The West Pannon Regional Development Council founded the West Pannon Regional Development Agency non-profit company as one-person owner. The Agency began its activity on the 1st of July 1999 with headquarter in Sopron. In the interest of the balanced operation in the region, the company set up offices in the five towns of county rank.

Its main task is to ensure the work of the Regional Development Council, as well as to realize the objects of the Regional Development Programme. In addition to the decision preparation and the tasks of implementation, the Agency plays an important role in the establishment of the regional "Future prospects" and it aims to initiate as many people as possible in the joint thinking and work.

In course of the activity, the Agency established wide relations of co-operation with regional, national and international organisations, it launched many new initiatives, it applied many strategies, it coordinated the writing of approximately thirty regional programme documents and it manages yearly more billions Forint of competition resources.

The main activities of the Agency

• it takes part in the secretary's tasks and administrative jobs of the founding working organisation, as well as in the tasks decision preparation and implementation necessary for the working of the council, including the preparatory tasks and administration in connection with the meetings of the experts and of the working groups;
  
• promotion of the co-operation of the participants of the regional development of the Region West Pannonia in order to find joint interests and tasks;
  
• grant of subvention for establishment of institutions of regional development of the region, for its development, as well as for the harmonisation of the work of the organisations which carry out the tasks in connection with regional development;
  
• aid of the territorial development councils of the counties, coordination of their regional objectives and activities;
  
• co-ordination works in connection with the preparation of the regional development programme, assurance of relations of the programme at national and regional level, as well as at the level of the counties and small regions;
  
• it helps and follows with attention the realization and working out of the decentralized development programmes coordinated by the council in connection with the regional development programme. it takes part in the financial foundation of the of the regional development programmes, in the concentration of national and international resources for regional development, as well as in the increase of the territorial effectiveness of investments;
  
• it contributes to the familiarizing and presentation of the European Union's practice of regional development, as well as to the formation of the Hungarian practice;
  
• it coordinates and carries out the tasks of programming and implementation in connection with the regional supporting programmes of the European Union as well as with the national subvention resources referred to the decision power of the council;
  
• it promotes the establishment of cross-border regional co-operations.
  

The Agency carries out its activities through the following special fields:

Implementation of programmes: management of projects realising from decentralized resources of innovation and from estimates of regional development as well as tasks of programme management: expressing opinion on the preparation of invitations of tenders, publication of invitations of tender, receiving of tenders and their formal evaluation, requesting to complementation of the tenders, secretary's tasks of the experts' committee, preparation of supporting contracts, project management, receiving of invoices. Secretary's tasks of the Regional Monitoring Committee, technical and financial control, check of the contents, as well as the co-operating tasks of the organisation of the Regional Development Operational Programme.

Strategic planning: programming tasks of the region, co-ordination of the National Strategic Frame of Reference at regional level, preparation of the independent regional operational programme, representation of regional interests, operation of the Regional Network Planning Institute.

Project development: generation of projects, developing of project ideas, operating of the database START (KEZDET), coordination of the Project Preparation Fund, establishment of the regional information society.

Regional Advisory Network of the National Development Plan: it is a network which's establishment was supported by the National Development Office and was created in the framework of the Regional Development Agency in all regions at the beginning of 2006. The aim of the network is to promote the development of small regions from EU resources by advising and by giving information. The advising activity is connected with the organisation of the now working National Development Plan I (AVOP, GVOP, KIOP, HEFOP, ROP) and with the preparation for the National Development Plan II that will launch from 2007.

Regional coordination: operating of the regional development council and its organisation, coordination of partnership relations with sectoral and professional organisations of the region, co-ordination between the regions, increase of regional capacity and preparation.
Regional marketing: tasks of regional communication and marketing, publicity and PR.

International relations: finding of new international opportunities, connections, tasks of the Brussels Representation of the West Pannon Region.

Pannon Business Initiative: promotion of the co-operation of economic development organisations of the region, taking part in the establishment of regional clusters in the fields of motor industry, electronics, wood and furniture industry, thermal tourism, fruit production, textile industry, logistics and eco-cultivation. Organisation of the management of the Pannon Automotive Cluster: for the operation of the cluster, the society established the PANAC Division which operates within the organisation of the society but as an organizational unit with independence and with separate management.

Regional innovation: Pannon Novum Regional Innovation Agency of West Pannonia was established with the co-operation of more partners of consortium within the framework of the Agency for the co-ordination of regional innovation processes, for encouragement of the propagation of knowledge, for providing innovation services and for integration in a system, as well as for organisation of technological innovation networks.

Relations of the Agency

Network operations as well as open partnership relations in the implementation of the tasks make it possible that the Agency can rely in its work on collaboration of many regional organisations. The colleagues of the local and county governments, of the associations of small regions, of the de-concentrated public organisations of the region as well as of the organisations of economic development and of institutions of higher education and research and development help the Agency with their work in order to fulfil the tasks in the interest of the region and the Regional Development Council.

Through the partnership relations, the activity of the Agency influences on:

• the life of the region's inhabitants,
  
• the activity of the participants in regional development or concerned professional organisations,
  
• the operating of the decision making organisations at the level of the settlements, of the small regions and of the counties,
  
• the activity of the region's business participants,
  
• the work of national and international decision making organisations.
  

The Agency plays an important role in the establishment of West Pannon and national co-operation networks, as for example:

• cross-border international networks,
  
• co-operation network of the Hungarian regions,
  
• multiple partnership-organisation networks within the region (interbranch organisations, small regions, professional workgroups),
  
• regional network of economic development organisations (as part of this the Pannon Business Initiative)