Marek Furmankiewicz

TERRITORIAL GOVERNANCE, NETWORKS AND POWER: CROSS-SECTORAL PARTNERSHIPS IN RURAL POLAND

Abstract Research on the operation of territorial governance and rural development programmes is dominated by qualitative methodologies, paying little attention heretofore to the characteristics and structures of new horizontal and vertical relationship formations that are the explicit objective of the governance and rural development model. Seeking to address this deficit in the literature, this article adds to a small number of existing contributions that use social network analysis (SNA) to examine the role of inter‐organizational networks in shaping geographic functional regions in the context of governance. Rooted in the methodological perspective of SNA, the analysis focuses on relations between local actors participating in three area‐based rural partnerships in Poland, which are conceptualized as territorially embedded institutional network clusters. The structure of inter‐sectoral relations, understood as interactions (competition, conflict, coordination, cooperation, and control) and flows (information, financial, human, or tangible resources), between the institutional partners of these partnerships is examined. Analysing in detail attributes of network relations, the article identifies structural characteristics of the area‐based partnerships, such as manifestations of how diverse local resources are engaged and how dominance by traditional powerful stakeholders can be overcome by network structures. Structural dynamics and transformations that represent expressions and manifestations of how territorially embedded governance networks are expected to operate are important areas of inquiry in political geography. In this context, the particular empirical and theoretical capacity of SNA is illuminated in this article as part of a broader presentation of primary field data on how network governance and rural development is taking shape in Central and Eastern Europe.

Rural Governance in the New EU Member States: The Experience of the Polish LEADER+ Pilot Programme (2004–2008)

The chapter examines the main features of local cross-sectoral partnerships in rural Poland and compares them with experiences in England, UK. These forms of local cooperation are considered a new form of rural governance, especially in post-socialist countries. Due to a European Union requirement regarding the operation of ‘LEADER-type’ programmes, partnership structures in Poland developed rapidly between 2004 and 2008. Approximately 210 partnerships existed in Poland in 2008. Most of them were created after 2004, within the framework of the LEADER+ Pilot Programme. Projects were focused on improving the quality of life and the development of natural and cultural resources. Local governments and local voluntary organisations were the most active partners. The main targets of activity were tourist promotion and infrastructure development, the restructuring of rural areas and local product promotion. Partnership projects were similar in Poland and the UK. However, the social, economic and institutional bases in the two countries are completely different. The challenges faced by the Polish partnerships (and not by those in England) were relatively low level of engagement by the business and third sectors, attempts by local governments to dominate partnerships, and additional rules and constraints, many due to central government controls, which were not applied to programmes in old EU member states.