ABSTRACT
Since 1985, the Community has been increasingly concerned to tackle EC-wide problems in a coherent way. The concept of Community programmes, looking for common solutions to common problems, remains important in current Commission thinking. The first two Community programmes deal with improving telecommunication services (STAR) and exploiting indigenous energy potential (VALOREN). Besides pioneering this new Community-wide approach, the two programmes also illustrate another feature of current EC policy-the importance attached to the contribution of SMEs to less-favoured areas. This is equally true in respect of the two most recent programmes dealing with the declining steel sector (RESIDER) and the conversion of shipbuilding areas (RENAVAL). SMEs are regarded as a dynamic force in regenerating declining areas and forming the basis of growth and development in the less-favoured parts of the Community. In 1988, the Commission completed preparatory studies for Community programmes involving regional measures in respect of research and technological development (STRIDE) and environmental policy. Most recently, in August 1989, the Commission announced its intention to instigate a programme to deal with problems associated with the decline of the coal industry (RECHAR).
