ABSTRACT
The regional development programmes can be seen as a parallel to the European Union's (EU) structural programmes that are based on a partnership between EU and the national states. Securing minimum safety-net incomes and ensuring that an acceptable distribution of welfare services is available in municipalities in all regions is something that would be described as a task for a comprehensive regional policy. The basis for regional policy has changed as a result of Norway's relations to the European Union. The White Paper makes extensive reference to the need for public action in the field of regional policy. The object of regional policy, briefly stated is "to sustain the main features of the settlement structure and to develop robust regions in all parts of the country". Moreover, from the 1950s onwards, economic development in peripheral parts of Norway has also been stimulated through micro-financial incentives as part of its "small" regional development policy.
