What is leader?

FILM ABOUT LEADER

We are Leader Sweden!

Non-profit engagement is about people coming together around an idea and working together to achieve something they think is important. When this happens, the conditions for sustainable and attractive areas are created. But even if the cooperation and the will to develop are there, the money may not always be there. Then Leader can be an opportunity.

Local development through Leader

The development of your place
In the Leader method, local anchoring, initiative, and engagement are at the center. The idea is that the development of your place is carried out most effectively by those of you who live and work there. You are the ones who know what needs and challenges need to be addressed.

Voluntary engagement is the foundation
Non-profit engagement is about people coming together around an idea and working together to achieve something they think is important. When this happens, the conditions for sustainable and attractive areas are created. But even if the cooperation and the will to develop are there, the money may not always be there. Then Leader can be an opportunity.

A method for rural development
Leader is a method for rural development that was introduced by the EU in 1991. In the method, local anchoring, initiative, and engagement are at the center. The idea is that the development of your place is carried out most effectively by those of you who live and work there – by you, your association, local businesses, and other organizations. You are the ones who know what needs and challenges need to be addressed.

40 areas in Sweden
To ensure a local focus, the Leader method is driven in geographically defined areas, so-called leader areas. There are 40 leader areas in Sweden, and if you count them across the entire EU, there are over 3,500. All leader areas are independent associations, and you can easily search for your area at leadersverige.se.

To form a leader area, local actors from the non-profit, private, and public sectors must come together and develop a development strategy. This should be based on the needs and conditions of the specific area. The strategy describes, for example, what needs to be done to increase employment, attract more new businesses, and make the area attractive and competitive.

The local development strategy
The local development strategy forms the basis for the leader area's budget, a budget that is decided by the Swedish Board of Agriculture. From the leader area, residents and those active in the area can apply for funds to run projects. Projects that are granted support should contribute to achieving the goals in the development strategy. Each leader project can thus be seen as a piece of a puzzle that, together with all other projects, contributes to fulfilling the area's goals and vision.

EU funding makes a difference
Leader support distributed to various projects comes from the EU (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development), the Swedish state, municipalities, and sometimes regions. During the period 2023–2027, there is a total of approximately 1.7 billion kronor to strengthen the competitiveness and development of Sweden's rural areas through Leader.

Local strategy
In our country, the conditions of our rural areas look very different. All leader areas therefore have their own, unique strategy that is locally anchored and developed based on actual needs and challenges.

Bottom-up perspective
All work based on the leader method starts from you who live and operate in the area. We know that it is you who see the challenges and have the solutions.

LAG (board)
The leader association is a so-called local action group (LAG). The association's board is tasked with leading the development based on the local development strategy. The board is composed of individuals with broad expertise and local anchoring. Together, they represent all three sectors – non-profit, private, and public.

HOW DO WE MOVE FORWARD?

How does one apply for project support?

A project is a process with four different steps. To begin with, there must be a development idea, something that can be refined and summarized into a concrete project, and a formal project application must be written. After that, the project, if approved, should be implemented according to the conditions and regulations that exist. Finally, the project should be concluded and reported.