas) we e su icien ly ep esen ed; (c) he LEADER Ia - eas a e basically spa sely popula ed wi h o en un a ou able demog aphic condi ions and speci i- cally limi ed economic de elopmen oppo uni ies. O cou se, he e we e excep ions, o example Po ugal, whe e ci ies we e also pa o he p o- g amme (bu no subsidy bene icia ies). Po ugal is he u u e o LEADER because he ocus oday is on illage-ci y ela ion sys ems, a leas in Ge many (Hu e , Neidha d , 2005) Popula ion densi y was highe in hese a eas han in he 5/b egions, which is no su p ising, since he 5/b objec i es we e di- ec ed a u al egions. 5. TheleaDe ip og amme in ge many, and he o e all expe ience in Ba a ia LEADER Ip og amme s a ed in he 5b egions: high ag icul u al employmen , ypically ag icul u - al egions (Ho a h, 2002). In Ge many, a o al o abou 13 Pilo a eas ecei ed ag an o 23.8 million ECU. Theexchange a e be ween € and ECU was 1:1 in 1999, so he subsidisa ion pe local ac ion g oups calcula ing wi h 270 HUF exchange a e was abou 494 million HUF (31/12/2009). Ou o 13 local ac ion g oups 10 we e im- plemen ed by egional ins i u ional amewo k; 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% A B C D E ig. 1. Fea u e selec ion condi ions o LEADER ILAG Explana ion: A– geog aphical iden i y; B – economic cohe ence; C – adi ional oo s; D – adminis a i e bounda ies; E – poli ical mo i a ions Sou ce: Own wo k 90 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 91 2 g oups we e guided by L d.; and he Hesseni Rhön g oup was guided by an associa ion. The o- cus o he associa ion’s ac i i ies in he i s s age o he p og amme conce ned anspo and ou - ism, and he planned in es men s we e o begin wi hin he amewo k o LEADER II. TheRhön Biosphe e Rese e local business de elopmen g oup p ima ily suppo ed design wo k and awhole se ies o smalle p ojec s. LEADER also suppo ed in e egional p ojec s conce ning e- gional de elopmen , excep hose conce ning in- es men s, in which only local a ge o ces could be complemen ed. O cou se, he e we e o he opinions s a ing ha money should a he be in- es ed in in es men s ins ead o planning and pay- ing he p o essionals o he local ac ion g oups bu hey admi ed ha wi hou ca e ul g oundwo k he u u e o LEADER was in ques ion (S öh - Schenk, 1997). TheGe man LEADERIcon ained he ollowing elemen s: (a) ou ism; (b) inc eas- ing he alue o ag icul u al p oduc ion ( alue- added); (c) small and medium-sized en e p ises, local c a s; (d) in es men in in angible asse s ( aining, ex ending new de elopmen me hodol- ogy); (e) u he a angemen s (p o ec ed a eas, En i onmen alism, imp o ing he quali y o lo- cal li e– he concep includes e ol emen and de elopmen o u ban se ices e.g.: con igu ing In e ne ne wo k, c ea ing elecen es, commu- ni y spaces); ( ) c ea ing acommon image ( o m- ing he LEADER ‘image’ and s anda ds – ade- ma ks, ensu ing he quali y o local p oduc s) (S öh -Schenk,1997). The opinions abou he success o Ge man LEADER I: acco ding o he p esen ed opinions LEADER Iwas able o ensu e he success o he de- elope s’ wo k by p o iding a ge ed in e en ions, i managed o gene a e posi i e eac ions conce n- ing he de elopmen o he egions, and also p o ed o be supplemen ed by o he subsidisa ion (Table 1). Thep esen ed opinions we e less conclusi e abou he inancial backing o LEADER and poin ed o bu eauc a ic obs uc ion. Theydid no hink ha he Eu opean LEADER