culture and tourism regional case study rhone-alpes ......development fund (erdf) and cohesion fund...
TRANSCRIPT
June 2015 1
Culture and Tourism
Regional Case Study RHONE-ALPES
(France)
Work Package 9
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development
Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
Contract 2014CE16BAT034
October 2015 Author Laura Delponte
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy
Directorate B - Policy Unit B2 Evaluation and European Semester
Contact Violeta Piculescu
E-mail REGIO-B2-HEAD-OF-UNITeceuropaeu
European Commission B-1049 Brussels
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy
2016 EN
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-
2013 focusing on the
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and
the Cohesion Fund (CF)
Work Package 9 Culture and Tourism
Case Study Rhocircne-Alpes (France)
Contract 2014CE16BAT034
LEGAL NOTICE
This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the authors and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein
More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (httpwwweuropaeu)
Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016
ISBN 978-92-79-58799-3 doi 102776457602
copy European Union 2016
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged
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Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 5
Table of Contents
FORWARD 7
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 9
1 THE REGIONAL CONTEXT 13
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region 13
12 The socio-economic context 14
13 Tourism and culture sectors 15
2 THE REGIONAL ERDF 2007-2013 STRATEGY IN THE CULTURE AND TOURISM SECTORS 19
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy 19
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture sectors 22
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy 23
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy 25
25 The implementation process 30
3 EFFECTIVENESS AND SUSTAINABILITY OF THE STRATEGY
OUTPUTS AND RESULTS 33
31 Outputs achieved 33
32 Results achieved 38
4 CONCLUSIONS AND LESSONS LEARNT 41
REFERENCES 45
ANNEX 1 LIST OF PEOPLE TO INTERVIEW DURING THE WEEK 25-30 MAY 47
ANNEX 2 DATA ON THE REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT 48
ANNEX 3 CULTURAL AND NATURAL ASSETS OF THE RHOcircNE-ALPES
REGION 49
ANNEX 4 SITE OF CULTURAL INTEREST IN RHOcircNE-ALPES 51
ANNEX 5 KEY DATA ABOUT THE TOURISM AND CULTURE SECTORS 52
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 6
List of abbreviations
CDDRA Contrat de deacuteveloppement durable Rhocircne-Alpes
CPER Le contrat de projets Etat - Reacutegion
CRE Comiteacute de suivi drsquoeacutevaluation
CRSN Cadre de Reacutefeacuterence Strateacutegique National (National Strategic Reference
Framework)
DIRECCTE Direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la
consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi
DOMO Document de mise en œuvre
DPT (Direction des Politiques Territoriales)
DRAC Direction reacutegionale des Affaires culturelles
EAFRD European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
ERDF European Regional Development Fund
ESF European Social Fund
ICTs Information and Communication Technologies
INSEE Institute national de statistiques et des eacutetudes eacuteconomiques (National
Statistical bureau)
OP Operational Programme
PRESAGE
POMA
POMAC
Programme Reacutegional et Europeacuteen de Suivi dAnalyse de Gestion et
dEvaluation
Programme Operationnel Pluriregional Massif des Alpes
Programme Operationnel laquo Massif Central raquo
SGAR Secreacutetariat Geacuteneacuteral pour les Affaires Reacutegionales
SRDE Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement Economique
SRDTLRA Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement du Tourism et des Loisirs Rhocircne-
Alpes (regional strategy for tourism and recreation development)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 7
Forward
The European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG
REGIO) is undertaking an ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes financed
by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
during the period 2007-2013 in regions covered by the Convergence Regional
Competitiveness amp Employment and European Territorial Cooperation objectives in 28
member states
Within this framework the Consortium IRS-CSIL-CISET-BOP has been selected to
undertake the ex post evaluation on lsquoCulture and Tourismrsquo (Work Package 9) An
important element within the exercise is a series of case-study analyses of NUTS2
regions covering interventions co-financed by ERDF during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case-studies are designed to obtain a better understanding of the ERDF
contribution to the overall objectives of CP in the culture and tourism sectors and to
set out what has been implemented on the ground with a particular focus on the
interface between the wider context of the intervention and the rationale and design of
intervention strategies In doing so the relative effectiveness of the adopted
strategies will be revealed The case-studies are designed to identify and assess the
effectiveness of the different types of ERDF strategies implemented in the culture and
tourism sectors
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF approaches to culture
and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region (FR) during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case study analysis draws upon desk and field based research The desk analysis
is based on relevant statistical data and researches describing the general socio-
economic contexts of the Rhocircne-Alpes region and the specific circumstances of the
tourism and culture sector Information was collected from various sources including
Eurostat the French National Statistical Office (Insee) and Rhocircne-Alpesrsquos regional
observatory on tourism Besides this the desk analysis included a careful review of
the relevant ERDF programming documents regional and national policy and strategy
documents for the two target sectors and the findings of a mid-term evaluation
Interviews were also conducted in a field visit to complement and validate the
information gathered through the desk analysis Interviewees were identified in
collaboration with the Managing Authority (MA) to include different types of
stakeholders (eg technical services responsible for implementing specific measures
regional authorities in charge of promoting the development of the tourism and culture
sectors beneficiaries and independent experts) The detailed list of interviewees in
presented in Annex 1
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
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doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy
Directorate B - Policy Unit B2 Evaluation and European Semester
Contact Violeta Piculescu
E-mail REGIO-B2-HEAD-OF-UNITeceuropaeu
European Commission B-1049 Brussels
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy
2016 EN
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-
2013 focusing on the
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and
the Cohesion Fund (CF)
Work Package 9 Culture and Tourism
Case Study Rhocircne-Alpes (France)
Contract 2014CE16BAT034
LEGAL NOTICE
This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the authors and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein
More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (httpwwweuropaeu)
Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016
ISBN 978-92-79-58799-3 doi 102776457602
copy European Union 2016
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged
Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers
to your questions about the European Union
Freephone number ()
00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11
() The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 5
Table of Contents
FORWARD 7
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 9
1 THE REGIONAL CONTEXT 13
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region 13
12 The socio-economic context 14
13 Tourism and culture sectors 15
2 THE REGIONAL ERDF 2007-2013 STRATEGY IN THE CULTURE AND TOURISM SECTORS 19
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy 19
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture sectors 22
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy 23
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy 25
25 The implementation process 30
3 EFFECTIVENESS AND SUSTAINABILITY OF THE STRATEGY
OUTPUTS AND RESULTS 33
31 Outputs achieved 33
32 Results achieved 38
4 CONCLUSIONS AND LESSONS LEARNT 41
REFERENCES 45
ANNEX 1 LIST OF PEOPLE TO INTERVIEW DURING THE WEEK 25-30 MAY 47
ANNEX 2 DATA ON THE REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT 48
ANNEX 3 CULTURAL AND NATURAL ASSETS OF THE RHOcircNE-ALPES
REGION 49
ANNEX 4 SITE OF CULTURAL INTEREST IN RHOcircNE-ALPES 51
ANNEX 5 KEY DATA ABOUT THE TOURISM AND CULTURE SECTORS 52
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 6
List of abbreviations
CDDRA Contrat de deacuteveloppement durable Rhocircne-Alpes
CPER Le contrat de projets Etat - Reacutegion
CRE Comiteacute de suivi drsquoeacutevaluation
CRSN Cadre de Reacutefeacuterence Strateacutegique National (National Strategic Reference
Framework)
DIRECCTE Direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la
consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi
DOMO Document de mise en œuvre
DPT (Direction des Politiques Territoriales)
DRAC Direction reacutegionale des Affaires culturelles
EAFRD European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
ERDF European Regional Development Fund
ESF European Social Fund
ICTs Information and Communication Technologies
INSEE Institute national de statistiques et des eacutetudes eacuteconomiques (National
Statistical bureau)
OP Operational Programme
PRESAGE
POMA
POMAC
Programme Reacutegional et Europeacuteen de Suivi dAnalyse de Gestion et
dEvaluation
Programme Operationnel Pluriregional Massif des Alpes
Programme Operationnel laquo Massif Central raquo
SGAR Secreacutetariat Geacuteneacuteral pour les Affaires Reacutegionales
SRDE Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement Economique
SRDTLRA Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement du Tourism et des Loisirs Rhocircne-
Alpes (regional strategy for tourism and recreation development)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 7
Forward
The European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG
REGIO) is undertaking an ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes financed
by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
during the period 2007-2013 in regions covered by the Convergence Regional
Competitiveness amp Employment and European Territorial Cooperation objectives in 28
member states
Within this framework the Consortium IRS-CSIL-CISET-BOP has been selected to
undertake the ex post evaluation on lsquoCulture and Tourismrsquo (Work Package 9) An
important element within the exercise is a series of case-study analyses of NUTS2
regions covering interventions co-financed by ERDF during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case-studies are designed to obtain a better understanding of the ERDF
contribution to the overall objectives of CP in the culture and tourism sectors and to
set out what has been implemented on the ground with a particular focus on the
interface between the wider context of the intervention and the rationale and design of
intervention strategies In doing so the relative effectiveness of the adopted
strategies will be revealed The case-studies are designed to identify and assess the
effectiveness of the different types of ERDF strategies implemented in the culture and
tourism sectors
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF approaches to culture
and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region (FR) during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case study analysis draws upon desk and field based research The desk analysis
is based on relevant statistical data and researches describing the general socio-
economic contexts of the Rhocircne-Alpes region and the specific circumstances of the
tourism and culture sector Information was collected from various sources including
Eurostat the French National Statistical Office (Insee) and Rhocircne-Alpesrsquos regional
observatory on tourism Besides this the desk analysis included a careful review of
the relevant ERDF programming documents regional and national policy and strategy
documents for the two target sectors and the findings of a mid-term evaluation
Interviews were also conducted in a field visit to complement and validate the
information gathered through the desk analysis Interviewees were identified in
collaboration with the Managing Authority (MA) to include different types of
stakeholders (eg technical services responsible for implementing specific measures
regional authorities in charge of promoting the development of the tourism and culture
sectors beneficiaries and independent experts) The detailed list of interviewees in
presented in Annex 1
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy
2016 EN
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-
2013 focusing on the
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and
the Cohesion Fund (CF)
Work Package 9 Culture and Tourism
Case Study Rhocircne-Alpes (France)
Contract 2014CE16BAT034
LEGAL NOTICE
This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the authors and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein
More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (httpwwweuropaeu)
Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016
ISBN 978-92-79-58799-3 doi 102776457602
copy European Union 2016
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged
Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers
to your questions about the European Union
Freephone number ()
00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11
() The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 5
Table of Contents
FORWARD 7
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 9
1 THE REGIONAL CONTEXT 13
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region 13
12 The socio-economic context 14
13 Tourism and culture sectors 15
2 THE REGIONAL ERDF 2007-2013 STRATEGY IN THE CULTURE AND TOURISM SECTORS 19
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy 19
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture sectors 22
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy 23
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy 25
25 The implementation process 30
3 EFFECTIVENESS AND SUSTAINABILITY OF THE STRATEGY
OUTPUTS AND RESULTS 33
31 Outputs achieved 33
32 Results achieved 38
4 CONCLUSIONS AND LESSONS LEARNT 41
REFERENCES 45
ANNEX 1 LIST OF PEOPLE TO INTERVIEW DURING THE WEEK 25-30 MAY 47
ANNEX 2 DATA ON THE REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT 48
ANNEX 3 CULTURAL AND NATURAL ASSETS OF THE RHOcircNE-ALPES
REGION 49
ANNEX 4 SITE OF CULTURAL INTEREST IN RHOcircNE-ALPES 51
ANNEX 5 KEY DATA ABOUT THE TOURISM AND CULTURE SECTORS 52
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 6
List of abbreviations
CDDRA Contrat de deacuteveloppement durable Rhocircne-Alpes
CPER Le contrat de projets Etat - Reacutegion
CRE Comiteacute de suivi drsquoeacutevaluation
CRSN Cadre de Reacutefeacuterence Strateacutegique National (National Strategic Reference
Framework)
DIRECCTE Direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la
consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi
DOMO Document de mise en œuvre
DPT (Direction des Politiques Territoriales)
DRAC Direction reacutegionale des Affaires culturelles
EAFRD European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
ERDF European Regional Development Fund
ESF European Social Fund
ICTs Information and Communication Technologies
INSEE Institute national de statistiques et des eacutetudes eacuteconomiques (National
Statistical bureau)
OP Operational Programme
PRESAGE
POMA
POMAC
Programme Reacutegional et Europeacuteen de Suivi dAnalyse de Gestion et
dEvaluation
Programme Operationnel Pluriregional Massif des Alpes
Programme Operationnel laquo Massif Central raquo
SGAR Secreacutetariat Geacuteneacuteral pour les Affaires Reacutegionales
SRDE Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement Economique
SRDTLRA Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement du Tourism et des Loisirs Rhocircne-
Alpes (regional strategy for tourism and recreation development)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 7
Forward
The European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG
REGIO) is undertaking an ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes financed
by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
during the period 2007-2013 in regions covered by the Convergence Regional
Competitiveness amp Employment and European Territorial Cooperation objectives in 28
member states
Within this framework the Consortium IRS-CSIL-CISET-BOP has been selected to
undertake the ex post evaluation on lsquoCulture and Tourismrsquo (Work Package 9) An
important element within the exercise is a series of case-study analyses of NUTS2
regions covering interventions co-financed by ERDF during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case-studies are designed to obtain a better understanding of the ERDF
contribution to the overall objectives of CP in the culture and tourism sectors and to
set out what has been implemented on the ground with a particular focus on the
interface between the wider context of the intervention and the rationale and design of
intervention strategies In doing so the relative effectiveness of the adopted
strategies will be revealed The case-studies are designed to identify and assess the
effectiveness of the different types of ERDF strategies implemented in the culture and
tourism sectors
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF approaches to culture
and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region (FR) during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case study analysis draws upon desk and field based research The desk analysis
is based on relevant statistical data and researches describing the general socio-
economic contexts of the Rhocircne-Alpes region and the specific circumstances of the
tourism and culture sector Information was collected from various sources including
Eurostat the French National Statistical Office (Insee) and Rhocircne-Alpesrsquos regional
observatory on tourism Besides this the desk analysis included a careful review of
the relevant ERDF programming documents regional and national policy and strategy
documents for the two target sectors and the findings of a mid-term evaluation
Interviews were also conducted in a field visit to complement and validate the
information gathered through the desk analysis Interviewees were identified in
collaboration with the Managing Authority (MA) to include different types of
stakeholders (eg technical services responsible for implementing specific measures
regional authorities in charge of promoting the development of the tourism and culture
sectors beneficiaries and independent experts) The detailed list of interviewees in
presented in Annex 1
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
LEGAL NOTICE
This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the authors and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein
More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (httpwwweuropaeu)
Luxembourg Publications Office of the European Union 2016
ISBN 978-92-79-58799-3 doi 102776457602
copy European Union 2016
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged
Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers
to your questions about the European Union
Freephone number ()
00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11
() The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 5
Table of Contents
