Because of globalisation and decentralisation, economic development has shifted from large-scale national plans to territorial bound local plans known as Local Economic Development (LED). LED allows localities to plan and implement their economic development through a representative and participative forum that can build on existing economic advantages of its locality. The local government plays an important role in facilitating the development of the economy and creating ecosystems for entrepreneurship through priority setting in policy making, convening all stakeholders and alignment with the higher tiers of government.
Local Economic Development (LED) requires an integrated approach where the public and private sector are aligned on priorities and where local governments have a certain level of decentralisation.
This coursel discusses the challenges of development, LED as a concept in itself, LED as an integrated approach, the role of national and local government, the role of the private sector and other economic stakeholders and the materialisation of a LED strategy. After having set these fundamental and contextual elements, the course assess multiple LED strategies such as entrepreneurship development, value chain development, matching educational curricula with needs of the labour market, assisting vulnerable groups to work and public-private partnerships. The course includes study visits that are aimed at lessons learned on the role of different stakeholders with the LED process. Furthermore, the course embeds exchange moments between the international participants to stimulate peer-learning.
Engaging with colleagues from different countries, contexts, and backgrounds offers valuable learning opportunities. It is an addition to what you gain from the training itself. The expert facilitators and field visits were also amazing; it was really helpful to see the theory in its practical application.
This course is aimed at professionals involved in local economic development processes. Participants come from national, regional and local government, NGOs and donor and development organisations.
After this course, you will receive a professional certificate of completion from The Hague Academy for Local Governance.
*Professionals working in local government or for local NGOs on the DAC list of ODA-recipient countries (OECD) may qualify for a reduced course fee. Contact us for details.
This course helps participants:
Experts who are involved in this course:
The course includes visits to a municipality where civil servants will explain the LED-strategy and implementation. Participants will also visit a ‘triple helix’ institute where public, private sector work with research and development institutes, a vocational training school and the private sector. Furthermore, participants will work on different case studies from the work-practice of participants to apply the LED process to a locality and facilitate peer-to-peer exchanges. The training includes daily presentation by participants to further reflect and share lessons learned from their specific context.
Find the practical information for the course here.
After submitting your completed application, you will receive a confirmation of receipt. Once we have assessed your application and admitted you to the course, we will send you an invoice with payment details.
Payments can be made by bank transfer or by PayPal request. We offer the option of paying in one or two instalments. An advance payment of 50% secures the reservation of a seat at the training until the payment deadline. Your participation in the course is guaranteed only after receipt of full payment.
Please note that The Hague Academy accepts registrations on a first-paid, first-served policy.
Some countries require a visa to enter the Netherlands. Please check with The Netherlands or the embassy for the visa requirements related to your country. Because of the length of time needed for the visa procedure, we advise you to start this process as soon as possible. Once we have received your payment for the course, The Hague Academy will send you an acceptance letter which will assist you in arranging your visa to The Netherlands.
Under certain circumstances, participants may need to cancel their participation in the course. For cancellations before the payment deadline, we will reimburse the paid amounts minus an administration fee of €350.
To prevent late cancellation, we strongly encourage you to start with your visa application procedure at least six weeks before the start of the training programme.
We will charge a cancellation fee of 50% of the course fee for participants cancelling between four and two weeks prior to the start of the training. If you cancel your participation within the two-week period before the start of the course, then you have to pay 80% of the course fee.
No-show will result in paying 100% of the course fee.
It is always possible to nominate a suitably qualified candidate to replace you without extra charge, in the event that you cannot attend the course.
The Hague Academy for Local Governance reserves the right to cancel a course if the number of participants is insufficient or due to any other unforeseen circumstances. In this case, your payment will be 100% reimbursed. Other costs such as transportation or hotel cannot be reimbursed.
The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs offers the Middle East and Northern Africa Scholarship Programme (MSP) that aims to enhance the skills and abilities of professionals in the public service, empowering them to strengthen democracy in their country. If you are a civil servant from one of the following countries, please proceed to the Scholarships page and follow the instructions to apply.
The countries that are currently eligible to receive the MSP scholarship are: Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman and Tunisia.
For more detailed information and eligibility criteria, please visit our Scholarships page. Note that scholarships have a separate application process.
Explore our latest news, stories and publications!
At the Hague Academy, we specialise in developing training programmes that fit your specific needs. Contact us if you are interested in a customised training!