was ap io i y. TheGe man expe iences should ha e been ex- empla y o ou coun y in he sense ha ins ead o building up esou ces elaying on LEADER only hey should ha e also based hei e i o ial s a e- gies on communi y o egional esou ces. Thein- c ease o egional de elopmen and e i o ial co- hesion was an impo an expe ience acco ding o he p esen ed opinions. We used geog aphic and egional de elop- men issues o he e alua ion o he Ba a ian LEADER I ex-pos (2010). The esul s showed signi ican di e ences om hose documen ed a ha ime. Al hough he esea ch did no ocus on Ge many, bu one p o ince only, solid conclusions can be d awn on he basis o 50% o he ecei ed ques ionnai es. The esul s show dec ease in he ole o LEADER and also in he alue-added de el- opmen se in he egion. The i s and pe haps one o he mos impo an issues in egional de elopmen is he designa ion o he egion’s geog aphic bounda ies. In LEADER+ and he 2007‒2013 LEADER Communi y planning documen s LEADER egions a e e e ed o as ho- mogeneous wi h espec o geog aphic, economic and social aspec s. In he con igu a ion o a egion hese aspec s should be conside ed. A u he p o ision o he Communi y di ec i es s a es ha i is abou ee g oups o se lemen s, ha is why o he adminis a i e bounda ies do no play any ole in he con igu a ion o he egions. In many cases i is no ecommended o adjus he bo de o he egions o adminis a i e bounda ies because i makes i mo e di icul o c ea e an in eg a ed geog aphical, economic o cul u al egion. Region de ining condi ions a e shown in Fig. 2. Un o una ely, i is clea ha he mos impo - an ac o in de ining he bounda ies o a egion is he adop ion o adminis a i e bounda ies. Theim- po ance o geog aphical bounda ies d opped om 84% o 46% compa ed o LEADER I. Economic homogenei y did no play a majo ole in he 2007‒2013 egion de ining p ocess which is ama- jo ac o in e ms o ou ism, ag icul u al, c a and wine egions. Thes udy also in ol es he majo ac o s o he cu en local ac ion g oups ha ensu e e i o ial cohesion. The esponden s had o weigh he lis ed condi ions whe e 1 is ma ked as he mos impo - an ac o and 5 is ma ked as he leas impo an ac o (Fig. 3). The esponden s linked he long- e m su i al o he local ac ion g oups o local poli ical condi ions. able 1. Judgemen o he LEADER Isubsidy A B C B A Theidea o LEADER as aEu opean ne wo k had g ea signi icance du ing p ac ice ◦ ○ ○ ◦ ◦ Theidea o LEADER as aEu opean ne wo k had minimal signi icance du ing p ac ice LEADER c ea ed sa is ac o y oppo uni ies o he ealiza ion o ou goals ● ○ ◦ - - LEADER excluded many hough ul de elopmen ini ia i es LEADER has enabled a ge ed in e en ions o he egions ● ○ ---LEADER has disabled a ge ed in e en ions o he egions LEADER was adap ed o he si ua ion and he p oblems o he egions ◦ ● ◦ ◦ -TheLEADER objec i es a e oo gene al inna u e LEADER ga e oom o me o ealise mylocal de elopmen no ions ◦●◦ - - LEADER did no help wi h my local de elopmen no ions LEADER has anon-bu eauc a ic s uc u e ◦○◦○○LEADER is bu eauc a ic LEADER is a inancially well supplied p og am ○ ◦ ◦ ◦ ○ LEADER does no ha e su icien inancial esou ces LEADER p omo es local de elopmen al e ec s ● ○ ---LEADER does no p omo e local de elopmen al e ec s LEAER p inciples ha e aposi i e impac on he egion ● ○ ---LEAER p inciples ha e li le impac on he egion LEADER p o ed o be well supplemen ed by o he subsidisa ion ● ○ ◦ - - LEADER p e en ed he in ol emen o o he po en ial subsidisa ion Explana ion: The a ie ies o he ‘○’ symbol mean he weigh ed pe cen ages calcula ed om he esponded answe s; A–ag ee; B – a he ag ee; C – nei he Sou ce: S öh , Schenk, 1997 64% 46% 46% 19% 18%18% 9% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% A B C D E F G ig. 2. LEADER egion de ining ac o s in he 2007‒2013 pe iod (own wo k) Explana ion: A– adminis a i e bounda ies; B – local iden i y; C – landscape bounda ies (geog aphy); D – accommoda ion o he ca chmen a ea; E – economic cohe ence; F – expe ise o he egional uni e si y; G – applica ion o poli ical p essu e Sou ce: Own esea ch 92 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 93 This s a emen aises signi ican conce ns ega d- ing he ole o he LEADER p og amme and pu s long- e m sus ainable de elopmen o he egions a isk. Thenex , bu mino ac o is he exis ence o local iden i y and i has oughly he same weigh as he dependence o adminis a i e s uc u e. The geog aphical bo de s which ep esen bo h a na u al and social geog aphical con ine we e ma ked as less impo an among he condi ions which ensu e he cohesion, wha con adic s he LEADER p inciples. 6. launching o he hunga ian pilo p og amme leaDe inhunga y, o  he hun ga ian leaDe ip og amme, pa icula ly in he no h-hunga ian egion In 2001 he Depa men o Ru al De elopmen P og ammes in ended o spend he emain- ing SAPARD money o c ea e LEADER de- elopmen p og ammes. SAPARD (Special Accession P og amme o Ag icul u e and Ru al De elopmen ), ap e-accession und, was c ea ed o p omo e common ag icul u al policy o candida e coun ies. One o he mos impo an p e equisi es o he acquisi ion o esou ces was he c ea ion o aRu al De elopmen Plan o ha pe iod iden i y- ing he main p io i ies o imp o emen (Kozma, 2003). This me hodology is in ended o p omo e he LEADER p og amme in smalle e i o ial uni s i ed in o alocal con ex . The p og amme is conside ed o be pionee - ing since i was he i s ha ied o p epa e he accession coun ies o domes ic applica ion o in eg a ed u al de elopmen (Fazekas, Nemes, 2005). This conclusion, howe e , is no en i ely app op ia e since he SAPARD de elopmen plans also ied o wo k wi h in eg a ed mul i-sec o pa ne s (Mada ász,2000). Thebasic goal o he p og amme was p epa ing o he LEADER+ Communi y Ini ia i e, so ha all le els o go e n- men and s akeholde s acqui ed he ele an p ac- ical knowledge in he p og amme. Many LEADER a eas do no o m an adminis a i ely homogenous uni apa , o cou se, om u ban a eas ha can lodge in o he a ea o he local ac ion g oups, i i canno be o he wise. Ci ies may no be LEADER ig. 4. Ca ego ies o Pilo LEADER e i o ies in Hunga y 2001‒2004 Sou ce: h p://www. m.hu/main.php? olde ID=908&a icleID=3859&c ag=a iclelis &iid=1 bene icia ies, no o men ion middle ci ies, al- hough he e a e nume ous examples in ou coun- y (e.g.: Békés, Gyomaend őd, Kapos á , Pu nok). Te i o ial uni s did no exis in Ózd-Pu nok Ru al De elopmen Wo king G oup, Dél-Zalai Ru al De elopmen Wo king G oup o Sá é Helyi Ru al De elopmen Wo king G oup (Fig. 4). Acco ding o he LEADER p inciples he se- lec ion o local ac ion g oups should no be im- plemen ed by minis ies (FVM). He e one o he main LEADER p inciples su e ed: he bo om-up app oach. The si ua ion he e o e p ede e mined local unsus ainabili y o u al de elopmen plans: egions did no pa icipa e ei he in he s