FAO brings countries together in Estonia to explore the LEADER approach for sustainable agrifood systems’ transformation

Representatives from across Europe gathered in Tartu, Estonia, on 3–4 June 2026 for a technical workshop on the European Union’s LEADER approach and its contributions to the sustainable transformation of agrifood systems.

The event was organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the Tartu County Development Association, a local action group.

The workshop provided space for discussing the challenges and opportunities of the approach. Participants learned from the experiences of European Union countries in implementing LEADER under the Common Agricultural Policy and of non-European Union countries in introducing LEADER nationally.

Estonia was selected as the host country for its recognized expertise in implementing the LEADER programme. Since joining the European Union in 2004, the country has developed one of Europe’s most efficient LEADER delivery systems, characterized by strong local action groups and simplified administrative procedures that enable efficient and transparent project implementation.

Dialogue meets practice in advancing LEADER

In Europe and Central Asia, FAO has supported local rural development initiatives and projects for almost two decades, applying its integrated community development approach based on territorial approaches to development. During recent years, as part of the European Union’s neighbourhood or pre-accession programmes, the LEADER approach to local rural development gained prominence in other parts of the region. LEADER is already a national support measure in the Republic of Moldova and is supported in Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Türkiye under the European Union Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance for Rural Development III (IPARD III). It has also been piloted in Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Kosovo¹ and Ukraine.

Participants from Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, the Republic of Moldova, Serbia, Türkiye and Ukraine – discussed how integrated local actions under the LEADER approach can address persistent challenges facing the region’s rural areas, such as youth migration and limited economic diversification.

Another focus of the workshop was connecting food systems transformation with local development efforts. The aim was to create awareness among participants on transformation towards more sustainable agrifood systems and showcase examples of how development initiatives, including those implemented through LEADER funding, can facilitate transformation locally.

“Neither local rural development nor food systems operate in isolation,” said Viktorya Ayvazyan, FAO Rural Development Specialist, one of the organizers of this event. “Both are highly intertwined with various sectors, and only through systems thinking, cross-sectoral and multi-stakeholder collaboration is it possible to achieve sustainability of both.”

During the workshop, Ayvazyan said, FAO tried to demonstrate that the development of local rural communities and the transformation of local agrifood systems can be tackled together and with greater efficiency.

“In fact,” Ayvazyan said, “there are already many good examples where LEADER or other territorial approaches have contributed to the sustainable transformation of local agrifood systems.”

Such examples were presented during a field visit to projects that received funding by Tartu local action group. The field visit showcased how coordinated actions and local initiatives supported by small-scale investments can, in practice, contribute to the transformation of rural areas, bringing meaningful change to local communities.

Paving the way to European Union accession

At the request of Members, FAO is currently supporting the introduction and operationalization of the LEADER approach in Albania and Montenegro. For European Union candidate and potential candidate countries, technical assistance is vital for aligning national priorities with European Union requirements and helping ministries institutionalize the approach. This structural preparation unlocks critical access to European Union pre-accession funding while simultaneously building the participatory capacities of rural populations and national actors.

As part of these efforts, from 1 to 4 June, FAO organized a study tour for representatives from Albania, Georgia and Montenegro, which complemented what they had learnt from the workshop. During the study tour, participants from these countries also met with representatives of Estonia’s Ministry of Regional Affairs and Agriculture and of the Agricultural Registers and Information Board to study how the programme is organized, delivered, and monitored at the national level.

¹References to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of Security Council resolution 1244 (1999).