Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilShow full title

Article 54 National rural network

1. Each Member State shall establish a national rural network, which groups the organisations and administrations involved in rural development. The partnership referred to in Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 shall also be part of the national rural network.

Member States with regional programmes may submit for approval a specific programme for the establishment and the operation of their national rural network.

2. Networking by the national rural network shall aim to:

(a) increase the involvement of stakeholders in the implementation of rural development;

(b) improve the quality of implementation of rural development programmes;

(c) inform the broader public and potential beneficiaries on rural development policy and funding opportunities;

(d) foster innovation in agriculture, food production, forestry and rural areas.

3. EAFRD support under Article 51(3) shall be used:

(a) for the structures needed to run the network;

(b) for the preparation and implementation of an action plan covering at least the following:

(i)

activities regarding the collection of examples of projects covering all priorities of the rural development programmes;

(ii)

activities regarding the facilitation of thematic and analytical exchanges between rural development stakeholders, sharing and dissemination of findings;

(iii)

activities regarding the provision of training and networking for local action groups and in particular technical assistance for inter-territorial and transnational co-operation, facilitation of co-operation among local action groups and the search of partners for the measure referred to in Article 35;

(iv)

activities regarding the provision of networking for advisors and innovation support services;

(v)

activities regarding the sharing and dissemination of monitoring and evaluation findings;

(vi)

a communication plan including publicity and information concerning the rural development programme in agreement with the Managing Authorities and information and communication activities aimed at a broader public;

(vii)

activities regarding the participation in and contribution to the European network for rural development.

4. The Commission shall adopt implementing acts, laying down rules for the establishment and operation of national rural networks and the content of the specific programmes referred to in paragraph 1. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 84.