FORWARD 7
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 9
1 THE REGIONAL CONTEXT 13
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region 13
12 The socio-economic context 14
13 Tourism and culture sectors 15
2 THE REGIONAL ERDF 2007-2013 STRATEGY IN THE CULTURE AND TOURISM SECTORS 19
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy 19
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture sectors 22
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy 23
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy 25
25 The implementation process 30
3 EFFECTIVENESS AND SUSTAINABILITY OF THE STRATEGY
OUTPUTS AND RESULTS 33
31 Outputs achieved 33
32 Results achieved 38
4 CONCLUSIONS AND LESSONS LEARNT 41
REFERENCES 45
ANNEX 1 LIST OF PEOPLE TO INTERVIEW DURING THE WEEK 25-30 MAY 47
ANNEX 2 DATA ON THE REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT 48
ANNEX 3 CULTURAL AND NATURAL ASSETS OF THE RHOcircNE-ALPES
REGION 49
ANNEX 4 SITE OF CULTURAL INTEREST IN RHOcircNE-ALPES 51
ANNEX 5 KEY DATA ABOUT THE TOURISM AND CULTURE SECTORS 52
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 6
List of abbreviations
CDDRA Contrat de deacuteveloppement durable Rhocircne-Alpes
CPER Le contrat de projets Etat - Reacutegion
CRE Comiteacute de suivi drsquoeacutevaluation
CRSN Cadre de Reacutefeacuterence Strateacutegique National (National Strategic Reference
Framework)
DIRECCTE Direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la
consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi
DOMO Document de mise en œuvre
DPT (Direction des Politiques Territoriales)
DRAC Direction reacutegionale des Affaires culturelles
EAFRD European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
ERDF European Regional Development Fund
ESF European Social Fund
ICTs Information and Communication Technologies
INSEE Institute national de statistiques et des eacutetudes eacuteconomiques (National
Statistical bureau)
OP Operational Programme
PRESAGE
POMA
POMAC
Programme Reacutegional et Europeacuteen de Suivi dAnalyse de Gestion et
dEvaluation
Programme Operationnel Pluriregional Massif des Alpes
Programme Operationnel laquo Massif Central raquo
SGAR Secreacutetariat Geacuteneacuteral pour les Affaires Reacutegionales
SRDE Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement Economique
SRDTLRA Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement du Tourism et des Loisirs Rhocircne-
Alpes (regional strategy for tourism and recreation development)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 7
Forward
The European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG
REGIO) is undertaking an ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes financed
by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
during the period 2007-2013 in regions covered by the Convergence Regional
Competitiveness amp Employment and European Territorial Cooperation objectives in 28
member states
Within this framework the Consortium IRS-CSIL-CISET-BOP has been selected to
undertake the ex post evaluation on lsquoCulture and Tourismrsquo (Work Package 9) An
important element within the exercise is a series of case-study analyses of NUTS2
regions covering interventions co-financed by ERDF during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case-studies are designed to obtain a better understanding of the ERDF
contribution to the overall objectives of CP in the culture and tourism sectors and to
set out what has been implemented on the ground with a particular focus on the
interface between the wider context of the intervention and the rationale and design of
intervention strategies In doing so the relative effectiveness of the adopted
strategies will be revealed The case-studies are designed to identify and assess the
effectiveness of the different types of ERDF strategies implemented in the culture and
tourism sectors
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF approaches to culture
and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region (FR) during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case study analysis draws upon desk and field based research The desk analysis
is based on relevant statistical data and researches describing the general socio-
economic contexts of the Rhocircne-Alpes region and the specific circumstances of the
tourism and culture sector Information was collected from various sources including
Eurostat the French National Statistical Office (Insee) and Rhocircne-Alpesrsquos regional
observatory on tourism Besides this the desk analysis included a careful review of
the relevant ERDF programming documents regional and national policy and strategy
documents for the two target sectors and the findings of a mid-term evaluation
Interviews were also conducted in a field visit to complement and validate the
information gathered through the desk analysis Interviewees were identified in
collaboration with the Managing Authority (MA) to include different types of
stakeholders (eg technical services responsible for implementing specific measures
regional authorities in charge of promoting the development of the tourism and culture
sectors beneficiaries and independent experts) The detailed list of interviewees in
presented in Annex 1
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 5
Table of Contents
FORWARD 7
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 9
1 THE REGIONAL CONTEXT 13
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region 13
12 The socio-economic context 14
13 Tourism and culture sectors 15
2 THE REGIONAL ERDF 2007-2013 STRATEGY IN THE CULTURE AND TOURISM SECTORS 19
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy 19
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture sectors 22
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy 23
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy 25
25 The implementation process 30
3 EFFECTIVENESS AND SUSTAINABILITY OF THE STRATEGY
OUTPUTS AND RESULTS 33
31 Outputs achieved 33
32 Results achieved 38
4 CONCLUSIONS AND LESSONS LEARNT 41
REFERENCES 45
ANNEX 1 LIST OF PEOPLE TO INTERVIEW DURING THE WEEK 25-30 MAY 47
ANNEX 2 DATA ON THE REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT 48
ANNEX 3 CULTURAL AND NATURAL ASSETS OF THE RHOcircNE-ALPES
REGION 49
ANNEX 4 SITE OF CULTURAL INTEREST IN RHOcircNE-ALPES 51
ANNEX 5 KEY DATA ABOUT THE TOURISM AND CULTURE SECTORS 52
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 6
List of abbreviations
CDDRA Contrat de deacuteveloppement durable Rhocircne-Alpes
CPER Le contrat de projets Etat - Reacutegion
CRE Comiteacute de suivi drsquoeacutevaluation
CRSN Cadre de Reacutefeacuterence Strateacutegique National (National Strategic Reference
Framework)
DIRECCTE Direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la
consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi
DOMO Document de mise en œuvre
DPT (Direction des Politiques Territoriales)
DRAC Direction reacutegionale des Affaires culturelles
EAFRD European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
ERDF European Regional Development Fund
ESF European Social Fund
ICTs Information and Communication Technologies
INSEE Institute national de statistiques et des eacutetudes eacuteconomiques (National
Statistical bureau)
OP Operational Programme
PRESAGE
POMA
POMAC
Programme Reacutegional et Europeacuteen de Suivi dAnalyse de Gestion et
dEvaluation
Programme Operationnel Pluriregional Massif des Alpes
Programme Operationnel laquo Massif Central raquo
SGAR Secreacutetariat Geacuteneacuteral pour les Affaires Reacutegionales
SRDE Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement Economique
SRDTLRA Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement du Tourism et des Loisirs Rhocircne-
Alpes (regional strategy for tourism and recreation development)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 7
Forward
The European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG
REGIO) is undertaking an ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes financed
by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
during the period 2007-2013 in regions covered by the Convergence Regional
Competitiveness amp Employment and European Territorial Cooperation objectives in 28
member states
Within this framework the Consortium IRS-CSIL-CISET-BOP has been selected to
undertake the ex post evaluation on lsquoCulture and Tourismrsquo (Work Package 9) An
important element within the exercise is a series of case-study analyses of NUTS2
regions covering interventions co-financed by ERDF during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case-studies are designed to obtain a better understanding of the ERDF
contribution to the overall objectives of CP in the culture and tourism sectors and to
set out what has been implemented on the ground with a particular focus on the
interface between the wider context of the intervention and the rationale and design of
intervention strategies In doing so the relative effectiveness of the adopted
strategies will be revealed The case-studies are designed to identify and assess the
effectiveness of the different types of ERDF strategies implemented in the culture and
tourism sectors
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF approaches to culture
and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region (FR) during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case study analysis draws upon desk and field based research The desk analysis
is based on relevant statistical data and researches describing the general socio-
economic contexts of the Rhocircne-Alpes region and the specific circumstances of the
tourism and culture sector Information was collected from various sources including
Eurostat the French National Statistical Office (Insee) and Rhocircne-Alpesrsquos regional
observatory on tourism Besides this the desk analysis included a careful review of
the relevant ERDF programming documents regional and national policy and strategy
documents for the two target sectors and the findings of a mid-term evaluation
Interviews were also conducted in a field visit to complement and validate the
information gathered through the desk analysis Interviewees were identified in
collaboration with the Managing Authority (MA) to include different types of
stakeholders (eg technical services responsible for implementing specific measures
regional authorities in charge of promoting the development of the tourism and culture
sectors beneficiaries and independent experts) The detailed list of interviewees in
presented in Annex 1
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
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um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 6
List of abbreviations
CDDRA Contrat de deacuteveloppement durable Rhocircne-Alpes
CPER Le contrat de projets Etat - Reacutegion
CRE Comiteacute de suivi drsquoeacutevaluation
CRSN Cadre de Reacutefeacuterence Strateacutegique National (National Strategic Reference
Framework)
DIRECCTE Direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la
consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi
DOMO Document de mise en œuvre
DPT (Direction des Politiques Territoriales)
DRAC Direction reacutegionale des Affaires culturelles
EAFRD European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
ERDF European Regional Development Fund
ESF European Social Fund
ICTs Information and Communication Technologies
INSEE Institute national de statistiques et des eacutetudes eacuteconomiques (National
Statistical bureau)
OP Operational Programme
PRESAGE
POMA
POMAC
Programme Reacutegional et Europeacuteen de Suivi dAnalyse de Gestion et
dEvaluation
Programme Operationnel Pluriregional Massif des Alpes
Programme Operationnel laquo Massif Central raquo
SGAR Secreacutetariat Geacuteneacuteral pour les Affaires Reacutegionales
SRDE Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement Economique
SRDTLRA Scheacutema Reacutegional de Deacuteveloppement du Tourism et des Loisirs Rhocircne-
Alpes (regional strategy for tourism and recreation development)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 7
Forward
The European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG
REGIO) is undertaking an ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes financed
by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
during the period 2007-2013 in regions covered by the Convergence Regional
Competitiveness amp Employment and European Territorial Cooperation objectives in 28
member states
Within this framework the Consortium IRS-CSIL-CISET-BOP has been selected to
undertake the ex post evaluation on lsquoCulture and Tourismrsquo (Work Package 9) An
important element within the exercise is a series of case-study analyses of NUTS2
regions covering interventions co-financed by ERDF during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case-studies are designed to obtain a better understanding of the ERDF
contribution to the overall objectives of CP in the culture and tourism sectors and to
set out what has been implemented on the ground with a particular focus on the
interface between the wider context of the intervention and the rationale and design of
intervention strategies In doing so the relative effectiveness of the adopted
strategies will be revealed The case-studies are designed to identify and assess the
effectiveness of the different types of ERDF strategies implemented in the culture and
tourism sectors
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF approaches to culture
and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region (FR) during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case study analysis draws upon desk and field based research The desk analysis
is based on relevant statistical data and researches describing the general socio-
economic contexts of the Rhocircne-Alpes region and the specific circumstances of the
tourism and culture sector Information was collected from various sources including
Eurostat the French National Statistical Office (Insee) and Rhocircne-Alpesrsquos regional
observatory on tourism Besides this the desk analysis included a careful review of
the relevant ERDF programming documents regional and national policy and strategy
documents for the two target sectors and the findings of a mid-term evaluation
Interviews were also conducted in a field visit to complement and validate the
information gathered through the desk analysis Interviewees were identified in
collaboration with the Managing Authority (MA) to include different types of
stakeholders (eg technical services responsible for implementing specific measures
regional authorities in charge of promoting the development of the tourism and culture
sectors beneficiaries and independent experts) The detailed list of interviewees in
presented in Annex 1
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
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Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 7
Forward
The European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG
REGIO) is undertaking an ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes financed
by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF)
during the period 2007-2013 in regions covered by the Convergence Regional
Competitiveness amp Employment and European Territorial Cooperation objectives in 28
member states
Within this framework the Consortium IRS-CSIL-CISET-BOP has been selected to
undertake the ex post evaluation on lsquoCulture and Tourismrsquo (Work Package 9) An
important element within the exercise is a series of case-study analyses of NUTS2
regions covering interventions co-financed by ERDF during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case-studies are designed to obtain a better understanding of the ERDF
contribution to the overall objectives of CP in the culture and tourism sectors and to
set out what has been implemented on the ground with a particular focus on the
interface between the wider context of the intervention and the rationale and design of
intervention strategies In doing so the relative effectiveness of the adopted
strategies will be revealed The case-studies are designed to identify and assess the
effectiveness of the different types of ERDF strategies implemented in the culture and
tourism sectors
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF approaches to culture
and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region (FR) during the 2007-13 programming
period
The case study analysis draws upon desk and field based research The desk analysis
is based on relevant statistical data and researches describing the general socio-
economic contexts of the Rhocircne-Alpes region and the specific circumstances of the
tourism and culture sector Information was collected from various sources including
Eurostat the French National Statistical Office (Insee) and Rhocircne-Alpesrsquos regional
observatory on tourism Besides this the desk analysis included a careful review of
the relevant ERDF programming documents regional and national policy and strategy
documents for the two target sectors and the findings of a mid-term evaluation
Interviews were also conducted in a field visit to complement and validate the
information gathered through the desk analysis Interviewees were identified in
collaboration with the Managing Authority (MA) to include different types of
stakeholders (eg technical services responsible for implementing specific measures
regional authorities in charge of promoting the development of the tourism and culture
sectors beneficiaries and independent experts) The detailed list of interviewees in
presented in Annex 1
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 9
Executive summary
This report provides the results of a detailed case study of ERDF (European Regional
Development Fund) approaches to culture and tourism pursued in Rhocircne-Alpes region
(FR) during the 2007-13 programming period Drawing upon a combination of
documentary and data analysis and field-work this report looks at the overall
strategic coherence and relevance of measures supporting the tourism and culture
sectors in the region It assesses the effectiveness of the co-financed interventions
with respect to the expected targets and explores the potential of wider regional
development outcomes that are brought about from support to the two sectors
Situated in south-eastern France Rhocircne-Alpes is the biggest French region and one of
the biggest regions in Europe The region is characterized by a large variety of natural
and socio-economic landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas
industrial hubs rural agricultural and mountainous areas Its economy is one of the
most dynamic of France and is comparable to those of Catalonia (ES) and Piedmont
(IT) regions The economic structure is highly diversified and is marked by a strong
albeit declining industrial tradition Territorial unbalances are a relevant issue
especially in relation to the juxtaposition between metropolitan and declining industrial
or rural areas
Following Eurostat data in 2013 the tourist sector employed 34 of the regional
labour force but the relevance of the tourist sector is unevenly distributed throughout
the region For three departments (Haut-Savoie Savoie and Ardegraveche) tourism is a
relevant source of income whereas other departments are less dependent on tourism
The tourist offer is highly diversified although the theme of sport and nature (both for
winter and summer outdoor activities) prevails Seasonality is a local rather than a
regional issue as at the regional level the tourist flows are distributed throughout the
entire calendar year The region flagship tourist attractions are the skiable resorts of
the Alpine region and the white water sport area in Ardegraveche that is where most
foreign tourists head to Local tourism in rural areas is gradually developing and most
target local demand from tourists demanding for alternative tourist experiences (eg
slow tourism) In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes
