3 / 40
Cross-border
economic
development
3
An observation …
The potential for economic development
is little exploited
In 2014-2015, the Mission Opérationnelle Transfrontalière
(MOT) conducted a study on economic development in
cross-border territories, focusing mainly on the borders
that France shares with its neighbours.
The MOT’s point of departure was the observation
that the potential for economic development in cross-
border territories is not sufficiently exploited. In addition,
notwithstanding the free movement of capital, goods,
services and people within the European Union,
European governments adjust their tax and economic
development policies without necessarily coordinating
with each other. As a result, border territories are on
the frontline of any ensuing discrepancies or synergies.
Further, the question of cross-border employment
is crucial for France, where 40% of European Union
cross-border workers, i.e. around 380,000 workers in
2013, reside.
A practical guide…
… to Building partnerships
… to promoting projects
The MOT has drafted this practical guide based on
extensive research. The first part focuses on the
partnerships to promote economic development and
the second part on the development of cross-border
economic projects.
1. Building partnerships
The first part examines the issues from the perspective
of institutions and of territorial economic development
strategy. Its purpose is to provide methodological,
perceptive and analytical tools to help public and semi-
public-sector players to better structure their cooperation
initiatives for cross-border economic development.
2. Promoting projects
The second part to promoting projects allows helping
intermediate structures to better support developers of
economic development projects with a cross-border
dimension.
The guide also aims at:
– fostering and strengthening dialogue and
partnerships between cooperation practitioners in
cross-border territories.
– building on best practices for public action and for
supporting project stakeholders in cross-border
economic development
Cross-border economic development has many
facets: corporate partnerships, exports or provision of
services on the other side of the border, bi-location,
subcontracting relationships, inter-clustering, etc.
Unlike economic development at the international
Introduction
Introduction