Twenty years after the first Cork Declaration (an initiative of Commissioner Franz Fischler) was adopted in 1996, a new version of the declaration on EU rural development policy was unveiled on Tuesday 6 September for the 333 participants at the conference in the same city of Cork.
“A Better Life in Rural Areas” is the title of the Cork Declaration 2.0 on rural development. Over the period from 2014 to 2020, rural development schemes will provide a total of €161 billion of public funding, including €99.6 billion from European funds. The 1996 declaration contained a ten-point programme (including rural preference, an integrated approach, diversification and simplification).
The new declaration also contains ten points: - promotion of rural prosperity (including integration of migrants, strengthening rural identity, an integrated approach and diversification); - strengthening the rural value chain (green economy, quality of products, demand for healthy food, collective initiatives, transparent contractual relationships and risk management tools); - investment for the viability and vitality of rural areas (public and private services, infrastructure, avoidance of the digital divide, importance of connectivity, better links between rural and urban areas, well paid jobs to encourage young people to remain in rural areas); - preservation of the rural environment (soil management, preserving public goods and the natural and cultural heritage, ecotourism, promoting food productions); - management of natural resources (water, soil, biodiversity, innovative solutions for producing more while using fewer resources); - climate action (implementing mitigation and adaptation strategies, carbon storage, proper management of nutrients, biomaterials, circular economy); - knowledge and innovation (including skills and networking); - rural governance; - simplification; - performance.
In terms of innovation, those on the panel noted that greater consistency was required in investment so that all regions benefit. In this group, criticism was levelled at the direct payments system, which was felt not to provide any incentive to farmers to innovate. In addition, the bio-economy was seen as source of new employment opportunities.
Participants hailed the general consensus around the new agenda for the development of rural areas.
During Monday’s debates, Czeslaw Adam Siekierski (EPP, Poland), who chairs the European Parliament’s agriculture committee, highlighted the problems caused by the rural exodus and argued that bridges had to be built between urban and rural areas. He acknowledged that living standards had improved in the countryside but stressed the importance of increasing the availability of information technology in rural areas. He also stressed that unfair trade practices had to be combatted.
European Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan said that ways had to be found to reduce the complexity of rural development policy rules.
Gabriela Matecna, Slovak Agriculture Minister and President in office of the Council, stated that the balance between public and private financing had to be improved and suggested that increased use should be made of the financial instruments and that more should be done to simplify common agricultural policy (CAP) rules. More generally, she suggested that the CAP should provide a model for new European policies. The informal meeting of agriculture ministers in Bratislava from 11 to 13 September will focus on how to strengthen the position of farmers in the food supply chain. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)