The elaboration of the ERDF strategy for culture and tourism was mostly guided by
two regional tourist strategies and development plans (ie Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL and the Plan Rhocircne) It followed
two different objectives i) diversify the economy of areas with an underdeveloped
tourism potential and ii) promoting culture and tourism along the Rhocircne river for the
purpose of building a regional identity based upon the riverrsquos cultural and historical
heritage These objectives were implemented through three separate measures i)
develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development (196 Meuro ERDF support) ii) promoting the cultural heritage and identity
of the Rhocircne river (4Meuro ERDF support) and iii) ensure the development of quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks (35 Meuro ERDF support) The two sectors
also received support from other measures of the OP although these were not
specifically targeted to culture and tourism
Justification for the public intervention was strong and mostly based on missing or
incomplete markets The OP targeted under-developed or emerging tourist areas that
were not able to attract sufficient private investments Public intervention in the field
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
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um
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 10
of culture has a long tradition in France that limited the use of private sponsorship
Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism both for low-income
groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale for public
intervention Projects were selected according to a defined number of criteria and
priority was given to projects that aligned with existing national or regional strategies
Overall the implementation of the measures concerning the two sectors was
satisfactory Driven by a strong local demand for public interventions and an already
established project pipelines within the existing regional or local development plans
funds were fully allocated and payment rates were also well advanced at the end of
2014 Projects selection was based on different instruments including call for
proposals demand for grants from potential beneficiaries and nationalregional
priorities identified by the managing authority (MA) Call for projects were reported to
be particularly effective in promoting stronger participation from local stakeholders
and increase the quality of the proposals submitted
In the tourist sector the geographical distribution of funding strongly benefited the
Ardeche department This is due to the major project of the Chauvet cave at Pont
drsquoArc but is also justified by the objective of the strategy (ie support economic
diversification in areas with an underexploited tourist potential) Departments with a
more diversified and solid economic structure as well as areas with a well-structured
tourist offer and infrastructure benefited far less of these measures In the culture
sector interventions were strongly concentrated in the Rhocircne department where most
potential beneficiaries were located This was partly in contradiction with the concept
of using the river as a regional cultural asset
The OP supported a large variety of interventions including both hard (eg small and
large scale investments) and soft (diagnostic studies counselling activities) measures
Whereas credit absorption was mostly driven by infrastructure investment either
green field investments or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure a large variety of
soft measures was supported For the tourist sector these were mostly geared
towards promoting tourism through territorial marketing activities or the development
of ICT-based tourist products For the culture sector the second largest category of
interventions was set to deliver cultural products based upon the historical and cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river These included support to performing arts associations
and support to exhibitions and preparation of documentary material
All completed projects were reported to have delivered the expected outputs and no
specific implementation problems were reported By December 2014 90 of cultural
projects were completed whereas the same figure was at 87 and 66 for the
measures targeting the tourism sector However it is relevant to notice that
continuous follow up activities were necessary to ensure a successful projectsrsquo
completion for cultural projects This was due to the low administrative capacity of the
beneficiary organization
Sustainability of interventions without further support from public finances is poor
This is relevant for both sectors but there were important differences While
interventions in the tourist sector where designed to be implemented by public
authorities and were generally framed within other regionallocalnational programmes
that could ensure continuous support most cultural associations have a fragile
financial equilibrium that makes sustainability uncertain In this respect two extreme
cases can be reported i) the Woostower association that managed to secure a private
sponsorship and ii) the cultural institution Maison du Rhocircne that was liquidated in
2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
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be
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 11
Overall assessment of results proved to be difficult because of the weaknesses of the
monitoring system that failed to set appropriate outcome indicators in the
programming phase The indicator concerning the number of direct job created by the
intervention delivered biased results Onone hand it overestimates the number of job
created by including temporary jobs that were used to deliver the projectsrsquo outputs
and on the other hand it fails to consider employment outcomes within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg tourist facilities in the target area)
A qualitative analysis of the measuresrsquo outcomes was performed by integrating the
views of beneficiaries and stakeholders Interviews highlighted that cohesion
outcomes in terms of improved territorial and social cohesion were predominant as
compared to economic competitiveness outcomes Interventions helped local
communities with weak understanding of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism as an instrument for local development However it
was also reported that results could have been improved by integrating more market-
driven elements within the supported promotional activities
Strategic coherence and relevance of the intervention was deemed satisfactory for the
interventions addressing the tourism sector Differently the interventions supporting
the culture sector were too constrained by the choice of the Rhocircne river theme that
also reduced possibility to better integrate culture and tourism In both sectors
interventions were generally effective with respect to the expected targets although
integration of the ICT theme was lower than expected besides the concerned sub-
measure
ERDF support proved to be a vital source of financing for many interventions
supported It also provided the beneficiary organizations with an opportunity for
improving their project design and project management capacity However the use of
the ERDF fund to support small cultural associations remained contested
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
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[Ca
talo
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 13
1 The regional context
11 The geo-institutional context in the analysed region
Situated in south-eastern France (Figure 11) Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the 26 French
regions1 It lies at a natural crossroads of major national and European axes of
communication For its geographical size and population it is the biggest French region
and one of the biggest in Europe In 2013 the region had about 63 million
inhabitants which corresponded to 98 of the French population and is almost
equivalent to the population of Denmark Rhocircne-Alpes has had a good demographic
progression (+54 from 2007 to 2013) that makes it one of the most dynamic
French regions (Insee 2014)
The region is characterized by a large variety of natural and socio-economic
landscapes that are based on a combination of large urban areas industrial hubs
rural agricultural and mountainous areas At the administrative level Rhocircne-Alpes is
made up of eight departments2 The region has three of Francersquos largest cities These
are Lyon Grenoble and Saint-Eacutetienne which form a triangle that is the economic core
of the region The urban conglomeration of Geneva and Annemasse next to the Swiss
border completes the urban structure of the region that is the largest of France The
mountain area takes two third of the regionrsquos size along the Italian and Swiss border
whereas major national routes pass through the Rhocircne and Saocircne river valleys where
most economic activities cluster together
Figure 11 Map of Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Wikipedia
1 France is divided into 26 regions that are governed by Regional Councils (Conseil Reacutegional) Regions are further divided into 100 departments administered by Conseil Geacuteneacuteral At the regional and departmental level the French state is represented by the prefect (preacutefet) Regions are undergoing major restructuring including a reduction of the existing number of regions from 26 to 13 2 These are Ain (Bourg-en-Bresse) Ardegraveche (Privas) Drocircme (Valence) Isegravere (Grenoble) Loire (Saint-Eacutetienne) Rhocircne (Lyon) Savoie (Chambeacutery) Haute-Savoie (Annecy)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
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be
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 14
The regionrsquos economy is one of the most diversified in France It has seven types of
employment areas including expanding metropolitan and semi-urban areas rural and
industrial declining districts and tourist areas that are subject to differentiated trend
This diversified structure is an asset for the region as it allows tapping into
complementarities between different sectors but introduces several complexities in
terms of achieving a balanced territorial development and social cohesion (Insee
2010)
12 The socio-economic context
In terms of GDP Rhocircne-Alpes is the second French region and the sixth region in the
European Union (Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010)
After Icircle-de-France region (304 of the GDP) RhocircnendashAlpes is the second largest
contributor to the national GDP (97 of the GDP) Between 2007 and 2013
unemployment rate remained below the national average (Table 11) Labour market
conditions have deteriorated as a consequence of the economic crisis but less than
the national average
In spite of the loss of a quarter of the jobs in the industrial sector the region is still
marked by a strong industrial tradition At the end of 2013 the industrial sector
employed 405000 individuals which corresponded to 249 of the regional labour
force The industrial structure of the region is made of different sector specializations
including mechanical equipment metalworking electrical equipment electronics
rubber plastics chemicals and pharmacy (SRDE 2011) Rhocircne-Alpes is the French
leading region in the energy sector including nuclear power and renewable energies
In 2013 agriculture employed 27 of the labour force that is lower than the French
average (31) Most of the labour force (723) is employed in the service sector
that contributes to more than 50 of the regional gross value-added
In terms of overall economic performance Rhocircne-Alpes is comparable to the European
region of Catalonia or Piedmont but is lagging behind the top performing regions of
Northern Europe The region has several strengths including a well-educated labour
force a diversified industrial structure the establishment of several competitive
clusters a good dynamism in creating innovative enterprises and the availability of
several mechanisms to fund innovation It also has some weaknesses that relate to
the suboptimal use of its innovative potential an insufficient number of medium
enterprises and the mono-industrial culture that prevails in some areas of the region
(ERDF OP 2007-2013)
The economic crisis which began in 2008 heavily impacted on the regional economy
While since 2004 Rhocircne-Alpes saw employment increase by 1 on an annual basis
the labor market rapidly deteriorated in 2008 Almost 60000 jobs were lost in one
year The industrial sector proved to be particularly vulnerable especially the
chemical automotive logistic and construction sectors The traditional industrial areas
of Arve Oyonnax Loire Maurienne suffered heavily in terms of enterprise and job
losses The service sector was also heavily penalized as a consequence of lower
demand from the industrial and construction sector Average income in the agriculture
sector fell by 17 in 2008 and by 20 in 2009 The tourism sector was relatively
resilient to the crisis although companies are increasingly affected by higher
fluctuation in the consumption of tourist services (SRDE 2011)
Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the French regions with the highest standard of living In 2010
the median gross annual income reached 19900 euros which ranked Rhocircne-Alpes 3rd
behind Icircle-de-France (21700 euros) and Alsace (20200 euros) Poverty rate in 2012
was 121 which was lower than the national average (143) (INSEE data) However
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
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doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
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e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 15
the economic crisis resulted in increased inequalities In particular it had the effect of
radicalizing poverty for already vulnerable populations including the working poor
elder young people and women (SRDE 2011) Territorial disparities also persist and
increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis The region can be roughly divided
into two blocks the most prosperous departments located to the eastern part of the
region (Ain Haute-Savoie Isegravere Rhocircne and Savoie) and the less prosperous
departments of Drocircme and Ardegraveche where incomes have been stagnating
Table 11 A general overview of the social and economic conditions
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 0 pp 108 109 1 pp 100 100 0 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
2011 instead of 2013 Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
13 Tourism and culture sectors
Rhocircne-Alpes is the third largest French destination for tourism which is largely
triggered by the presence of the largest ski areas in the world Besides this a number
of natural and cultural assets including two national parks seven regional parks two
UNESCO sites 13 towns of art and history complete and diversify the tourist offer (see
Appendix 3 and 4 for a detailed list of major cultural and tourist sites) The region is
also an important destination for business tourism having 30 congress towns with
Lyon being the second French best equipped city for holding international congress
Thanks to the variety of its landscape and tourist offer Rhocircne-Alpes is one of the few
French regions that successfully attract tourist both in the winter and summer period
(Insee 2014) According to the regional Tourist Observatory the regional tourist offer
can be grouped in three different categories These are
Mountain tourism (predominately Haute Savoie) This is the most important
tourist destination of the region and has a consolidated tourist offer that is
triggered by some of the world best-known ski resorts (eg Chamonix) and the
attractiveness of Mont Blanc the highest mountain in Europe The three most
visited sites of the region (cable car of Aiguille du Midi Chemin de fer du
Montenvers-Mer de Glace cable car of Breacutevent) are located in this area The
major weakness of this area is to have a tourist offer that is overly focused on
sport and nature and is not able to attract significant flows of tourist in the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 16
summer period Vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions is also
high
Urban and cultural tourism (Rhocircne Isegravere and Savoie departments) In this area
tourism is based on the diversified cultural resources of the city of Lyon
Grenoble and Chambery as well as on other minor centers such as Vienne
This is where most of the historical monuments are located However with the
exception of Savoie these areas lacks of a well-defined cultural identity are
little attractive to families and are too dependent on business tourism
Rural tourism (Ain Ardegraveche and Drocircme departments) Tourism in these areas
is based on outdoor activities (eg hiking kayak mountain bike) The
attractiveness of these areas is built upon stunning natural sceneries
(Ardegravechersquos gorges) unique natural parks (eg Parc des Oiseaux de Dombes) or
generally well-preserved natural sites These areas are both emerging (Ain and
Drocircme) and consolidated (Ardegraveche) tourist destinations and are generally
marked by a high seasonality (predominately in the summer period) and
vulnerability to annual changes in weather conditions Territorial marketing is
still insufficiently developed and too fragmented whereas some sites are
difficult to access
The tourism economy is unevenly distributed throughout the region especially in
terms of its relevance for the local economy in comparison to other sectors The
departments of Savoie Haute-Savoie and Ardegraveche are considered tourist areas In
2012 the two departments of Haute-Savoie and Savoie had 50 of the hotels of the
region The department of Rhocircne and Savoie had the highest number of luxury hotels
that corresponded to two-third of the regional offer Differently and because of its
reputation for summer outdoor activities the department of Ardegraveche had 31 of the
regional campsites (Insee 2014)
The contribution of the tourism sector to wealth generation in the region (34) is
higher than the national average (3) Similarly to other French regions food and
accommodation are the activities that most contribute to income generation in the
tourism sector (up to 51) although this figure is much lower than in the neighboring
Provence Alpes Cote drsquoAzur region (66) A characteristic feature of tourism revenues
in Rhocircne-Alpes is the relevant contribution of sport activities (21) that are related to
the existence of large ski resorts The regionrsquos cultural heritage contributes less
(35) than the national average (5) to wealth generation in the tourist sector
(Insee 2014)
The economic impact of activities related to tourism can be measured both in terms of
employment and enterprise development Eurostat data (Table 21) reports that
between 2007 and 2013 the percentage of people working in the tourism sector were
29 and 34 respectively slightly lower than the national average In the same
period the percentage of business units in the tourism sector slightly declined from
106 in 2007 to 104 in 2013 However national data reports a higher percentage of
people employed in the tourism sector (7 in 2012) Most jobs created every year in
the tourism sector are temporary in order to meet the seasonality of the tourist
demand (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
As compared to other French region the tourism sector proved to be more resilient to
the negative effect of the economic crisis Between 2007 and 2013 the number of
tourist arrivals increased by nearly 83 and 116 for domestic and foreign tourists
respectively For the same period Eurostat data reports that total arrivals at tourist
accommodation establishment increased by 37 The increase in the number of
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 17
