Project partners

Oldambt Westerwolde - The Netherlands

Groningen is a province in the north of the Netherlands. To the North it is bordering the Waddenzee and in the East it borders Germany. The area situated directly on the German border is a LEADER-area; LEADER Oldambt Westerwolde. It covers nine municipalities: Bellingwedde, Menterwolde, Pekela, Reiderland, Scheemda. Stadskanaal, Veendam, Vlagtwedde en Winschoten. Together they have a total of 154,511 inhabitants. Oldambt-Westerwolde is a predominantly rural area, where most of the people were engaged in one of the typical rural activities. After a far-reaching social and economic turnaround in the 1960s, the region is still reorienting itself on its future, especially after more recent closures of companies in the agriculture orientated industries and changes in European development programs.
The region has many different faces. On cycling distance you can find a closed, woody landscape, an open polder landscape that runs on to the coast and a landscape with straight canals. All areas have their own cultural traditions, history and characteristics.
LEADER Oldambt-Westerwolde is one of the 28 LEADER-areas in the Netherlands. It aims at sustainable development and the stimulation of tourism in the countryside. LEADER’s five most important objectives are: (1) reinforcing social vitality, (2) development of and care for the natural environment, (3) stimulating regional economy, (4) introducing ICT in rural areas and (5) strengthening cooperation.
Examples of LEADER-projects in the Oldambt-Westerwolde-area are:
- Dag van de Regio: an one-day event were the region is showing off with all the attractions it has in the field of culture, sports, food, nature, etcetera;
- Keurmerk Westerwolde: an inspecting mark for regional products from Westerwolde;
- Het Blauwe Lint: Touristic entrepreneurs in the Blauwe Stad-area have united themselves in a co operational and promotional bond;
- Routeontwikkeling Oost-Groningen: the development of new and the improvement of existing tourist routes.
In sponsoring and promoting these projects LEADER Oldambt - Westerwolde plays an active role in regional development.