LEADER, a new social order, and the Central- and East-European countries

The paper considers the relevance of LEADER to the context of the CEECs and , in particular, to Hungary. The main argument is that the LEADER approach represents one of the most likely paths for socio-economic development. The theoretical approach of paper adopts political economy and actor network t heory to conceptualize LEADER as a move from direct intervention towards a new indirect regime of market relations interpreting LEADER as participativ e redistribution. The paper analyses the major disparities that exist betwe en conditions in the CEECs and the Eu rurality and the consequences of post -socialist transformation. It is argued that, in the case context, the stre ngthening of civil society, its institutions and their control (monitoring) over development system are necessary components of a LEADER-type approach so as to offset power of bureaucracy and the economic elite.