overnight stays reported by Eurostat is too large and is probably due to a
methodological change The average length of stay of tourists in the region declined
from 18 to 19 days Foreign arrivals especially of British and Swiss tourists in the
Alpine area contributed to increase demand for tourist services However French
national tourists remained predominant and accounted on average for 80 of the
touristsrsquo arrival between 2007 and 2013 (Insee database) Interestingly Rhocircne-Alpes
is especially visited by its inhabitant that accounted on average for 26 of the French
tourist in the same period (Observatoire du Tourisme 2013)
Table 12 A general overview of the tourism sector3
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Percentage of workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 978 947 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
In spite of a large variety of sites of cultural interest cultural tourism is
underexploited in Rhocircne-Alpes Between 2008 and 2012 the Museacutee des Beaux-Arts of
Lyon ranked only 29th in a national classification and 7th in a classification of provincial
France The number of museums in Rhocircne-Alpes (97) is almost near to that of the Ile
de France region (104) but the difference is much large in terms of annual visitors
The capital cityrsquos museums attract 284 million visitors per year whereas the
museums of Rhocircne-Alpes are visited by 26 million tourists per year (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013)
As a matter of fact the cultural sector in France is highly marked by a polarization
between the Parisian region and provincial France While the former concentrates 43
of the national labour force of the sector and 35 of the national infrastructure only
three regions including Rhocircne-Alpes emerge for having a relevant contribution of the
cultural sector to the regional economy (Insee 2011)
3 Regional indicator should be provided (if available) For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
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ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 18
The presence of well-diversified digital creative industries is a characteristic feature of
Rhocircne-Alpesrsquo culture sector Since 2006 the region fostered the creation of the
Imaginove cluster contributing to the expansion of projects and businesses in the main
sectors of the cultural and creative images industry (eg video games animation
cinema audio-visual multimedia) The cluster is made of 650 companies 23 research
laboratories 28 image-related training courses and international events (Imaginove
2013)
In terms of employment 17 of the regional labour force had a cultural occupation
in 2007 and 21 in 2013 (table 23) The number of business units in culture was
26 in 2007 and 23 in 2013 These data are substantially aligned with the
national averages The employment structure of the sector has two relevant
weaknesses The number of permanent employees per cultural instituteenterprise is
very low as nearly 62 of Rhocircne-Alpes cultural institutions has no permanent
employees and 32 have only between 1 and 4 permanent employees Of the 17330
cultural institutesenterprises in the region only 48 employ at least 50 permanent
employees and the largest ones are all located in Lyon or Grenoble These professions
are also characterized by a higher than average job insecurity with a prevalence of
short-term contracts (Insee La Lettre 2012)
Table 13 A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) NA NA NA 26 26 00 pp 26 26 0 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 0 pp
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20
-01 pp
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash
Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
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ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 19
2 The regional ERDF 2007-2013 strategy in the culture and tourism sectors
21 Overview of the ERDF strategy
Building on a diagnosis of the regional comparative advantages and disadvantages
the 2007-2013 ERDF OP for the Rhocircne-Alpes region is focused on three main strategic
priorities These are 1) improve the knowledge economy and increase innovation to
boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
2) ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets
to increase their competitiveness and 3) implement an action plan for the sustainable
development of the Rhocircne river At the operational level these strategic priorities
were translated in five axes and further articulated in 20 measures (Figure 21)
Figure 21 Outline of the strategic framework of the Rhocircne-Alpes 2007-2013
ERDF OP and fund allocation Priority Strategic goals Operational axes Funding (absolute amp
percentage values)
1 Improve the Knowledge economy and increase innovation to boost the competitiveness of the region both at the European and international level
Support technological innovation to benefit enterprises
Anticipate changes to support the development of SMEs and micro-enterprises
Promote the Information Society
1 Innovation and economic growth
121Meuro (36)
2 Ensure the sustainable development of the regional territory building on their assets to increase their competitiveness
Sustainable development of the territory of the region
Fight against global warming
Improve attractiveness of living conditions and of the environment
2 Diversification and promotion of economic activities 3 Environment and risk prevention 4 Accessibility transport and ICT
83 Meuro (25)
48 Meuro (14)
53 Meuro (15)
3 Implement an action
plan for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
Promote the cultural
heritage of the Rhocircne river
Water quality biodiversity and sharing of water resources
Foster development of river transport
Ensure the development of a quality tourism for the river and its banks
5 Economic
development and environmental protection of the river Rhocircne
19 Meuro (5)
6 Technical assistance 10 Meuro (3)
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from OP and DOMO documents
Overall the OP was well aligned with the EU key objectives identified in the Lisbon
strategy and also responded to the main socio-economic challenges facing the region
Two key themes are prioritized both as specific targets and horizontally integrated
targets These are innovation (Axis I) and sustainable development (Axis II) Because
of the highly diversified landscape and economic structure of the region promoting a
balanced territorial development was also another key theme of the 2007-2013 OP
(Ernest Young 2010)
Support to the tourism and cultural sector followed a two-fold approach to fit within
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 20
the overall strategy design (Table 21) In particular tourism was considered
instrumental for diversifying the regional economy A measure focused on the tourism
sectorwas thus included within the Axis II This was measure 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo Tourism and
culture were also deemed relevant for the sustainable development of the Rhocircne river
and its valleys Therefore two measures were included under the Axis V These were
measure 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo and
measure 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and
its banksrdquo (ERDF OP 2007-2013)
Table 21 Summary of tourism and culture specific measures
Tourism and culture specific measures Axis ERDF allocations ( of the Axis)
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
II 196 Meuro (24)
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river V 4 Meuro(21)
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
V 35 Meuro (18)
Source Domo 2011
Other measures supporting tourism and cultures within the OP Because tourism is a
relevant sector of the economy of the region other ERDF measures also indirectly
contributed to support it This includes support to innovative enterprises or for
improving energy efficiency of buildings For instance the project concerning the
rehabilitation of the holiday center la Fontaine drsquoAnnibal agrave Buis-les-Baronnies (Axis 3
measure 12 support to energy efficiencyrdquo) had a social and sustainable tourism
development purpose Similarly because the region attaches great importance to the
use of ICTs in developing new cultural products and new modalities of enjoying
cultural experiences creative industries benefited from ERDF financing As an
example the project Arts and Science (Axis 1 measure 4 ldquodevelopment of an
entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo) puts together the work of scientists and
artists to create shows or exhibitions that combine science and the art work in relation
to new technologies Within the same measure another example of innovative project
is DYNAMIT which supported the advanced use of animation physics in 3D animation
and video games industries The cumulative ERDF contribution for the two projects
amounted to EUR 1131911 for a total cost of investment of EUR 2246723 The
urban integrated projects allocated EUR 3659934 ERDF to culture and EUR 71000
ERDF to tourism
Complementarities with other EU programmes Synergies and complementarities with
other EU regional programmes targeting the region are well addressed in the OP The
EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) supports micro-enterprises
in rural tourism The mountainous areas of the region also receive support within the
framework of cross-border or interregional OPs For instance the Alcotra cross-border
programme between the alpine regions of France and Italy includes interventions for
tourism the interregional programme for the Massif des Alpes (POMA) has a measure
for developing and renovating the local tourist offer the OP for the Massif Central
(POMAC) has a measure to develop the tourist potential of the area and the OP Massif
du Jura of Franche-Comteacute region has interventions aiming at improving the existing
tourist offer Finally the axis V of the ERDF OP can also be seen as a complement to
the Interregional Programme for the Rhocircne River that does not foresee measures that
support culture and tourism Overall the measures foreseen by the various EU
programmes do not overlap in terms of target beneficiaries and objectives as areas
that already received support from other EU programmes were not targeted by the
ERDF OP
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
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Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 21
Regional strategy and programmes for the tourism sector Alignment with regional
tourist sector strategies is also high Acknowledging the contribution of the tourism
sector to the economy of the region in 2008 the Rhocircne-Alpes regional council
released a regional development plan for tourism and leisure (Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs ndash SRDTL) The strategy considers tourism
to be an instrument to achieve a more balanced territorial development that is able to
combine economic social and environmental dimensions It addresses the challenges
of increased competition from other European and international regions the impact of
climate change the emergence of new modalities of experiencing tourism activities
(eg slow tourism) and the problems related to the seasonality of tourist demand The
strategy has three operational axes These are i) using tourism to improve the
attractiveness of the region ii) making the tourism offer accessible to everyone and
iii) develop a tourist offer that is based on natural assets (eg agro-tourism eco-
tourism less polluting modes of transport) To achieve these objectives the strategy
undertakes to support local actors with designing coherent tourism strategy
encourage local tourism support tourist businesses and foster innovative tourist
offers The themes of accessible and sustainable tourism as well that of improved
territorial marketing area also relevant for the ERDF OP
The implementation of the strategy is based upon different instruments including the
regional funds for supporting tourist companies (FRACET - Fonds Reacutegional drsquoAide au
Conseil pour les Entreprises Touristiques) the regional sustainable development
contracts4 (CDDRA - Contrats de Deacuteveloppement Durable Rhocircne-Alpes) the regional
contracts for job training (CTEF - Contrats Territoriaux Emplois Formation) and the
network of sustainable tourism associations (TAVS - Tourisme Associatif agrave Vocation
Sociale) (SRDTL 2008)
Regional strategy and programmes for the culture sector Alignment with regional
culture programmes is lower because the concerned OP measure is narrowly set to
promote the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river Traditionally the French
state has had a central and active role in establishing cultural policies and in
promoting access to culture as part of individual development and self-fulfillment The
rationale for the state intervention stems on culture being considered a collective
property to be shared protected and promoted (Council of EuropeERICarts 2014)
Between 2004 and 2011 the share of budget allocated to the cultural sector by the
French regions increased from 2 up to 4 Rhocircne-Alpes has the highest amounts
allocated to the sector As in other French regions the largest chunk of support goes
to performing arts (46) followed by publishing industry (17) and cultural services
(10) (2008 data from the Regional Council web site) A total of 59 performing arts
companies is currently supported by the Regional Council that provides them with
financing for over three years to help them better structure their performances and
compete on the national scale Most interventions in favor of the publishing industry
are targeted to assist a declining industry
A relevant priority theme for the regional cultural policy is the use of ICTs for
developing cultural products that also responds to a national priority The region
established a special fund to support digital artistic creations (Fonds de Soutien agrave la
creacuteation artistique numeacuterique Scan) to support artistic renewal and the emergence of
a new creative economy sector based on ICTs (Associations des Reacutegions de France
2012) None of the concerned OP measures address this issue that is better dealt
4 CDDRA are a partnership tool between the region and the 45 local jurisdictions of Rhone-Alpes Each CDDRA includes a tourism component that can support the following actions local tourism development networking of stakeholders development of cultural tourism and agro-tourism improve accessibility of tourism infrastructure marketing and accommodation development reduce seasonality of tourist flows
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 22
within the measure ldquodevelopment of an entrepreneurial and innovation culturerdquo of Axis
I as illustrated in the two project examples provide above
The Rhocircne River development plan Because of the strategic importance of the Rhocircne
river for the economic development of the region starting from 2004 a specific
strategy framework was developed to coordinate a variety of public interventions
targeting the river and its valleys The interregional programme 2007-2013 for the
Rhocircne river establishes the main lines of actions for a sustainable development of the
river and its valleys It includes two priority areas targeting the sector of tourism and
culture that are managed by the Regional Council of Rhocircne-Alpes In particular
interventions in the field of culture are set to foster a recovery of the river cultural
heritage (identiteacute Rhodanienne) by its inhabitants through actions that take stock and
rehabilitate the river natural and cultural assets and support cultural events related to
the riverrsquos history (eg Saison du fleuve Rhocircne) As a complement to these actions
the tourism component aims at developing sustainable tourism activities along the
riverrsquos valley (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) As a matter of fact the Plan Rhocircne provided
the strategic framework for the entire Axis V including the two measures targeting
the culture and tourist sectors
22 Rationale and objectives of the ERDF strategy in the tourism and culture
sectors
The three measures of the OP pursue different objectives and are all based on strong
rationale for public intervention that are related to different market failures as
illustrated in the table below
Table 22 Summary of rationale and objectives of the measures related to
culture and tourism Sector Major market failure Major change pursued Regional strategic
reference document
Tourism Fragmentation of the market
Missing or underdeveloped market for the primary attraction Information failure on less developed destinations
Diversify the local economy
achieve a more balanced territorial growth Support innovation and competitiveness of the sector Provide a driver for development in economically declining areas
Scheacutema Reacutegional de
Deacuteveloppement du Tourisme et des Loisirs CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Culture Missing or underdeveloped markets Lack of cultureleisure infrastructure
Promote a regional identity social or community inclusion or cohesion
CPIER Plan Rhocircne
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from ERDF OP 2007-2013 and interviews
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development Tourism is an important economic activity for the region both in terms
of income and employment creation However in spite of a good performance of the
sector as compared to other national peers the tourist sector has started declining
from 1995 From 1995 to 2013 the number of overnight stays declined from EUR
1306 to EUR 1135 million ie corresponding to an overall drop of 13 (Observatoire
Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013) Public intervention is perceived as necessary to support
emerging tourist destinations that would help redress existing territorial unbalances
and to renovate the existing tourist offer to better compete with alternative
destinations In most rural areas the private sector fails to develop adequate tourist
services whereas local communities are not used to actively promote their cultural or
natural assets within the framework of well-designed and coherent strategies (Reacutegion
Rhocircne-Alpes 2008) Finally the pursue of social purposes such as accessible tourism
both for low-income groups and people with disabilities also created a strong rationale
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 23
for the public intervention as the lack of uncertainty of profit prospects discourage
private investments Actions planned under this measure generally aims at stopping
the declining trend of tourist flows They are set to promote a sustainable
development approach for the tourism industry and to deploy measures that would
counterbalance the negative effect of climate change such as for the ski stations at
medium altitudes By targeting both public and private tourist operators these
interventions aim at improving local capacities to develop a more attractive tourist
offer and create new tourist tools including by making better use of ICTs
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river The idea of promoting
the Rhocircne river cultural natural and historical heritage is relatively recent and
requires thus to be supported through public interventions that lay the foundations for
further developments (CPIER Plan Rhocircne 2007) In addition the very nature of the
interventions foreseen under this measure (ie promote the river cultural heritage as
a public good and raise awareness about the river cultural heritage) that have limited
commercial components establishes a strong rationale for public intervention
Interventions under this measure are set to promote the rediscovery of the river by
the inhabitants of the region by building upon the riverrsquos cultural and natural heritage
Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
The river Rhocircne is one of the cornerstones of the cultural identity of region However
