News | 24 Jul 2024
A Dutch Rural Pact network comes to life!
- Rural Pact
- Rural Revitalisation Platform
- Stronger Rural Areas
- Resilient rural areas
- Connected rural areas
- Prosperous rural areas
The new Rural Pact network in the Netherlands was launched with a first meeting on 4 June 2024, bringing together rural development stakeholders including: civil servants from various ministries, provinces and municipalities; academics; and national and local NGOs.

Image by Gagliardi Photography on Canva
This first network meeting mapped out its added value, potential functions and activities, such as:
- Produce a comprehensive vision for rural development in all its aspects, filling existing gaps in ongoing policy discussions and supporting the development of a wide-ranging rural policy;
- Identify and exchange good practices from the Netherlands and abroad;
- Highlight promising initiatives at various policy levels;
- Overview relevant rural research to support the implementation of rural proofing;
- Link up with existing networks and fora, such as the Rural Parliament.
The Dutch network promoters, assisted by the Rural Pact Support Office, first identified the Dutch members of the European Rural Pact, and reached out to them to assess their interest in the activity. On this basis, Rural Pact enthusiasts in the Netherlands got together and will continue exchanging in subsequent meetings.