age o implemen a ion – LEADER+ – o in o he com- muni y de elopmen p og ammes (see Table 2). O he disad an ages o he Pilo LEADER P og amme include: (a) excessi e and poin less bu- eauc acy, which discou aged he in ol ed ci ilians om u he coope a ion (see Fig. 3); (b) h ough pos - inancing, he impleme a ion o p ojec s was o en di icul , especially i he bene icia y was aci il o ganisa ion; (c) paymen s we e delayed om he summe o 2002 un il he beginning o 2004, so local pa icipan s could no ecei e back he money hey in es ed in he p ojec s, i hey s a ed a all; (d) ex-pos e alua ion o he Pilo LEADER p o- g amme is no a ailable; (e) p og amme manual necessa y o p ope conduc was no inalised in ime; o along ime i was no possible o know ex- ac ly how much money was a ailable, wha caused con inuos unce ain y; ( ) he change o go e n- men caused di icul y in he p og amme, and in he mean ime he SAPARD p og amme s a ed, which limi ed he sou ces; (g) he a e age 30‒35 million HUF subsidisa ion was no su icien o suppo majo imp o emen s (e.g.: c ea ing si ua- ion analysis and de elopmen s a egy, e i ing local p oduc s and helping hei ma ke access by building e ec i ely managing agen o ganisa ions ig. 3. Fac o s ha de e mine he e i o ial cohesion o he Ba a ian local ac ion g oups Explana ion: A– applica ion o poli ical p essu e; B – local iden i y; C – adminis a i e bounda ies; D – landscape bounda ies (geog aphy); E – economic cohe ence Sou ce: Own esea ch 1,81 A B C D E 2,36 2,45 2,64 3,09 94 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 95 and e ec i e communi y pa ne ships, e c.); (h) he p og amme was qui e acomplex ins i u ional sys- em, which made i signi ican ly mo e di icul o he bene icia ies o acqui e esou ces (see Fig. 5); (i) he di icul ies men ioned abo e discou aged he pa icipan s o he LEADER p og amme (eg.: BAZ Coun y Public Educa ional Ins i u ion le he p og amme: as s a ed in Riz Gabo ’s le e sen o he P og amme Di ec o , ‘Such beha iou o he Hunga ian S a e T easu y shows how domes ic ci il socie y can be disc edi ed and i s ha sh an i-social ac i i ies a e also essen ially illegal’. O  cou se, he p og amme di ec o was no blamed o he di icul ies and he Ins i u e hanked o he kind assis ance. Implemen a ion o he p og amme also ende ed angible esul s such as building a coope a ion ne wo k o 12 local wo king g oups which wo ked acco ding o he Eu opean model o local ac ion g oups wi h mo e o less success. Thelocal ac ion g oups could compile locally ini ia ed de elop- men plans and i hese de elopmen plans we e ca e ully designed i inc eased he chances o he egion o pa icipa e in he ollowing LEADER p o- g ammes (e.g. he ‘Ipolymen e heal hy sub- egion’ p og amme, he ‘Local alue’ p og amme o he ZalA-KAR local wo king g oup).The pe sis ence and quali y wo k o he local ac ion g oups led o he ollowing posi i e esul s: (a) de eloping local pa ne ship wi h 3 sec o s (ci il, public, p i a e); (b) he concep o subsidia i y acqui ed p ac ical alue; (c)despi e minimal esou ces some signi i- can de elopmen s we e ealised; (d) mos impo - an ly, he concep o local alue was g ounded (app ecia ion o sub- egional socio-economic sub- sys ems); (e) i is equi ed o local go e nmen s o de ine he join de elopmen oge he (mos small se lemen s do no ha e local de elopmen s a egy). 