tourism along the Rhocircne river is underdeveloped especially in relation to the high
number of people that transit every year along the riverrsquos valley to reach the tourist
region of Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur The tourist offer along the Rhocircne river valley is
highly fragmented and there has been little coordination amongst the different public
and private entities involved in developing and promoting tourist sites and attractions
A long-term and shared vision needed to be elaborated to ensure coherence and
coordination of the different stakeholders involved in promoting tourist and leisure
activities along the river In this context financing from the ERDF is seen as a
complement of already planned regional or inter-regional interventions that proved to
be difficult to implement in the past (ERDF OP 2007-2013) By establishing strong
linkages with other public development plans including the Interregional OP for the
Rhocircne river this measure tries to overcome the fragmentation of past interventions
through a better coordination of the riversidersquos communes and integrating tourist
interventions upstream and downstream of the river (eg the ViaRhona bicycle route)
23 The main elements of the ERDF strategy
As illustrated in the table below the ERDF strategy supported a large variety of
interventions including both hard and soft measures
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 24
Table 23 Mapping of measures and typologies of interventions Measure Actions Typology of
interventions ERDF
allocations
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Territorial marketing Investments in infrastructure Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Events
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
171 Development of networks 172 Promotion and dissemination of the river heritage 173 Heritage development 174 Development of communication tools
Infrastructure investment (rehabilitation of sites) Cultural products Diagnostic and counselling
Not available by type of action of typology of interventions
20 Ensure the development of a quality
tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
201 Development of methodological and strategy
tools 202 Set of accommodation standards 203 Structuring and development of existing and new leisure activities 204 Support to integrating projects 205 Development of river tourism
Infrastructure investment
Investment to improve security of access and accessibility Territorial marketing Studies
Not available by type of action of
typology of interventions
Source authorrsquos elaboration DOMO 2011 and Presage
The programming documents do not establish a priority amongst the different actions
or typologies of interventions except for the sub-measure concerning the Restitution
space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development An analysis of the actual
expenditure is needed to match allocations with typologies of interventions and is
provided in the section dealing with the implementation of the strategy Similarly
whereas the programming documents articulate in great details actions and sub-
actions they fail to provide a description of the type of projects that would have been
supported
Each measure had a specific territorial target These were
Declining tourist destinations or areas that have an underdeveloped tourist
potential including for instance the rural departments of Ardeche or Ain Rural
areas were a major target whereas the areas of Massif Central Massif des
Alpes and Massif du Jura that were already covered by the tourism component
of other interregional OPs were not eligible of support
The Rhocircne river These interventions concerned a variety of fluvial rural and
urban landscapes Interventions that support the culture sector mostly targeted
urban areas To ensure a balanced distribution of funds along the Rhocircne river
this was divided in three geographical areas
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 25
Table 24 Distribution of ERDF allocations by geographical areas Geographical target ERDF allocations Meuro Number of planned projects
Region wide 196 Meuro Not defined
Rhocircne river Rhocircne aval from Monteacutelimar to the
geographical limits of the region Rhocircne moyen from Lyon to
Monteacutelimar Haut Rhocircne from the Swiss border
to Lyon
75 Meuro Not defined
Source DOMO 2011
Eligible beneficiaries for the three measures include local associations and groups
public institutions business consortia and businesses museums universities research
laboratories and institutions managing the cultural heritage Because of the nature of
the interventions supported and the lack of markets these measures were overly
geared towards supporting either public sector institutions or not-for-profit
organizations especially in the field of culture Private businesses were not even
included in the list of potential beneficiaries for the projects targeting tourism and
culture along the Rhocircne river (Domo 2011)
24 Governance and supportive features of the ERDF strategy
Governance
The Prefect of Rhocircne-Alpes through its department in charge of regional affairs
(SGAR Secreacutetariat geacuteneacuteral pour les affaires regionals) was the designated Managing
Authority for the ERDF OP on competitiveness and employment 2007-2013 As for the
tourism and culture sectors programming and implementing functions were shared
between the prefect and the regional council This introduced a novelty as compared
to the previous programming period 2000-2006 when the region was a stakeholder
for the two measures5 targeting the tourist and culture sectors and did not have
implementation responsibilities
Within the state services in the region the Direccte (Direction reacutegionale des
entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi) was
the implementing agency for projects included under the measure ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo The regional
council was the Intermediary Body for the entire Axe V targeting the development of
the Rhocircne river valley The directorate for local development policies (DPT Direction
des Politiques Territoriales) was responsible for the implementation of all measures
foreseen under this Axis including tourism and culture
It appears that there was no systematic framework in place to ensure collaboration
between the Direccte and the regional authorities on the measures related to tourism
and culture Having a different geographical target the three measures coexisted
rather than then having being integrated in a single strategic framework
Selection criteria
It was established that all co-financed projects had to follow a sustainable
development approach that is based on pursuing the three goals of economic
environmental and social development through a participatory approach (ERDF OP
2007-2013) In addition to this three horizontal themes were defined as horizontal
qualitative selection criteria and were applied consistently by the authorities
5 These were develop and strengthen the tourist and cultural attractiveness of the Rhocircne Alpes territories and strenghten the adaptation capacity of tourist and cultural operators
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
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um
be
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 26
responsible for the implementation of each measure These were innovation6 ICT and
environment The percentage of selected projects that fulfilled thesecriteria is
displayed in the charts below
Most innovations refer to the type of products delivered whereas partnership
arrangements were most innovative for projects financed under the ldquoDevelop tourism
by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo measure
There is a high percentage of non-reported assessment under the two measures
targeting the Rhocircne river (Figure 22) which is due to the minor relevance of
innovation for this measure as compared to the other measure
Figure 22 Percentage of projects that fulfil the innovation criteria by type of
measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
Many of the selected projects integrate the environment theme (Figure 23) This
reflects the fact that sustainable development and environment protection were used
as key selection criteria
Figure 23 Percentage of projects that fulfil the environment criteria by type
of measures
Source authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE (end of 2014)
6 Innovation was defined along three dimensions namely delivery of an innovative output in terms of products or services implementation mechanism or partnership arrangement Projects that fulfilled more than one criteria were classified as ldquomultiplerdquo
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
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be
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 27
Besides the three thematic criteria more specific selection criteria were identified and
applied to each measure (Table 25)
Table 25 Detailed selection criteria for the OP measures targeting the
tourism and culture sectors Measure Selection criteria
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Improve traffic or waste management economic management of natural resources remarkable leverage effect on the local economy development of all year round tourist activities coherence with other regional strategies improve capacity of local tourist operators
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Inter-regional relevance linkages with other Plan Rhocircne projects co-managed projects improved networking activities knowledge development and dissemination amongst a wide audience mobilization of public and heritage interest potential for dissemination of information
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Management of tourist flows protection of land and river areas development of intermodal transportation coherence with other regional actions coherence with the regional tourism plan development of intermodal transportation economic value added integration within a global tourist project
Source Domo 2011
Among these criteria priority was given to projects which align with existing national
or regional strategies and to the so-called enabling projects (projets structurants)
These are projects that fulfill a number of specific criteria First these projects are
expected to bring economic value added and a leverage effect on the local economy
Second they are based on partnership amongst different institutions and try to
integrate different components of the tourist offer to establish a stronger and more
complete tourist environment (eg accommodation with leisure activities tourist
promotion with leisure activities) Third they are implemented by a beneficiary with a
solid project design and project management capacity The combination of these
criteria effectively allowed identifying interesting projects that were grounded on clear
strategic visions and had the capacity to mobilize different resources and partners In
this respect the two mini-case studies ldquoSaint-Pierre-de-Bœufrsquos leisure center
renovationrdquo and ldquoValorisation of destination Ainrdquo that complement the present report
offer an insight of these types of projects Another remarkable example is the replica
of the Chauvet Cave (Box 21)
Box 21 Rhocircne Alpes regionrsquos flagship project for culture and tourism la
Caverne du Pont DrsquoArc
Situated in Ardegraveche department the replica of the Chauvet Cave which contains replicas of
painting dating back to the Aurignacian Era (ie about 36000 years ago) had a national and international relevance given that it targeted a site that has been listed within the UNESCO list of the World Heritage Sites The project had an ERDF financial allocation of 127 million euros that also included measures to rehabilitate tourist sites in the caversquos surrounding area and a total project cost of 55 million euros The project is unique both for its size (it covers 3000 msup2
of ground and 8180 msup2 of geological facies) and its combination of cultural scientific and technological features All the paintings are reproduced on a scale of 11 in an environment that recreate the original underground environment (eg freshness humidity and darkness) (wwwlacavernedupontdarcorg) From a regional development perspective the project remains highly interesting as its goal extends beyond the creation of a tourist facility and tries to diversify the tourist offer of the
department that is overly oriented towards outdoor sport activities (ADE 2012) The project managed indeed to catalyse a discussion about the quality and the structure of the cultural and tourism offer in the area and made possible the realization of other cultural and tourist projects in the area with ERDF support (eg Valorisation du site archeacuteologique deacutepartemental dAlba-la-Romaine and Reacutehabilitation du site feacuteodal du Vieux Vallon) The project also initiated a debate on environmental and sustainable development issues looking as an example at how to
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 28
promote local and bio food supply to the restaurants of the area (ADE 2012) The project goal was to attract between 300000 and 400000 visitors annually The cave is currently a flagship attraction for the area Since its opening on 25th April 2015 it has been
visited by an average daily number of 3000 visitors and there are already 100000 reserved tickets for the next months (Le Figaro 2015) It remains however to be seen whether the other complementary measures that were designed to use the leverage effect of the cave on the neighboring area are going to materialize
A major weakness in the applied selection criteria is the lack of consideration for the
financial sustainability of projects As a matter of fact the financial sustainability of
projects was not defined as an overall selection criterion to be used consistently
throughout the OP but it rather applied to specific measures or sub-measures (eg
support to the ICT sector) The financial solidity of beneficiaries especially in the case
of cultural associations was assessed to ensure project completion but projects were
not selected for their capacity to generate revenues that help sustain the operational
costs in the future
From the beneficiary perspectives it was reported that selection and eligibility criteria
were too much driven by the Lisbon objectives concerning innovation and sustainable
development This excluded or marginalized some categories of interventions such as
social tourism and supporting measures for renovating the existing accommodation
infrastructure that were deemed relevant by the local stakeholders to respond to local
needs (Ernest amp Young 2010) As an example improving access to tourist facilities to
low income groups from the region was another objective of the OP as well as of the
regional tourism strategy However because of limitation of eligible expenditures it
was addressed only through one project (Augmentation de loffre de seacutejour EEDF agrave
destination des jeunes issus de familles agrave faibles revenus)
Quality of the monitoring and evaluation systems
Standardization of monitoring practices and the finalization of the monitoring system
proved to be a challenge because of the number of different regional and state
authorities involved in implementing the ERDF OP In 2010 a consulting company
(EDATER) was selected to assist the identification and the collection of monitoring
indicators and to store them properly in the PRESAGE (programme for monitoring
managing and evaluation co-financed programmes) database The monitoring system
was finalized and became fully operational in 2010 when monitoring indicators were
fully recorded based on common rules and principles (RAE 2012)
Identification of indicators that monitor the performance of the measures related to
culture and tourism proved to be problematic (Table 26) Output indicators in terms
of number of projects assisted were only set for the measures concerning the Rhocircne
river The target values were defined at the axis level but not disaggregated by
measure
Table 26 Selected output and outcome indicators for measures related to
culture and tourism
Measure Output indicators Outcome indicators
9 Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable development
Not defined Growth rate of attendance of the assisted tourist site
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Number of projects by geographical area
Not defined
Source Domo 2011 and ERDF OP 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 29
The measure ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable developmentrdquo identified the percentage change in the number of visitors
to a site at the end of the ERDF support as outcome indicator (Domo 2011) However
the indicator was not systematically collected from beneficiaries because of difficulties
in collecting this information for certain interventions which did not address a specific
site (eg territorial marketing projects) The need to reduce and minimize the number
of indicators applied to the OP led the managing authority towards identifying a
synthesis indicator that was however not appropriate to account for the variety of
interventions supported
The three target measures were annually monitored in terms of project progress (eg
number of project assisted funds planned and disbursed) and results reported in the
annual implementation report For some projects the annual reports also provide a
qualitative of the most successful projects supported
Use of public-private partnerships
The delivery of the financed interventions was not based on a public-private
partnership as most projects were designed to target public actors and were thus
built upon a public-public partnership involving different territorial authorities A
notable exception is the Chauvet cave project that was financed through public funds
but is operated by a private company (Kleber-Rossillon) within the framework of a
public service delegation contract
Typologies of contracts
As interventions mostly target public actors and were not designed to get an
immediate financial return all ERDF funds under the concerned measures were
delivered in the form of grant
Interventions were identified upon three different modalities i) call for projects ii)
open-end call for projects and iii) identification through national or regional planning
documents (Table 27) Call for projects were used more frequently than in the
previous funding period and were reported to be valuable instruments for ensuring
selection of quality projects avoid dispersion of funding on too many micro-projects
and strengthen relevance of projects to the local contexts thanks to a reinforced
participation of local actors
Table 27 ERDF allocation by typologies of contracts by measure or sub-
measure Measure Typology of contract ERDF amount
91 Use of ICTs for information gathering reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer 92 Support for projects building on natural and cultural heritage and developed with a global territorial approach 93 Restitution Space of the Chauvet Cave and its territorial development
Call for projects Call for projects National strategy
50504
7176835
12703861
17 Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne river
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
5937599
20 Ensure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Open-end call for projects (first come first served principle along with adherence to the Plan Rhocircne)
4140248
Source Presage data at December 2014
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
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from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
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doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 30
Tools for the involvement of the stakeholders and the management of partnerships
In France regional policies and EU Structural Funds are mainly designed and managed
