The Smart Village Network Services is member of the Rural Pact Coordination Group (RPCG) that was established as a Commission special group steering the Rural Pact process. Edina Ocsko (President of the Smart Village Network Services) is Vice-Chair of the RPCG. As such, we've been actively involved various policy initiatives of the group, such as designing the RPCG Declaration on the future of EU rural development policy.

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The Smart Village Network Services' Position on the post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF)

 

The Smart Village Network Services has issued its own Position Paper on the future rural development policy and how it should be shaped to better address the needs of small rural communities. Among others, we are proposing better integration of the smart rural communities (smart villages) concept in the new regulation through a dedicated article in the MFF Regulation and within the European Competitiveness Fund.

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Contribution to strategic policy debates

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• At Rural Pact Conference (14-15 Sept) in Belgium —"From Vision to Action: Empowering Rural Areas for the Future" Edina Ocsko emphasised as member of a key policy panel that small rural communities can achieve big things even with small funding. Yet, small communities  are often at the "end of the queue" when it comes to funding. Therefore, the future policy framework need to reassure that funding is earmarked for community-led initiatives and there is focus on local capacity-building to ensure an effective uptake of funds and support.​

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• As Keynote listener at the Rural Pact Policy Lab (5 November) that discussed the recent European Commission proposals for the 2028-2034 EU budget and policies, Edina has brought together the key messages from the event, highlighting that while a flexible and agile framework enabling integrated support is welcome by rural stakeholders, there are serious concerns that without ring-fencing of funding, rural areas will not be sufficiently supported. To be more effective, we need to form alliances (inc. farmers with other rural citizens, rural development and cohesion policy stakeholders, etc.), be specific on what we want (e.g. concrete proposals for legislative amendments), and act at all levels (European, national, regional) to influence policy directions.​

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• Leading the session on how the the RPCG Declaration could be better integrated into the new policy framework during the RPCG meeting of 6 November, the Vice-Chair highlighted the key provisions of the Declaration that are not sufficiently taken into account in the new draft regulatory framework, in particular the 30% ring-fancing of funds for rural development beyond agriculture and stronger support to placed-based approaches (LEADER and Smart Villages) in line with the specific proposals of ELARD and the Smart Village Network Services.

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