ILS LEDA - International Links and Services for Local Economic Development Agencies

ILS LEDA is a non-profit association legally constituted in 2015, coordinating an international network of 61 Local Economic Development Agencies (LEDAs) spread across 17 countries in the world. ILS LEDA began its activities in 1998 as part of international development programmes managed by UNOPS and UNDP. Since 1990, our staff has been working in 26 countries and 72 local territories around the world through several programmes funded by the EU, the UN, the Italian Cooperation, the private sector, and others. ILS LEDA supports local, national and international organizations in improving territorial economies - with the aim of achieving just and inclusive sustainable human development - by: • Strengthening participatory governance; • Facilitating bottom-up socio-economic development strategies and plans; • Setting up innovative and sustainable instruments to implement these strategies and plans, such as Local Economic Development Agencies; • Accompanying the elaboration of territorial marketing strategies; • Building capacities and professional abilities for the management of territorial economic development processes. The LEDAs are structures whose members are public, private, social and community organizations of a given territory. They are self-sufficient, non-profit entities capable of providing comprehensive services for competitive, sustainable and human development for disadvantaged communities, local businesses, public administrations, NGOs and other local entities. Our mission is to spread awareness about the importance of local development as an instrument to make the world more liveable, with more welfare and social justice, by way of inspiring and supporting communities on the ground in finding best solutions adapted to their socio-economic and cultural contexts.