at the regional level but also involve a close cooperation between different regional
and local authorities Each region and departments has a prefect who represents the
state and supervises the services of the State at the regional or departmental level
(ADE 2012) A network of public authorities (reacutefeacuterents Europe) was established to
facilitate the exchange of information and experiences amongst the different
authorities in charge of managing the ERDF programmes The network included
persons responsible for managing the ERDF components within the regional and
departmental prefects intermediary bodies within state services Meetings were
regularly organized during the year and the regional council services were also invited
to participate This mechanism was considered particularly useful to achieve a better
local ownership and representativeness of local issues within the selected projects
(Ernest amp Young 2010)
However it appears that the two services responsible for implementing the measures
concerned by this evaluation the Direccte and the regional council used their own
institutional network of contacts separately
25 The implementation process
Because the three concerned measures were implemented by different public bodies
and followed different delivery modalities the realization of these interventions faced
different challenges
Develop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable
development The decision to use call for projects introduced an innovation in the
system that initially overburdened the responsible services The first two calls for
projects were organized with a short delay that did not give adequate time to support
beneficiaries of the first call in the initial phase of projectsrsquo implementation Projectsrsquo
assessment also proved to be challenging because of the large number of proposals
received (160 for the first call and 101 for the second call to be assessed in six
months) and a lack of clarity concerning eligibility and selection criteria It should be
noted that the first call occurred at a critical time for local communities in the
aftermath of municipal election that led to the deposit of numerous but uncompleted
applications There was an initial concentration of funding that favored the actors that
already had a strong project design capacity and financial absorption capacity This
distortion was redressed in the second call for projects when a more balanced
territorial distribution of projects was achieved (Ernest amp Young 2010)
The phasing of project calls in terms of type of interventions targeted was reported
to be well-structured given that the first call for projects aimed at supporting
feasibility studies and diagnostic analysis whereas the second call was more geared
towards supporting physical interventions and more complex projects that allows to
fully allocate the available funds (Ernest amp Young 2010)
Development of tourism and culture along the Rhocircne river and its valley The
interventions concerning these measures had a delayed start because of the initial
difficulty in identifying projects A risk of under-performance in terms of use of the
available funding and of excessive fragmentation of the available financial envelope
across too many small projects (especially for culture) was reported in the mid-term
evaluation of the OP in 2010 For instance for the measure targeting the culture
sector there was merely 500000 euro of ERDF funds programmed for less than 15
projects at the beginning of 2010 In the same period the number of programmed
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
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doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 31
projects for the measure targeting tourism was equal to 5
The measure related to culture had the highest fragmentation of ERDF credits This
was indeed the measure that supported the highest number of projects in relation to
the funds available This resulted from the large number of projects targeting events
and cultural products (63 projects with an average ERDF contribution of approximately
EUR 38000) In spite of a high number of projects approved under this category the
number of beneficiaries was far more limited as most cultural associations or
institutions received financing for at least two projects For instance the Association
Woodstower7 received four ERDF grants for four consecutive years for putting in place
shows that valorize the Rhocircne river Similarly the performing art company Louxor
Spectacles et Creacuteateurs received six grants for organizing shows along the river
Fragmentation is also related to the high number of applications received under this
measure This was reported to be related to the declining public resources for the
culture sector that made the ERDF funds a vital source of financing Differently the
potential number of applicants for the measure targeting the tourist sector was
structurally limited by the underdevelopment of fluvial tourism in Rhocircne Alpes
Implementation delays were determined by three factors First 2007-2013 was the
first ERDF programming period in which the regional council was acting as
intermediary body It was reported that the staff of the DPT had to familiarize with
new tasks and procedures at the beginning of implementation Secondly the low
familiarity with ERDF procedures for some beneficiaries especially cultural
associations was reported to be another cause of delay as projects needed to be
revised and strengthened before being eligible for approval Changes of the
implementation rules throughout the programming period were also reported to be a
source of instability for beneficiaries As a consequence many follow up actions were
necessary to assist the beneficiaries with the lowest administrative capacity (eg
management of a large number of clarification requests many back and forward of
administrative documentation) These also included site visits that were necessary to
put projects back on track Thirdly there were a limited number of potentially eligible
projects for tourism development along the Rhocircne river
To sum up implementation of the three measures followed a different path that was
determined by the experience of both the beneficiaries of the measures and the
implementing agency For the measure related to culture implementation was more
problematic and close monitoring and assistance had to be delivered to avoid possible
project failures This added additional workload to the responsible public services
The selection procedure and the typologies of intervention financed contributed to limit
fragmentation of allocations in the two measures addressing the tourist sector
Differently the need to support a large number of associations over the programing
period led to high fragmentation of grants in the measure for the culture sector
As for the geographical allocation of the ERDF funds (Table 26) the following can be
noted
Coherently with the ERFD strategy for the tourist sector funds were directed to areas
with an underdeveloped tourist potential This is the case of the rural departments of
Ardeche Ain and to a lesser extent Drome and Loire department Ardeche is the
department whichreceived the highest amount of funding to support tourism
development This is linked to the large investments required for developing the
Chauvet cave project but also includes other type of support As a matter of fact
7 Since 1996 the Association organizes the Woodstower Festival a music and theater festival in the city of Lyon
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 32
Ardeche as compared to the other rural departments of the region has a far less
diversified economy and relies much more on developing tourism as an alternative
economic activity Symmetrically the Haute Savoie Rhocircne and Isere departments
that have a more developed tourist sector and diversified economic activities received
little assistance In contrast with this picture Savoie also a department with a well-
developed tourist offer and infrastructure was the second largest recipient of ERDF
support This is due to the fact that Savoiersquos economy heavily depends on tourism
that is strongly concentrated in a limited geographical area (Tarentaise) Actually in
terms of wealth generated by the tourism sector Savoie is the most developed tourist
department of France (Insee 2014)
Funds for culture were overwhelmingly allocated to the Rhocircne department This is
clearly an asymmetrythat was justified by the fact that most potential beneficiaries
had their siege in Lyon and that there were little alternatives in other areas
especially considering the limited theme addressed by these interventions
Furthermore by concentrating cultural initiatives in Lyon a larger public attendance
was ensured However this is somehow in contrast with the purpose of building a
regional identity upon the Rhocircne river as this would have implied a more balanced
geographical distribution of initiatives
In line with with the objectives set by the ERDF strategy for developing tourism along
the Rhocircne River funds were evenly allocated in the concerned departments As
compared to the other tourist measure these interventions were more evenly
distributed following the concept of developing the river area as an integrating factor
for regional identity The department of Savoy was the largest recipient but
interventions did not concern highly developed tourist areas It is also important to
notice that possibilities to intervene were determined by the river structure and
environmental constraints
Table 28 Geographical distribution of ERDF allocations by type of measure Department Develop tourism by
developing tourism assets innovation and
sustainable development
Promoting the cultural heritage and identity of
the Rhocircne river
Ensure the development of a quality tourism
along the river Rhocircne and its banks
Ain 1046208 179276 710207
Ardeche 14799631 216513 316308
Drocircme 525214 18156 401988
Isegravere 521894 0 128762
Loire 1068622 0 848064
Rhocircne 292789 2993650 434776
Savoie 1349010 41015 1109521
Haute-Savoie 389930 13183 0
Multiple 366852 1257156 190621
Source Authorrsquos elaboration of data provided by the MA
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 33
3 Effectiveness and sustainability of the strategy outputs and results
31 Outputs achieved
At the end of 2013 984 of the ERDF funds for the OP 2007-2013 were allocated to
specific interventions and 621 of payments were already made This made the
Rhocircne-Alpes region one of the top-permoning French regions in terms of ERDF
absorption (RAE 2013) The measures supporting the tourism and culture sector also
achieved a similar good performance (Table 31)
Table 31 Programming and payment rate at December 2014 by type of
measure
Type of measure No of
projects Programming
rate Payment
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 9874 617
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 1207 684
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 10139 635
Source Managing Authority
In spite of an initial risk of under-commitment of funds especially for the measures
linked to the Rhocircne river plan funds were fully committed as demand and project
design capacity of potential beneficiaries proved to be strong Differences in
programming rate were due to the different methods used for allocating funds
Initially the ERDF 2007-2013 OP and the related implementation plan (Domo) did
not set a target number of projects to be used as a baseline to verify whether planned
outputs were achieved In 2011 an updated version of the Domo identified a target
number of projects to be implemented under Axis V However it was elaborated
following a geographical criterion rather than by type of measure and it cannot be
used for the purpose of this analysis
At the end of 2014 approved projects were well progressed Because of the initial
delays completion rate is lower for projects targeting the Rhone river area (Table
32)
Table 32 Number of completed and on-going projects at December 2014 by
type of measure
Type of measure Approved
projects
Completed
projects
Completion
rate
no 9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
117 102 87
no 17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo
80 72 90
no 20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
27 18 66
Source Authorrsquos elaboration from PRESAGE
The average ERDF contribution to all the three measures was 411 beign the
highest for cultural projects (48) and lowest for tourism projects targeting the
Rhocircne river valleys (326) A summary table of the interventions supported by the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
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bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 34
ERDF funds by categories of interventions is presented below
Table 33 Summary table of approved projects by type of measure
Lines of activityActions Ndeg of
projects
ERDF support (total and per project)
Largest of projects at action
level Total
(mil
euro)
Median
(mil
euro)
Minimum
(euro)
Maximum
(mil
euro)
Measure 9 Develop
tourism by developing
tourism assets innovation
and sustainable
development
117 204 005 3299 73
Territorial marketing 73 49 005 3299 099
Pocircle touristique Mode chapeau et
meacutetiers darts (991831) Creacuteation
dune vitrine touristique de lAin
au Parc des Oiseaux (600000)
Infrastructure investment 29 148 015 19505 73
Reacutealisation de lEspace de
Restitution de la Grotte Chauvet-Pont dArc- Tranche 3
(7300638) Tranche 2
(2914791)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
10 05 006 15035 033
Valorisation du patrimoine
touristique naturel et culturel
(339581) Ameacutenagement de la
maison du terroir et du patrimoine
(202000)
Others (events and tourism
development instruments 5 02 003 16238 010
Ardeacutechoise Permanente - Mise en
place dun dispositif de
chronomeacutetrage (198329)
Accompagnement en ingeacutenierie des pocircles touristiques du
patrimoine (93000)
Measure 17 Promoting the
cultural heritage and
identity of the Rhocircne river
80 59 013 8033 37
Infrastructure 6 32 026 45120 37
La reacutehabilitation et la
sceacutenographie du Centre eau et
nature des Allivoz (3758800)
Reacutehabilitation du vieux pont de
Rochemaure (1353204)
Diagnostic and counselling 11 025 013 8033 014
Banque de donneacutees Fleuve
Patrimoine et photothegraveque du
Fleuve Rhocircne phase de
deacuteveloppement 2010 (142854)
Deacuteveloppement du site portail fleuveRhocircnecom (93000)
Events or cultural products 63 245 003 6720 055 La Turbine (556985)Le chant du
fleuve (263154)
Measure 20 Ensure the
development of a quality
tourism along the river
Rhocircne and its banks
27 414 004 568698 19
Territorial marketing 3 018 005 22510 010
Signalisation directionnelle et
dinformations touristiques sur les
tronccedilons reacutealiseacutes par le Conseil
geacuteneacuteral de la Drocircme (103335)
Communication relative au projet
ditineacuteraire ViaRhocircna (84925)
Infrastructure investment 18 387 016 7916 19
Ameacutenagement dun site portuaire
sur la commune de Virignin - phase 2 (1973890)
Requalification de lespace eaux
vives du Pilat Rhodanien agrave Saint-
Pierre-de-Boeuf (1827550)
Infrastructure (improve
security of
accessaccessibility)
2 004 002 21469 004
Creacuteation dune mission dexpertise
en accessibiliteacute des sites du Haut
Rhocircne 2e anneacutee (44561)
Others (studies) 4 005 001 5687 003
Reacutealisation dune eacutetude pour
linteacutegration de la dimension
Deacuteveloppement durable dans le
projet de reacutenovation du Port des
Roches de Condrieu (38850)
Total 224 305 005 468 1412
Source Regional monitoring data base of ERDF Project 2007-2013 (UPDATED AT 31122014) Average co-financing rate = 583
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 35
Funds absorption was driven by infrastructure investments More than 50 of total
ERDF funds went to support infrastructure investments This occurred in all the three
concerned measures although it was more prominent for the tourist sector especially
for projects targeting the Rhocircne river area In the measure addressing the culture
sector infrastructure investments concerned a limited number of projects (75) but
with a large amount of funding as compared to other categories of intervention
Infrastructure investments can be further classified in three sub-categories
Building of new infrastructure These were the largest investments and
concerned the building of new cultural or sport and leisure facilities The most
relevant investment supported by the ERDF in the 2007-2013 period was the
Chauvet cave project that was addressed by a specific sub-measure that co-
financed both the infrastructure (7 projects with a total ERDF contribution of
nearly EUR 97 million) and a number of complementary projects to upgrade
the tourist offer in the area of the cave (10 projects with a total ERDF
contribution of nearly EUR 29 million) In addition to this large scale
investment other support to new infrastructure were set to promote fluvial
tourism by developing new port facilities or recreational areas along the Rhocircne
river For instance two projects for a total ERDF contribution of EUR 679753
supported the development of a fluvial port in the municipality of Virignin
Rehabilitation of existing sites This sub-category includes different types of
interventions that include the rehabilitation of cultural heritage sites (eg
rehabilitation of the Rochemaure bridge on the Rhocircne river ERDF contribution
of EUR 13 million ) or the upgrading of sport and leisure facilities (eg the
development of bathing sites in Ardeche ERDF contribution of EUR 363110)
Improved accessibility of tourist sites This is a rather residual sub-category An
example of these projects is the rehabilitation of a hiking path to make it
accessible to disabled people (Valorisation du site de la Tour dAlbon et boucles
de randonneacutee accessibles agrave tous rendre accessible aux personnes handicapeacutees
le lac des sapins EUR 63725 of ERDF financing) As a matter of fact
accessibility was also integrated in other infrastructure projects and there are
several examples that can be mentioned For instance for the requalification of
the white water sport center in Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf specific facilities were
developed to allow disabled people to practice white water sports Similarly the
requalification of the trail in the National Nature Reserve of Marais Lavours was
also done in order to ensure accessibility
Territorial marketing activities were the second most important categories of
intervention for the tourist sector These categories of intervention can be grouped in
different actions
Qualiteacute Tourism A number of projects were set to assist tourist enterprises to
get the national certification ldquoQualiteacute Tourismerdquo (total of EUR 463000 of ERDF
contributions) Eight local chambers of commerce were involved providing
assistance at different level (eg diagnosis development of improvement
plans coaching training exchange of experiences between professionals) At
the end of 2013 200 tourist enterprises were reported to have been certified
(Rhocircne-Alpes CCI web site) However the project was reported to have a lower
target than expected in terms of enterprises involved This was due to a
perceived lower importance of the national policy concerning the introduction of
this quality standard and to the too many requirements that proved to be
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 36
challenging for small independent and family run hotels in rural areas
Promotion of ICT use Other territorial marketing projects were grouped around
the ICT theme (sub-measure 91 use of ICTs for information gathering
reservation services and promotion of the tourist offer) These initiatives relied
on the use of ICTs to better structure and advertise the regional tourist and
cultural offer They supported a limited number of projects (15) with a total
ERDF contribution of approximately EUR 505000 and an average ERDF
contribution of about EUR 33000 These included 4 interventions for setting up
