Regional Development Law (2002)

The Law provides for regional development in Latvia. Its purpose is to promote and ensure balanced and sustainable development of the State, taking into account special features and opportunities of the entire State territory and of separate parts thereof, to reduce the unfavourable differences among them, as well as to preserve and develop the features characteristic of the natural and cultural environment of each territory and the development potential thereof. Regional development support measures are a programme and a set of relevant projects to be implemented in order to attain the objectives of this Law. A planning region is a derived public person. Its decision-taking institution is the Planning Region Development Council. The Cabinet shall determine the territories of the planning regions in accordance with proposals submitted by local governments. The planning regions are Kurzeme Planning Region, Latgale Planning Region, Rīga Planning Region, Vidzeme Planning Region and Zemgale Planning Region.