7. esul s o he pilo leaDe p og amme in he no h-hunga ian egion (hunga ian pilo p og amme leaDe ) TheNo h-Hunga ian Pilo LEADER p og amme made li le no iceable impac on he bene icia y a eas. Thepoo esul was due o h ee hings: dis- o ganisa ion o a ea selec ion and managemen ; he a ailabili y o sca ce esou ces and la e paymen s; and de elopmen s a egies wi h no eal added al- ue. Paymen s we e s ongly a ec ed by he change o go e nmen in 2002, and ex-pos e alua ion was no made o his egion. The popula ion o he selec ed ci ies in many cases did no mee he c i e ia se by he EU. Popula ion should ha e eached 100 km² pe capi a densi y ba ie , o o a leas 10,000 inhabi an s. The o e all low popula ion and he p e en ion o he con inua ion o he LEADER + essen ially ques ion he eal pu pose o he Pilo LEADER P og amme. O cou se, he domes ic p og amme had posi- i e esul s as well. Thedesigna ed a ea ha was selec ed was one o Hunga y’s mos disad an aged egions, in p inciple, money wen in o agood place. The Ménes–pa ak men i and he Belső-Cse há Local Ac ion G oup emphasised he impo ance o p epa a ion o LEADER+. These wo local ac- ion g oups had high-quali y egional iden i y and landscape de elopmen concep s and implemen ed p ojec s (Table 3). Un o una ely, anumbe o in es men s o he wo local ac ion g oups los hei meaning due o he p e en ion o he con inua ion o he p o- g amme because in many cases in es men s we e c ea ed in he LEADER+ pe iod wi h channelled addi ional unds. Examples include: he Ménes- pa ak men i Local Ac ion G oups’ a m model, he es ablishmen o egional in o ma ion cen e s, Roma c a smen incuba ion wo kshop, o he c ea- ion o In o ma ion and Communica ion Cen e by he Belső-Cse há Local Ac ion G oup. Acqui ing egional ma ke and c oss-bo de co-ope a ion is Fig. 5. Theins i u ions o LEADER Iin Hunga y Sou ce: P omei Founda ion, www. m.hu able 2. Wo king g oups o he Pilo LEADER p og amme, hei se lemen s and hei pa icipa ion in he LEADER+ p og amme a B c Belső-Cse há Local Ru al De elopmen Wo king G oup Buják no Cse há su ány no He encsény no Szanda no Te ény no Bükki Hegyhá Local Ru al De elopmen Wo king G oup Bo sodbó a no Csok aomány no Léná dda óc no Nekézseny no Sajóme cse no Sajónéme i no Sajó elezd no Sá a no Uppony no Se lemen s o he Ménes-pa ak men i Local Ru al De elopmen Wo king G oup End e al a no Ka ancsság no Ludányhalászi no Piliny no Szalma e cs no Szécsény el alu no Ózd-Pu nok Local Ru al De elopmen Wo king G oup A ló no Bán é e no Bo sodszen gyö gy no Ki áld no Pu nok no Se ény al a no Explana ion: A– name o he wo king g oup; B – se lemen s; C – pa icipa ion in he LEADER + p og am (yes/no) Sou ce o da a: www. m .hu DoA: 01/04/2010 96 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 Csaba Ruszkai, Tibo Ko ács / Bulle in o Geog aphy. Socio-economic Se ies 19 (2013): 87–97 97 essen ial o he de elopmen o he a m models and also o he Roma c a smen’s p ojec s because wi hou hem he e is no gua an ee o long- e m ope a ion. So he di ec ions we e good, he p ob- lems we e no due o na ional policy. Howe e , he Bükki-Hegyhá and Ózd-Pu nok Local Ac ion G oups c ea ed a numbe o in- es men s ha we e highly ques ionable du ing he ime o implemen a ion. The p ojec s we e agmen ed basic in as uc u e de elopmen s. TheÓzd-Pu nok local Ac ion G oup inse ed he LEADER managemen in o an exis ing ins i u ion o comple ely di e en use which aised se ious conce ns. Resul s o he Pilo LEADER p og