7th National Networks’ Meeting

The 7^th National Networks’ Meeting was opened by representatives of Maltese institutions: Kenneth Scicluna from the Funds and Programmes Division of the Ministry for European Funds, Equality, Reforms and Social Dialogue, and Marco Dimech from the Agriculture Directorate of the Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights. They welcomed participants to Malta and highlighted that the focus on climate and water resilience was very timely, as rural areas are increasingly experiencing the effects of climate change. This is of considerable relevance in Malta, where water is one of the most critical resources for viable agriculture, and the proximity of urban and rural areas poses specific challenges. In addition, they stressed the key role of the NNs in connecting people across all MSs, as well as in light of developing National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPPs) for the next programming period.

Hugo Almeida (European Commission – DG AGRI, Unit D1 ‘Rural areas and Networks’) underlined the relevance of networking to address climate resilience. He reminded participants of the most recent EU-level initiatives: the open call for experts to form the Water Resilience Stakeholder Platform in support of the EU Water Resilience Strategy, as well as the recently adopted Communication on Integrated Wildfire Risk Management.

The EU CAP Network team - Marie Permingeat, David Lamb, Pacôme Eyenga and Valdis Kudins - provided updates on recent activities, including Networking Mapping featuring NN organisational models, priorities and activities planned, cross visits for Operational Groups, and an overview of recent evaluation activities on green architecture, soil protection, and ex ante evaluation for next CAP. The next edition of the Agricultural and Rural Inspiration Awards – ARIA 2026 was also announced.

Tommaso Codazzi (EU CAP Network) presented the context for revising the Communication Strategy of the EU CAP Network with the objective of improving cooperation with the NNs to make networking visible, encourage participation and interaction via storytelling, and build a joint narrative. The actions will include improved coordination among NNs and the EU CAP Network, e.g. through the NN communication cluster.

Cristina Rascon and Veronika Korcekova (EU CAP Network) provided an overview of the National Networks’ work in thematic clusters. The clusters are groups of NNs that meet regularly to exchange ideas and experiences on specific topics. They are led by NNs and help create synergies. Current thematic clusters are working on: communication and stakeholder engagement; green architecture; regional antennae; CAP monitoring and evaluation; and rural youth and generational renewal. Two more clusters kicked off following the 6^th NN meeting in Bulgaria and are linked to LEADER and Smart Villages, and NRPP consultations.

NN representatives shared examples of their work, which included:

Elvira Ventosa (Spanish NN) presented ‘Seeds of the Mediterranean’, a newly established initiative by NNs from the Mediterranean cluster. The idea for this joint initiative came up in last year’s in-person meeting of this geographical cluster, and it aims to organise a series of webinars (approximately three per year) to give greater visibility to innovative projects and exchange practice on various topics. The first webinar took place in March 2026 and focused on water management in Mediterranean regions.

In the framing presentation, Kaley Hart (EU CAP Network) highlighted the implications of climate change for food systems and food safety. Climate resilience can be understood as taking action to prepare for the impacts of climate change, such as floods, wildfires, heat, storms, drought, or hail, both now and in the future. She noted that the cost of inaction will exceed today’s investments.

Kaley outlined links to relevant EU policies – also beyond the CAP - and, together with colleagues Pacôme Eyenga and Valdis Kudins, she presented relevant work of the EU CAP Network on this topic. This includes, among others, the Thematic Group on Improving Water Resilience through the CAP, the publication CAP Evaluation Insights: Climate Change and the Conference ‘Water Resilience in Agriculture: Innovation in Practice’.

Eight posters, prepared with input from the NNs (all available on the event page), provided insights and inspiration into how NNs address different aspects of climate resilience in rural areas through various approaches and formats. These include:

Awareness-raising campaign on eco-schemes, including a video series, Wallonia-Belgium (shared by Xavier Delmon, Walloon NN)

This interactive session explored in detail different elements that need to be considered to facilitate NN action on climate resilience. Group discussions allowed the participants to share some insights:

Reflecting on the information discussed, participants formed teams with the aim of developing an NN action plan on climate resilience. Each team created a visual action plan in a tree structure, detailing stakeholders to be involved, resources and evidence required, expected outcomes and ways to monitor progress.

The main insights from this exercise were the following:

Actions on climate resilience that the NN could implement immediately could include: creating a working group to decide where to start with the action plan and define the next steps; identifying relevant funding sources; organising events and networking activities; developing a communication strategy with well-targeted communication actions; and raising awareness on this topic, e.g. through peer-to-peer exchanges.

Giuliana Keller (European Commission – DG AGRI, Unit D1 ‘Rural areas and Networks’) closed the meeting by highlighting the main takeaways from the day. She stressed that the examples of NN collaborations – bilaterally and in clusters - that are in place provide tangible results and show what networking actually is. This is the right time to explore what networks can do to address climate risks and show that working together brings even stronger and long-lasting results.

In Malta, water management is not just an environmental issue but one of the long-term sustainability priorities for rural areas and communities. A field trip organised by the Maltese NN took the participants to visit two projects that support water management, showcasing the positive impact of EU funds – both Cohesion Funds and the CAP:

A hydroponic farmer who actively uses New Water as part of his production system. The farmer benefits from advisory services funded under the CAP Strategic Plan.