ORU will place emphasis on rural development at the LED Forum in Bolivia
The regional meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean will be held from the 27th to the 30th June as preparatory for the 4th World Forum on Local Economic Development in Cape-Vert
As co-organiser of the 2nd Regional Forum on Local Economic Development for Latin America and the Caribbean, which will be held in Tiquipaya (Cochabamba, Bolivia) from the 27th to the 30th June 2017, ORU Fogar will work on the topic “Urban-rural links and intermediate cities in a framework of interdependence and territorial cohesion” within the thematic block “Urban development, metropolitan regions in the dynamics of development and territorial cohesion”. It will take place on the 29th June in a series of sessions and workshops.
To prepare its participation in this space, ORU has disseminated the concept note untitled "Integrated rural development as means for regional competitiveness and with territorial equality". The text highlights the need –and the responsibility– for regional governments to “heal the rift between the rural and the urban world, and to pay attention to the continuum between these two spheres affecting their population –dense to a different extent– and their economic base –agricultural to a different extent–.” It is essential to fight against the rural exodus towards cities, which, on the one hand, undercapitalises the territory, weakens the traditional cultures and generates uprooted inhabitants, while on the other hand, it generates overcrowded and collapsed cities.
The fight against rural exodus requires investing in the territory, but also a reappraisal of the rural and agricultural world and its modernisation. Regional governments must ensure that the infrastructures and equipment provide structure to the whole territory, creating balance between cities and the villages and rural world, compensating the differences and distributing adequately opportunities and assets. ORU Fogar will deal with this issue in Cochabamba, but also at the 4th World Forum on Local Economic Development in Cape-Vert (Praia, 17-20 October 2017), as well as the topic "Local Development in Post-conflict territories" together with Colombia’s National Federation of Departments (FND).
LED Forum’s trajectory
Both events are part of a continuous process initiated in 2011 –with the I LED Forum held in Sevilla, Spain– which promotes a global dialogue and a critical reflection on how to reconsider productive development, in line with the 2030 Agenda. For Latin America and the Caribbean, this 2nd Regional Forum will provide an opportunity to discuss about governance and the role of subnational governments in the Local Economic Development processes, as well as to develop a common position that will be submitted in Cape-Vert.
