Strengthening community-led local development in border regions

Border regions play a central role in Europe’s economy and society. They cover around 40% of EU territory, are home to nearly 30% of the population, and generate about 30% of EU GDP. Yet, many border regions continue to underperform compared to non-border regions. In 2021, GDP per capita in EU border regions was only 86% of the EU average, and in 2023, unemployment rates were around 6% higher than in the EU’s non-border regions. This highlights that the full development potential of border regions has yet to be realised.

Structural barriers to cross-border co-operation hold back the performance of these regions: differences in laws, administrative systems and languages can increase costs for businesses and limit labour mobility. These barriers can lead to lower investment, fragmented public services and weaker responses to shared challenges, including emergencies.

Community-led local development (CLLD) offers a practical, place-based approach to address these challenges. By drawing on local knowledge and engaging citizens, CLLD helps translate shared priorities into concrete projects. While widely used within EU Member States, its potential in cross-border contexts remains largely untapped. Expanding the use of CLLD across borders offers an opportunity to support more inclusive and effective development in Europe's border regions.

The IMPACT (Interreg Mechanism for Promoting Active Communities and Territories) project is funded and supported by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) and carried out by the OECD.

IMPACT brings together up to 30 pilot cross-border regions from Europe and neighbouring countries to boost their territorial performance and resident well-being through stronger community led development.

Community participation is at the heart of IMPACT. Building opportunities and capacity for public, private and civil-society actors to engage in cross-border development can lead to more tangible and locally grounded results in addressing cross-border challenges and making effective use of EU funds. Applying community-led local development techniques enables participants to design and implement “bottom-up” cross border initiatives, build social capital, and foster sustainable development.

Pilot regions receive tailored analytical, strategic and practical support from OECD experts and participate in peer-learning and exchange activities. Through the project, they will develop a practical and implementable CLLD strategy, as well as identify funding opportunities to bring it to life.

IMPACT is a two-year pilot project (2026-2027) launched by DG REGIO in co-operation with the OECD. It builds on recent OECD work on cross-border governance, including the “Building More Resilient Cross-border Regions” project.

For more information about the project and our upcoming events, please contact:

• stephan.visser@oecd.org 
• alexis.durand@oecd.org

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