New technologies to make mountainous regions less remote
Creating new opportunities in Europe's mountainous regions was the theme of a conference entitled 'EU policies and the mountain areas', held in Brussels on 17 October. The conference is part of the EU's involvement in activities for the '2002 international year of the mountains', and nearly 400 delegates from Member States, candidate countries and European institutions were present. Opening the event, Commission President Romano Prodi said: 'Europe's mountain areas contribute much to its natural and cultural heritage. But they often face handicaps such as remoteness and lack of economic opportunity. This conference seeks to explain how the European Union, working with the partners in the mountain regions, can help to create the conditions for sustainable development.' For Erkki Liikanen, Commissioner for Enterprise and the Information Society, information and communication technologies are the key to creating new opportunities in these remote areas. 'The new technologies have the potential to overcome many of the negative effects of isolation and inaccessibility in mountain areas: they represent the future,' he said. Around one third of EU territory is mountainous, with over 50 per cent of the land in Spain, Italy, Portugal, Greece and Austria falling into the category. The mountain regions of Europe are well represented within EU institutions. The Economic and Social Committee has created a body that will analyse the future of mountain areas, and some Members of the European Parliament have formed a 'friends of the mountains group', headed by Luciano Caveri.