web sites for tourist information and 3 projects to develop geo-located tourism
services that applied more modern ways of communicating and advertising the
tourist offer This limited support to ICT use in the tourism sector is somehow
in contrast with the emphasis attached to this theme in the ERDF OP
Local tourism development plans Other projects followed local specific needs
related to the advertisement of cultural or tourist sites or assisted local public
authorities in better structuring the tourist offer This is the sub-category that
received the largest amount of ERDF financing as it includes a large array of
interventions A relevant example is the establishment of a showcase facility for
Ain department within the Ornithological Park of Dombes that is included in the
mini case studies that complement this report Other type of projects
concerned the establishment of new tourist route (eg Creacuteer une route
touristique des vins du Beaujolais) or new itineraries within the regional parks
Within the measure concerning the promotion of tourism along the Rhocircne river
territorial marketing activities were a residual category and were all linked to
the via Rhona cycling path
In the culture sector the largest number of projects concerned support to cultural
associations for the delivery of cultural products A general feature of these projects
was that of being accessible to the largest possible public as no fees were charged
This category of interventions can be grouped in different actions
Support to performing art associations This is the most relevant category and
includes 32 projects and a total ERDF contribution of nearly 17 million euros
The average ERDF contribution for each intervention amounted to nearly
54000 euros Support was delivered to cultural associations that organized
shows along the Rhocircne river linked to the cultural and historical heritage of the
river As an example the Woodstower association received funding for four
consequtive years for putting in place a show (une dimanche agrave bord de lrsquoeau)
that proposed street art performances based on a popular local ball
Support for preparation of documentary material concerning the history of the
Rhocircne river This action covers different outputs such as books DVDs or
animated documentaries For instance the association ldquoLes films pour demainrdquo
prepared a short film of 15 minutes and a documentary film 57 min as a
memorial project on the history of the Rhocircne river told by its inhabitants
(26100 euros of ERDF support) The association Panoramistes prepared a
photographic book that describes the Rhocircne river from the Alpes to the
Mediterannean delta (30600 euros of ERDF support)
Support for exibitions or other educational events These interventions
amounted to 13 projects that were carried out by the cultural association
Maison du Rhocircne that had the mission to raise awarness about the Rhocircne river
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
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(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
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e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 37
cultural and natural heritage amongt its inabitants They either consisted in
permanent exibitions or theme-specific workshops having the Rhocircne river as a
common background theme
Studies concerning the tourist and culture sectors were also supported as a residual
category (16 of the total ERDF allocations) These interventions were often
instrumental to support other projects as in the case of feasibility studies or were
used to support diagnostic studies that take stock of the existing cultural heritage of a
specific area For instance support was provided in 2011 and 2012 to develop a
database of the Rhocircne river heritage
No specific problems were reported in terms of achieving the expected outputs for all
the concerned measures as close follow up activities were put in place to assist
beneficiaries in achieving the planned targets For instance only 2 projects were
cancelled for the measures concerning the Rhocircne river
With respect to the sustainability criteria the interventions supported can be classified
in three different categories
Projects for which sustainability is ensured by continuous public financing This is the
case of interventions targeting the tourist sector that had a public institution as
beneficiary organization and were framed within or anchored to regional or national
tourist strategies As an example in the case of projects implementing national quality
systems for hotels and restaurants (Qualiteacute-Tourismetrade and Tourisme et Handicap)
assistance will be further delivered within the framework of national or regional
programmes Maintenance of the infrastructure investments will also have to be
secured through public funding
Projects whose sustainability is uncertain This is the case of projects targeting the
culture sector as public funding for cultural initiatives is set to decline in the coming
years Participation in EU-funded programmes helped small cultural associations to set
up a better organizational structure and to elaborate better business plans that are
building block for further progress However financial sustainability remains uncertain
There was only one reported case of a cultural project (Woodstower) that was able to
secure future financial support from Electriciteacute de France (EdF)
Unsustainable projects This is the case of the assistance provided to Maison du fleuve
Rhocircne (21 projects for a total of 460217 euro of ERDF support) a cultural
association that created more than twenty years ago the idea of a regional cultural
identity based upon the cultural and historical heritage of the Rhocircne river The
association was subject to a liquidation procedure in 2014 as it was not able to
achieve a financial equilibrium (Communiqueacute DRAC Rhocircne-Alpes January 2014) There
was also another reported case in which the intervention was detrimental to the
recipient association as the business plan developed overestimated the actual number
of product sold in the market
No cultural and tourist projects supported during the 2007-2020 were reported to be
the target of future assistance under the new funding period 2014-2020 as culture
and tourism are not any more priority sectors Tourism and culture wonrsquot be
addressed by specific measures but tourist enterprises will be able to receive support
through other measures that target innovation and energy efficiency (Reacutegion Rhocircne-
Alpes 2014) A tourism component will however be included in the 2014-2020
interregional programme for the Rhocircne and Saocircne rivers It will be targeted to
develop tourism along the riversrsquo valleys by better developing the offer of slow travel
modalities such as bicycle tourist (eg ViaRhona) and fluvial tourism Actually the
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
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via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 38
focus on the ViaRhona is the only element of continuity between the two funding
periods Development of cultural and natural heritage will only be addressed within the
framework of the Alcotra and Espace Alpine cross-border programmes
32 Results achieved
The monitoring system in place failed to provide adequate indicators to assess
development projectsrsquo outcomes for the measures addressing the tourism and culture
sectors The original plan to track changes in site attendance was not systematically
implemented as it could not be consistently applied to all categories of interventions
supported by the ERDF
Direct employment creation is the only quantitative indicator of regional economic
impact that was monitored for all measures supported by the 2007-2013 OP This
indicator refers to jobs that were created within the beneficiary organization and does
not account for the possible indirect jobs that were created within the ultimate
beneficiaries of the interventions (eg the accommodation structures that received
assistance under the quality tourism scheme) The indicator has thus some
weaknesses Onone hand it overestimates contribution to longmedium-term
employment as some projects only create temporary jobs that are limited the
implementation of the project On the other hand it fails to consider the possible
employment impacts on the enterprises assisted by a public intermediary
Overall most jobs were created through the Axes I and II accounting for 69 of the
employment envisaged by the 2007-2013 OP This is not surprising as these axes
include mostly interventions which target innovative enterprises and promote
economic activities As for the measures supporting tourism and culture the state of
achievement of this indicator is summarized in the Table below The number of jobs
created through the measure ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the
Rhocircne riverrdquo is impressively high However it remains an open issue whether these
jobs are sustainable in the future as most jobs are likely to have been created for
completing projects For the two measures targeting the tourist sectors the number of
direct jobs created was below the expected targets This is due to the fact that these
interventions targeted the public or semi-public sector and were mostly carried out
with the existing staff
Table 34 Number of expected and created jobs
Type of measure No of jobs (expected)
No of jobs (actual)
9 ldquoDevelop tourism by developing tourism assets innovation and sustainable developmentrdquo
106 55
17 ldquoPromoting the cultural heritage and identity of the Rhocircne riverrdquo 274 272
20 ldquoEnsure the development of a quality tourism along the river Rhocircne and its banksrdquo
36 6
Source Managing Authority
Without result indicators most outcomes of the target measures could only be
assessed through a qualitative analysis that integrates the views of beneficiaries and
stakeholders The following benefits were reported
Improved territorial cohesion Interventions were planned in a way to target emerging
tourist destinations rather than improving the competitiveness of already developed
tourist areas For instance by promoting local tourism along the Rhocircne river two
objectives were achieved On one hand tourist facilities (eg the sport and leisure
center at Saint Pierre en Boef) were established in an area that lacked of tourist
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
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Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 39
attractions On the other hand the development of local tourism allowed low income
groups to benefit from affordable tourist experiences Similarly the interventions in
the culture sector mostly pursued social purposes such as supporting local cultural
associations and granting access to cultural events and products to a large public (eg
the Woostower festival) When relevant projects also included measures for
accessible tourism As an example the cultural association Turbine received funding for
building an elevator that will make its facilities accessible to disabled persons
Increased perception of tourism as income generating activities Interventions helped
local communities with weak understating of tourism sector development practices to
think about how to use tourism for local development as an alternative to declining
agricultural or industrial activities For instance in the case of the project that
supported the development of tourism in the department of Ain (mini-case study) it
clearly appeared that the department had never made an inventory of its natural and
cultural assets for the purpose of attracting more tourists and better structuring of its
tourist offer
Increased used of ICTs in the tourist sector The use of ICTs in emerging tourist
destinations was reported to be underdeveloped The approach followed by the
measure targeting tourism development was to support a limited number of pilot
projects (15 projects) that show the potential of using ICT to support tourist
promotion or improve the attractiveness of a site (eg facilitating access to on-line
information and reservation in Ain department creation of ten virtual visits of
vucanosrsquo sources in Ardeche) However projects were reported to follow an
experimental approach that does not integrate with marketing and commercial
strategies In this area interventions were limited to establish instruments that
improve visibility or usability of sites but were not able to follow the project into a
sort of commercialization phase
Improved capacity of cultural associations in project design and management
Interventions were reported to have helped beneficiaries to improve their fund-rising
capacity and develop more sustainable business plans This resulted in a strengthened
organizational structure that often includes a person dealing with administrative and
accounting issues However involvement of the private sector in sponsoring cultural
activities remained low and was not improved by the 2007-2013 OP
Improved capacity to integrate tourist projects within the public system Areas with an
underdeveloped tourist potential lacked projects that integrate the existing and
fragmented tourist offer Interventions targeting the tourist sectors prioritized projects
that have a systemic impact and involved multiple public institutions The most
relevant example from the 2007-2013 programming period is provided by the project
of the replica of the Chauvet Cave which was regarded as a high national and regional
priority The project was designed to integrate the construction of a flagship tourist
cultural attraction with measures that were set to diversify and expand the local
tourist sector Recently opened the cave has already attracted an impressive number
of visitors although data on wider economic outcomes are not yet available On a
smaller scale the two projects selected as mini-case studies also provide an example
of improved integration of tourist assets
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
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bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 41
4 Conclusions and lessons learnt
The following conclusions can be drawn from the evidence presented in the case
study
The ERDF regional strategy on tourism is assessed as relevant
whereas the ERDF regional strategy on culture is assessed as partly
relevant The inclusion of measures within the OP 2007-2013 that support
tourism in areas that do not have flagship tourist attractions and that can make
better use of their natural and cultural heritage sites was opportune Tourism
was conceived as an instrument to diversify the local economies and create
new job opportunities The ERDF measures for the tourist sector were aligned
with the regional strategy for tourism development (SRDTLRA) and set to
target areas that were not receiving support from other EU-funded programs
(eg POMA POMAC) All interventions implemented along the Rhocircne river area
were anchored to the interregional Rhocircne river plan In this context the EU
interventions provided the additional financing that could not be identified
within domestic public funds Interventions in the field of culture had a limited
geographical scope and theme which reduced the range of possible actions and
also resulted in weak integration between the two sectors of tourism and
culture There were little linkages between the ERDF measure that support
culture and the regional strategic priorities for the sector (eg use of ICTs in
cultural products and services)
Efficiency in implementing the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and
culture is assessed as satisfactory Programming targets were successfully
achieved well ahead the end of the programming period whereas fund
absorption was also good for all the three concerned measures These results
were achieved thanks to a combination of a strong demand for support from
cultural and tourist operators a good project design capacity from local public
bodies and continuous follow up actions from the responsible services of each
measure As compared to the previous programming period a stronger
participation from local authorities in elaborating project proposals was
reported and deemed to deliver projects that were better aligned to local
needs
The effectiveness of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism and culture
is assessed as satisfactory Overall the interventions financed responded to
the objectives set in the strategy In particular for the tourist sector
interventions were geographically focused on areas with an underdeveloped
tourist potential such as the Rhocircne river and addressed local tourism (with
the exception of the Chauvet cave project) The mix of hard and soft measures
allowed to create new cultural or tourist facilities or to upgrade the existing
ones while local capacities in planning and promoting tourism were also
strengthened Interventions in the cultural sector were set to create a regional
identity around the historical and cultural heritage of the Rhocircne river through
the delivery of a mix of cultural products although the geographical
distribution of intervention was too unbalanced
Evaluation of regional development outcomes is limited and based on
qualitative information In the absence of adequate indicators achievement
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 42
of results of the three concerned measures cannot be properly assessed The
MA struggled between the objective of keeping a limited number of result
indicators and identifying synthesis indicators that would have summarized the
result of measures The indicator that was originally identified (ie change in
the number of people that visit a site) was later found out to be of little use
due to the large variety of projects supported A more flexible system wih
indicators specific to each category of interventions could have been
developed Estimates on the impact on direct employment creation have many
shortcomings
Whereas the sustainability of the ERDF regional strategy on tourism is
assessed as likely those on culture is uncertain Interventions targeting
the tourist sector benefited public institutions and were anchored to local or
regional strategies Therefore sustainability is ensured within continuous
financing from the public sector whereas projectsrsquo operations are mostly taken
care by the staff of the recipient public administration In some cases these
projects were also linked to national or regional tourist programmes thus
providing a further guarantee for projectsrsquo continuity Differently culture
projects targeted cultural associations that are more exposed to funding
uncertainty given the declining trend of public support for culture and the
difficulty in putting in place financially sustainable initiatives or to engage
private sponsors
The following lessons can be learnt
ERDF support was key to support interventions that were mostly driven
by social and territorial cohesion purposes (eg accessible tourism
support for declining areas universal access to culture) that are a strong drive
for public intervention The ERDF measures supporting the tourist and culture
sectors allowed to provide financingto areas of the region that generally receive
little support from other ERDF measures This somehow helped to
counterbalance the natural geographical concentration of funding in already
highly developed and competitive areas (eg Lyon and Grenoble) It was also
reported that many projects would have never happened without a combination
of domestic and European funding given the lack of interest from the private
sector to support projects with uncertain returns
The ERDF strategy fails to integrate the two sectors of tourism and
culture Besides the Chauvet cave project which was a large cultural and
tourist project there was little integration of tourism and culture in the ERDF
strategy This was due to two factors First the tourist image of Rhocircne Alpes is
