Building More Resilient Cross-border Regions

Supporting the development of cross-border regions is a growing priority for many governments across the OECD. This reflects the fact that these regions often face significant development challenges related to their proximity to national borders, which can constrain regional economic development, impede the delivery of cross-border services and hamper the co-ordination of cross-border disaster management. This report assesses how multi-level governance arrangements can support resilient cross-border development. It starts by examining why the development of cross-border regions in the EU often lags behind non-border regions, and the multi-level governance mechanisms in place to bolster their performance. Using the five pilot regions as a basis, it then examines cross-border governance arrangements through the lens of the OECD Cross-border Governance Framework. Finally, this report includes considerations for subnational, national and international policy makers in the OECD and beyond on how they can strengthen cross-border governance frameworks, and enhance the resilience and socio-economic development of cross-border areas.