Les mutations de l’action internationale des régions françaises

Abstract

The external action of French regional authorities is an old and well-established policy. The Régions, established in 1982, are the youngest French regional authority entities. Upon their creation, they developed ambitious international action, marked by decentralized cooperation development relations. Since 2016, there has been a turning point in internationalization regional policies that are moving from international solidarity to pro-domo interest: priority for economic regional attractiveness, development and influence, shifting intervention towards emerging countries and ceasing relations with regional authorities in developing countries. According to numerous observers, these evolutions may be explained by financial constraints, the generational change in elected representatives and the perceived social requirement for returning to the French regions. It mainly questions the role of the regions as main actors to contribute in meeting the world challenges in the fields of climate, migrations, security, fight against inequality and development.