A €180 million allocation to the LEADER programme for the 2023-2027 period has been welcomed by Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys.
This was one of a host of new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funding allocations announced earlier today by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, for various agricultural schemes agreed as part of the new CAP Strategic Plan (CSP).
Such allocations will form the basis of public consultation ahead of the formal submission of the CSP to the European Commission next year.
Today’s LEADER funding allocation is in addition to €70 million previously secured for the rural development programme.
Commenting on the allocation, Minister Humphreys said:
“The overall funding of €250 million means LEADER will continue to deliver for rural communities, as it has done so for over three decades.”
Over the past year, a number of stakeholder engagements have taken place on the design of the next LEADER programme and the new CSP as a whole, she said.
She explained that this “indicative allocation” announced today will now form part of the next stage of the stakeholder consultation that will commence shortly.
LEADER – a bottom-up approach
“Since its inception, the LEADER programme, through its ‘bottom-up’ approach, has supported the delivery of locally led projects the length and breadth of the country,” said Minister Humphreys.
She added:
“The indicative funding allocation announced today will ensure that communities will continue to have the financial support to meet the new and emerging challenges across rural areas.”
Combined with the €70 million already secured for the LEADER Transition Programme, the total funding (to 2027) is €250 million.