PREPARE board member Urszula Budzich-Tabor participated in the Civil Dialogue Group for Rural Development meeting in Brussels (7th February, 2020)
The meeting focused on the following main themes:
– preparations for the EU legislative framework for the years 2021-2027, in particular the CAP reform and “transition rules” for rural development: taking into account that the preparations for the new CAP are delayed, the European Commission is proposing to put in place temporary legislation which will allow Member States running out of rural development funding 2014-2020 to use, for one year (2021), their new EAFRD allocation according to the “old” funding rules.
– the European Green Deal as a priority of the new European Commission, in particular the “Farm to Fork” strategy soon to be put in place, and the possibilities of using financial instruments to contribute to the Green Deal objectives.
– work on the long-term vision of rural areas: a reflection exercise on how different EU policies can address challenges facing rural areas (such as depopulation, basic services and connectivity, education, poverty and social exclusion), which the European Commission is shortly going to launch together with civil society actors as well as national, regional and local authorities.
There was also discussion about the future of the CDG in the next programming period, especially its relationship with governance bodies of the rural networks at EU level
Long term vision of rural areas
Rural areas seem to be a priority for the current Commission, they are explicitly mentioned by the President in her political guidelines and in the nomination letter to the AGRI Commissioner. They are affected by many policies, and the CAP cannot respond to all challenges (demographic and others) – a more joint approach is needed. Therefore Commissioner Wojciechowski has the task to develop – in consultation with rural inhabitants, local and national authorities etc. – a long-term vision shared by all MS and rural people; the whole process is to be coordinated by Commissioner Šuica, EC Vice President for Democracy and Demography.
For more detailed information, refer to Urszula Budzich-Tabor: ula@preparenetwork.org