Region Värmland

Region Värmland is an organisation formed by the 16 municipalities and the county council of the county have formed in order to gather work on regional development, growth issues, culture and popular education in Värmland under one umbrella. With good cooperation on issues relating to the development of Värmland, such as roadbuilding, broadband and energy issues, there are greater chances of success than if every municipality were to do the same work independently. Region Värmland has been tasked by the government with producing a regional development programme, a collective strategy stating how Värmland is to work in order to develop.

The organisation was formed in 2001 as a municipal federation*. Six years later, the organisation was altered when the Riksdag (Swedish parliament) decided that every county was to be allowed to form cooperation bodies** which can take over responsibility for a range of state tasks from the county administrative boards. Since 2007, Region Värmland has held responsibility for - among other things - infrastructure planning in the region, i.e. issues relating to railways, roads, shipping and aviation. Region Värmland is also responsible for five folk high schools and a number of regional resource centres, including Dans i Värmland, Energikontor Värmland and Värmlandsarkiv.

Region Värmland is a politically controlled organisation. The highest decision-making body is the regional council. The 49 members are elected by the respective delegates of the 16 Värmland municipalities and the county council. Hence the politicians on the regional board and regional council are not directly elected, but are selected indirectly. Therefore, the political composition of the regional council reflects the political composition of the municipalities and county council of Värmland.

Everything which Region Värmland does aims to create conditions for growth in Värmland: growth which is sustainable financially, socially and environmentally. Värmland must be a place where people want to live and where companies want to set up, operate and develop.

*A municipal federation is a form of cooperation between municipalities which is regulated in the Act on Local Government. County councils can also be members of municipal federations.

**A municipal cooperation body is a municipal federation formed by all municipalities in a county. The county council can also be included. Cooperation bodies have taken over the task of regional development from the state. As of 2008, there were 14 cooperation bodies in Sweden.