associated to adventure and sport whereas cultural assets are far less known
Secondly interventions in favor of the culture sector were too narrowly
designed around the theme of the Rhodanian identity
The use of call for projects stimulates participation from local actors
and local capacity for project design as compared to project identification
through regional or national programmes It was reported that call for projects
were also useful to have a better quality selection of projects and avoid an
excessive fragmentation of funding that often characterizes interventions in the
two sectors The most important weakness of this instrument of selection is
that it generally favors applicants with stronger capacity to design eligible
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 43
projects The geographical distribution of funding might have been partially
driven by the use of call for projects but it is also aligned with the objective of
the strategy
Sustainability of interventions heavily depends on the continuity of
support from public authorities The sustainability of projects depends on a
case by case basis upon the financial capacity of the responsible public
authorities to maintain or further develop the intervention This was due to the
type of interventions supported and to the social objectives pursued by the
strategy The fact that most projects as those promoting the use of ICT in the
tourist sector were conceived as pilot initiatives also made sustainability more
uncertain The use of public-private partnership was not explored with the only
notable exception of the Chauvet cave project
The use of ERDF funds to support small cultural associations is
contested The large majority of beneficiaries receiving support for delivering
cultural products or services were not for profit organizations Some were small
cultural associations that had never before tried to access to ERDF support
because they did not have the necessary administrative capacity in place
Some argued that participation in the ERDF programme helped these
associations strengthen their administrative structures and elaborate more
solid financial plans Others were less convinced about the appropriateness of
co-financed projects for supporting this category of beneficiary In these views
the complexity of ERDF administrative project procedure was seen as a
potentially destabilizing element for unprepared and less solid beneficiaries As
a matter of fact all supported interventions delivered the expected outputs and
only in one case the intervention proved to be detrimental to the recipient
organization However many follow up actions had to be put in place to ensure
projectsrsquo completion
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 45
References
ADE 2012 Study on the relevance and the effectiveness of ERDF and Cohesion
Fund support to Regions with Specific Geographical Features ndash Islands
Mountainous and Sparsely Populated areas Report prepared upon request of the
European Commission
Associations des Reacutegions de France 2012 Actes des Assises nationales Culture et
Reacutegions
Chambre Reacutegionale de Commerce et drsquoIndustrie Rhocircne-Alpes 2010 Key figures
for Rhocircne-Alpes Region 2009-2010 edition
Council of EuropeERICarts 2014 Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in
Europe 15th edition ISSN 2222-7334
Insee 2014 En reacutesumeacute - Rhocircne-Alpes Mise agrave jour octobre 2014
Insee La Lettre 2011 Rhocircne-Alpes un secteur culturel deacuteveloppeacute Ndeg 155 -
novembre 2011
Insee Rhocircne-Alpes 2013 Tourisme Une bonne anneacutee gracircce agrave lhocirctellerie et agrave la
clientegravele eacutetrangegravere Le bilan eacuteconomique 2013 - Dossier ndeg 159
Insee Analyses Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 En Rhocircne-Alpes le tourisme deacutegage une
richesse importante Ndeg 02 - juillet 2014
Insee - La Lettre 2012 La culture en Rhocircne-Alpes 17 300 eacutetablissements et 45
000 actifs exerccedilant une profession culturelle Ndeg 172 - avril 2012
Imaginove 2013 Feuille de route strateacutegique 2013-2018 du Pocircle de compeacutetitiviteacute
Imaginove Contenus amp usages numeacuteriques
Le Figaro 2015 Preacutehistoire la guerre souterraine Friday 29 mai 2015
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les Indicateurs de lrsquoeacuteconomie du
Tourisme
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2013 Les sites touristiques de Rhocircne-Alpes
eacutetat des lieux Freacutequentation Partage drsquoexpeacuteriences grands projets
Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme 2015 Meacutemento du tourisme 2015 11e
eacutedition Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes Direction de lrsquoEconomie de la Recherche du Tourisme et des
Technologies Service du Tourisme Durable 2008 Scheacutema reacutegional de
deacuteveloppement du tourisme et des loisirs
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2011 La Strateacutegie Reacutegionale de Deacuteveloppement Economique
et drsquoInnovation 2011-2015
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel FEDERFSE RhocircnendashAlpes
2014- 2020
Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2014 Programme Opeacuterationnel Interreacutegional FEDER Rhocircne-
Saocircne 2014-2020
Ernest amp Young 2010 Evaluation agrave mi-parcours du PO FEDER 2007-2013 Rhocircne-
Alpes
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Programme
Operationnel Fonds Europeen de Developpement Regional (Feder) Rhocircne-Alpes
2007-2013
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2012 Avis de lrsquoautoriteacute environnementale
sur la modification du programme compeacutetitiviteacute et emploie Rhocircne-Alpes 2007ndash
2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 46
Prefeacutecture de la Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes et Reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 Document de
mise en œuvre (Domo) Rhocircne-Alpes 2007 ndash 2013
Serge Maury Philippe Bertrand 2013 La crise eacuteconomique creuse les eacutecarts de
niveaux de vie en Rhocircne-Alpes Insee Rhocircne-Alpes La Lettre Analyses Ndeg 197
SGAR Mission Europe 2012 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2012 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
SGAR Mission Europe 2013 Rapport annuel drsquoexecution 2013 PO FEDER Rhocircne-
Alpes 2007-2013
Prefecture Rhocircne-Alpes Region Rhocircne-Alpes Region Languedoc Roussillion
region Provence Alpes Cocircte drsquoAzur Region Bourgogne Region France Comteacute
2007 Contrat de Projets Interreacutegional Plan Rhocircne 2007-2013
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 47
Annex 1 List of people to interview during the week 25-30 May
Table A11 List of people interviewed Name Organization Role Contacts
Anne Rizand Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Chargeacute de la Mission Europe
annerizandRhocircne-alpesprefgouvfr 0472616582
Guiol-Bodin Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes SGAR
Responsable eacutevaluation 0472616596
Ceacuteline Issard-Guillot
Preacutefecture Rhocircne-Alpes DIRECCTE (direction reacutegionale des entreprises de la concurrence de la consommation de leacuteconomie et de lemploi)
Chargeacutee daffaires
celineissard-guillotdirecctegouvfr 0472682927
Aureacutelie Bougel Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes Direction des programmes europeacuteens
Responsable du service programmation et pilotage PO FEDERFSE
abougelRhocircnealpesfr 0426734039 0678575463
Agnegraves Hollande
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Chargeacutee de mission Fleuve Rhocircne POP FEDER
ahollandeRhocircnealpesfr 0426735881
Christain Biral Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
cbiralRhocircnealpesfr 0426734417
Sandra Mazeacute Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacute de mission eacutevaluation
smazelRhocircnealpesfr 0426735045
Alexandra David
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Instructeur FEDER
adavidRhocircnealpesfr 04 26 73 61 39
Michegravele Billou-Ferry
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes - Uniteacute Fleuve Rhocircne Direction des Politiques Territoriales (DPT)
Reacuteferent Instruction FEDER-FSE
MBILLOU-FERRYRhocircnealpesfr 0426735500
Christelle
Lepoutre
Observatoire du
Tourisme Rhocircne-Alpes
Chargeacutee dEtudes ChristelleLepoutreRhocircnealpes-tourismecom 04 26 73 31 81
Anne RUSILLON amp Raphael Perchoux
CCI Haute Savoie
Chargeacutee de Projet Deacuteveloppement Commercial Chargeacute de Projet Europe
arusillonhaute-savoieccifr 04 50 33 72 65
Coralie CATRAIN
Conseil Reacutegional Rhocircne-Alpes-(DTMP)
Responsable de Service Service Tourisme Durable Direction Tourisme Montagne et Parcs
04 26 73 44 22 ccatrainRhocircnealpesfr
Yasmina Gentil CCI nord Isere Responsable Tourisme 04 74 31 44 07
ygentilnord-isereccifr
Karl Joly Aintourisme Directeur 04 74 32 31 30
kjolyaintourismecom
David Barranco Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Directeur Communauteacute de Communes du Pilat Rhodanien
0033 474875371 dbarrancopilatrhodanienfr
Magali Cranga Community of communes Pilat Rhodanien
Responsible tourisme et loisirs
mcrangapilatrhodanienfr 0776021453
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 48
Annex 2 Data on the regional socio-economic context
Table A21 A general overview of the social and economic conditions of the
region
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or
pp)
Total Population (million) 61 64 54 636 656 30 4984 5072 18
- male (million) 30 31 56 308 317 31 2430 2476 19
- female (million) 31 33 53 328 338 30 2554 2596 16
Population Education level ( of tertiary educacated Level 5-6) 281 343 62 pp 266 321 55 pp 235 285 50 pp
GDP per inhabitant (PPS Index Number EU=100) 109 109 00 pp 108 109 10 pp 100 100 00 pp
Total Employment rate (15-64) () 658 665 07 pp 638 636 -02 pp 652 64 -12 pp
Male Employment rate (15-64) () 717 708 -09 pp 687 674 -13 pp 723 693 -30 pp
Female Employment rate (15-64) () 600 624 24 pp 590 599 09 pp 581 587 06 pp
Number of Employed (15-64) (million) 26 27 36 26 26 04 2169 2114 -26
Number of Male Employed (15-64) (million) 14 14 11 137 136 -12 1200 1141 -49
Number of Female Employed (15-64) (million) 12 13 64 122 125 22 969 973 04
Total Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 66 84 18 pp 84 103 19 pp 72 108 36 pp
Male Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 58 84 26 pp 78 104 26 pp 66 108 42 pp
Female Unemployment rate (15 and over) () 75 83 08 pp 9 102 12 pp 79 109 30 pp
People at risk of poverty or social exclusion () na na na 190 181 -09 pp 244 245 01 pp
NEET rate 15-24 () 92 82 -10 pp 103 112 09 pp 109 130 21 pp
- male () 88 73 -15 pp 96 109 13 pp 98 128 30 pp
- female () 96 91 -05 pp 110 114 04 pp 122 132 10 pp
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics) 2011 instead of 2013 Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 49
Annex 3 Cultural and natural assets of the Rhocircne-Alpes region
UNESCO sites
Historic centre of Lyon (1998)
Decorated Cave of Chauvet Pont drsquoArc Ardegraveche (2014)
Source httpenwikipediaorgwikiList_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_France
Towns and Lands of Art and History (lsquoVilles et Pays dArt et dHistoirersquo according to a
classification developed by the French Ministry of Culture)
1 Aix-les-Bains
2 Albertville
3 Chambeacutery
4 Pays du Forez
5 Pays des Hautes Valleacutees de Savoie
6 Saint-Etienne
7 Pays de Saocircne-Valleacutee
8 Pays de la Valleacutee drsquoAbondance
9 Valence
10 Vienne
11 Pays du Vivarais meacuteridional
12 Annecy (agglomerate)
13 Pays Voironnais (ex- Pays des Trois Vals ndash Lac de Paladru) (agglomerate)
Source httpwwwvpahculturefractualitespdfVpah_liste_06_06_2014pdf
National natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc national de la Vanoise (N01)
Parc national des Ceacutevennes (N04 shared with Languedoc-Roussillon)
Parc national des Eacutecrins (N05 shared with Provence-Alpes-Cote drsquoAzur)
Regional natural parks (classification Ndeg)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Vercors (R08)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Pilat (R13)
Parc naturel reacutegional de la Chartreuse (R28)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Massif des Bauges (R31)
Parc naturel reacutegional des Monts dArdegraveche (R40)
Parc naturel reacutegional Livradois-Forez (R22 shared with Auvergne)
Parc naturel reacutegional du Haut-Jura (R24 shared with Franche Comteacute)
Largest ski resort areas (some shared with other regions)
Chamonix
LrsquoAlpe-dHuez
Les Deux-Alpes
Les Arcs
Macot-la-Plagne
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 50
Peisey-Vallandry
Le Grand-Bornand
Val dIsere
Valmeinier
Val Thorens
Most popular regional sites by number of visitors
Name (Department location) Number of visitors
lsquoAiguille du Midirsquo cableway (ski area of Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
811234
Country area of lsquoVizillersquo (Vizille Isegravere) 719092
lsquoMontenvers Mer de Glacersquo railway ndash (glacier in Chamonix Haute-Savoie)
693390
lsquoBreacuteventrsquo cableway (Chamonix Haute-Savoie) 454713
lsquoBasilique of Arsrsquo (Ars-sur-Formans Ain) 432481 Source Departmental tourism economic research institute of Rhocircne-Alpes ORTMITRA tourist attractions with over 10000 visitors 2013 in laquoKey figures for Rhocircne-Alpes Regionraquo Chambre de commerce et drsquoindustrie de reacutegion Rhocircne-Alpes (accessible online at httpwwwRhocircne-alpesccifreconomiechiffres2015cc-RA-GB-2014-2015pdf)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 51
Annex 4 Site of cultural interest in Rhocircne-Alpes
Source Source Observatoire Reacutegional du Tourisme
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 52
Annex 5 Key data about the tourism and culture sectors Table A51A A general overview of the tourism sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of tourism in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 27 26 -01 pp 32 32 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourism () 29 34 05 pp 34 37 03 pp 42 45 03 pp
Workers employed in the sector of tourisme (number) 73263 89694 224 869556 950803 93 9374510 9699973 35
Business Local Units in tourism (Incidence on the total local Units) () 106 104 -02 pp 98 95 -03 pp 85 84 -01 pp
Business Local Units in tourism (Number) 32340 37031 145 298765 338886 134 1896297 1889562 -04
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 111 161 448 1270 1511 190 7513 8769 167
Total arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments inhabitants per 1000 inhabitants 1828 2510 373 1996 2305 155 1507 1729 147
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 83 120 449 866 1058 222 4936 5536 122
Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 28 40 444 404 453 121 2577 3232 254
Share of non-resident arrivals in tourist accommodations () 252 252 -01 pp 318 300 -18 pp 343 369 26 pp
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (total) (million) 257 488 902 3020 4036 337 23520 26415 123
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per 1000 inhabitants 4232 7637 805 4744 6153 297 4707 5208 106
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (residents) (million) 175 343 954 1934 2723 408 13442 14499 79
Nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments (non-residents) (million) 81 145 789 1086 1313 209 10078 11921 183
Share of non-residents nights spent in tourist accommodations () 316 298 -19 pp 360 325 -34 pp 428 451 23 pp
Total nights spent by residents + non residents (total) per km2 587 1117 903 477 638 338 517 580 122
Number of bed-places in hotels and similar establishments (million) 63 62 -09 57 50 -120 281 303 80
Net occupancy rate of bed places 444 444 00 pp 483 477 -06 pp 420 413 -07 pp
Number of establishments 3604 3631 07 28778 28246 -18 424661 561988 323
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of I- Accommodation and food service activities and N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation services and related activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 For tourism we have considered I- Accommodation and food service activities N79 - Travel agency tour operator reservation service and related activities 2012 instead of 2007Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate) Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
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doi 102776457602
KN
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6-5
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talo
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um
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
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Ex post evaluation of Cohesion Policy programmes 2007-2013 focusing on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Fund (CF) ndash Work Package nine Culture and Tourism
October 2015 53
Table A51B A general overview of the culture sector
Rhocircne Alps France EU
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
2007 2013 ∆ 2007-2013 (
or pp) 2007 2013
∆ 2007-2013 ( or pp )
The share of culture in regional economy (measured in terms of GDP or added value) na na na 26 26 00 pp 26 26 00 pp
Workers employed in the sector of culture () 17 21 03 pp 21 23 02 pp 23 23 00 pp
Number of workers employed in the sector of culture 44441 55130 241 532333 599599 126 5038695 5029484 -02
Business Local Units in culture (Incidence on the total local units) () 26 23 -03 pp 25 24 -01 pp 20 20 -01 pp
Number of business Local Units in culture 7896 8288 50 77498 87653 131 453942 460542 15
For FR and EU-28 Gross value added (at basic prices) on the All NACE Activities of 59 mdash Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities 60 mdash Programming and broadcasting activities 90 ndash Creative arts and entertainment activities 91 ndash Libraries archives museum and other cultural activities 93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities 2008 instead of 2007 2008 instead of 2007 2012 instead of 2013 for culture For culture we have considered J58 - Publishing activities J59 - Motion picture video and television programme production sound recording and music publishing activities J60 - Programming and broadcasting activities G476 - Retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores Note Variations (∆ 2007-2013) are expressed in percentage variation between two years () when figures are expressed in values (as for total population) and in pp (percentage points) when they are referred to indicators already expressed in (ie total employment rate)
Source Eurostat (Regional Statistics)
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bull more than one copy or postersmaps
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(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
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doi 102776457602
KN
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[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
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- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
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HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS
Free publications
bull one copy
via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
bull more than one copy or postersmaps
from the European Unionrsquos representations (httpeceuropaeurepresent_enhtm)
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(httpeeaseuropaeudelegationsindex_enhtm)
by contacting the Europe Direct service (httpeuropaeueuropedirectindex_enhtm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) () () The information given is free as are most calls (though some operators phone boxes or hotels may charge you)
Priced publications
bull via EU Bookshop (httpbookshopeuropaeu)
Priced subscriptions
bull via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union
(httppublicationseuropaeuothersagentsindex_enhtm)
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-
doi 102776457602
KN
-02-1
6-5
14-E
N-N
[Ca
talo
gu
e n
um
be
r]
- Cover pages WP9 rhone alples
- RHONE ALPS_case
-