OREANDA-NEWS. October 06, 2010. Within the scope of carrying out the sixth agroindustrial exhibition Karelia Agro Expo 2010 the Ministry of Agriculture, Fish and Hunting Industry has held a seminar on the subject of The Role of International Cooperation in Development of Rural Regions to discuss new programs of cross-border cooperation and the results obtained.

Among the guests of the seminar there were Nina Helstrem, chief expert of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland, Tarmo Salo, executive director of the association of frontier territories of Finland, Eero Uusitalo, professor, secretary general of the Finnish interministerial committee for politics in the countryside, as well as a number of responsible executives and experts from Finland, Moscow, St.-Petersburg.

International guests have shared experience and methods of the Leader program successfully implemented in the European Union and in Finland and aimed at development of rural territories. Also there has been presented successful performance of the program by the example of a particular settlement which population is about 3,000 people. For six years of the program execution there have been registered 27 new enterprises and 76 workplaces were created.

Director of Karelagro agricultural consumer credit cooperative society Tatyana Gotsalyuk has told about development of rural cooperation in Karelia, including due to cooperation with the Leader program.

Representatives of public organizations who came to the seminar have shown great interest in practical aspects of the program performance.

The parties have agreed about the further cooperation.