amme did no se e he o ganic e olu ion o he selec ed illages and e en oday all Local Ac ion G oups belong o o he LEADER egions, so bo h in space and ime he e ec and e iciency o he Pilo LEADER p og amme missed he a ge s con ained in Communi y legisla ion. As a consequence, he Pilo LEADER P og amme did no ake in o accoun he ac ha selec ed a eas con inue o h i e in new unding cycles and success ully o e - come ad e se si ua ions a ising om acu e p ob- lems.Uncon olled bu eauc acy and unp edic able inancial pe o mance wo sened he o e all do- mes ic pic u e o he LEADER p og amme. 8. conclusion LEADER I P og amme o he Eu opean Communi y was amiles one in he ounda ion o anew app oach o egional de elopmen and in he ede ini ion o Eu ope’s u al a eas. Since Hunga y has only been a ull membe o he EU since 2004, he Pilo LEADER p og amme should no be con- side ed as a comple e communi y de elopmen in e en ion, e en i i is abou he ans e o he SAPARD p e-accession unds. Hunga y’s go e n- men no iced he LEADER u al de elopmen me hodology as a po en ial new app oach and ied o plan he app oach in he na ional egional de elopmen p ac ice be o e joining he EU bu un o una ely only wi h modes success. Themain eason is ha he p og amming some imes igno ed he Eu opean me hodology, and he exiguous sub- sidisa ion and i s many yea s o delay. O cou se, implemen a ion was no smoo h in he case o he old Membe S a es as well, and he di e ences in na ional s a is ical sampling o en beclouded he ac ual esul s. The unques ionable success o he p og amme is he plan ing o he local de elopmen s a egies a communi y and do- mes ic le el and he c ea ion o e i o ial dema - ca ion, which can be in eg a ed in la e LEADER p og ammes and u al mic o- egions. e e ences Bogumil, J. and Jann, W., 2005: Ve wal ung und Ve wal- ungswissenscha in Deu schland – (Public admini- s a ion and science o public adminis a ion in Ge - many – in Ge man). In: In oduc ion o he Science o Public Adminis a ion, Wiesbaden: Sp inge VS-Pub- lishe o Social Sciences, pp. 65‒132. Dubos , m., 2008: Ges al ung on Te i o ien (Fo ming o egions – in Ge man). In: Leade + Magazine, 2008/3, pp. 6‒22. Eu opean Commission, 1997: Ex-Pos E alua ion o he LEADER I Communi y Ini ia i e 1989‒1993, 1999, pp.3‒55. Eu opean Spa ial Planning Obse a ion Ne wo k, 2003: The e i o ial impac o CAP and u al de elopmen policy, Thi d In e im Repo Augus 2003, p. 190. azekas, ZS., and nemes, g., 2005: Kísé le i LEADER- jellegű p og am Magya o szágon. P omei Faluműhely Alapí ány (Expe imen al LEADER P og amme in Hunga y – in Hunga ian), AVOP LEADER+ készségek elsajá í ása, P omei Founda ion, pp. 342‒369. geiddendö e , m., 2005: E alua ion on P og ammen und Konzep en de ländlichen S uk u en wicklung da ges ell am Beispiel de EU-Gemeinscha sini ia i e LEADER (E alua ion o p og ams and concep s in he de elopmen o u al s uc u es in he case o LEADER p og amme – in Ge man), PhD Thesis, pp. 5‒68. ho á h, g., 2002: Regional policy and de elopmen in Eas -Cen al Eu ope. In: Domański, R. edi o , Ci ies and Regions in an Enla ging Eu opean Union, Wa sza- wa: Polish Academy o Sciences, Commi ee o Space Economy and Regional Planning, pp. 107‒127. hu e , a. and neidha d , ., 2005: S ad -Land: Ein Ve häl nis im Wandel, En wicklung & Ländliche Raum (Ci y and coun yside: de elopmen o mu ual ela ion– in Ge man), 2005/5, DLG-Publishe , pp.13‒15. Kozma, g., 2003: Az Eu ópai Unió egionális poli ikája (TheRegional Policy o he EU – in Hunga ian). In: Sze k Süli-Zaka I., a e üle - és elepülés ejlesz és alap- jai, Szeged: Campus Dialog, pp.181‒205. Leade Koo dinie ungs elle/AEIDL, 1994: Ve zeichnis de deu schen lokalen Ak ionsg uppen (Regis y o he lo- cal ac ion g oups in Ge many – in Ge man), p. 32. mada ász, i., 2000: Hogyan készí sünk idék ejlesz ési p og amo ? (How o c ea e u al de elopmen p o- g ams? – in Hunga ian), p. 194. ay, c., 1998: Te i o ies, S uc u es and In e p e a ion – Two case s udies o he Eu opean Union’s LEADER IP og amme. In: Jou nal o Ru al S udies, Vol. 14, No.1, pp.79‒87. uszkai, cS., 2006: Theco-ope a ion o u al a eas in he LEADER+ P og amme. In: Süli-Zaka , I. and Ho ga, I. edi o s, Regional De elopmen in he Romanian-Hun- ga ian C oss-bo de Space – om Na ional o Eu opean Pe spec i e, Deb ecen: Kossu h Egye emi Kiadó, pp.393‒396. uszkai, cS., 2009: A e üle iség izsgála a aLEADER ej- lesz ési módsze an ke e én belül (Building up egional s uc u es in he LEADER P og amme – in Hunga - ian). In: Ac a Iu en u is Geog aphica, Ins i u ium Socio-Geog aphie Uni e si a is Deb eceniensis, Sze k: Süli-Zaka I, pp. 159‒166. Shucksmi h, m., 2000: Endogenous de elopmen , so- cial capi al and social inclusion: pe spec i es om LEADER in he UK. In: Sociologia Ru alis, 40, Issue 2, pp.208–218. S öh , l. and Schenk, W., 1997: Die Umse zung des EU- Fö de p og amms LEADER (Implemen ing he Eu o- pean LEADER P og amme – in Ge man). In: Raum o - schung und Raumo dnung, 6, pp. 421‒431. h p://ec.eu opa.eu/ag icul u e/ u /leade 1/ (DoA: 2010.03.26) h p://lexikon. eene .de/K eis eie_S ad (DoA: 2011.01.02). h p://www.ada a.hu/_Kozossegi_Ada a /pa olaa .ns /0/3 9e3b00209 a1072c1256ec500283e86?OpenDocumen (DoA: 2010.10.10). h p://www.a olyamke eso.com/? cu ency=EUR&all=1&s a _da e=2009‒11- 11&end_da e=2010‒01‒10#g aph (DoA: 2011.01.03). h p://www. m.go .hu/main.php? olde ID=908&a icleI D=3859&c ag=a iclelis &iid=1 (DoA: 2010.10.10). able 3. Fea u es he Pilo LEADER a eas in he No h-Hunga ian Region name o lag (pilo p og am leaDe ) piedmon o Bükk moun ains ménes c eek in e nal cse há moun ains owns o Ózd and pu nok Popula ion (2001) 6,852 5,681 5,325 15,438 A ea inkm² 113.29 87.66 153.86 137.3 Densi y o popula ion 47 65 35 112 Numbe o se lemen s 9 6 5 6 O ganisa ion o m Associa ion Associa ion Deposi company Cul u al Ins i u e Subsidy (€) ~ 100,000 ~ 100,000 ~ 100,000 ~100,000 Flagship heme in he de elopmen s a egy Regene a ion o he Hunga ian ‘Semme ing Land Re o ma ion o he s yle o li ing in he Region o Ménes C eek Valuable li e in In e nal Cse há Moun ains Regional ac ions o de elop local communi y Commen s Realisa ion o small p ojec s o de elop local acili ies in ield o na u e and landscape alue TheLAG did a e y use ul and complex P og am. Thegoal was o inc ease alue o local ag icul u al p oduc s Acouple o ou ism p ojec s we e es ablished o imp o e you h ou ism in he egion. Popula ion numbe was low, al hough his a ea has alo o small se lemen s Realised p ojec s did no i he de elopmen s a egy o he egion. Densi y o popula ion was oo high o he ca ego y o a u al a ea Inno a ion alue low high high low Sou ce: h p://www. m.hu/main.php? olde ID=908&a icleID=3859&c ag=a iclelis &iid=1, h ps:// ei . a i.hu/ © 2013 Nicolaus Cope nicus Uni e si y P ess. All igh s ese ed.