Partnerskap i samförstånd? En studie av den regionala partnerskapsmodellen ur ett intresseperspektiv

Sammanfattning: In 1998 a new regional development policy was introduced by the Swedish government. A central feature in the policy was the formation of partnerships at the regional level. The partnerships were meant to consist of local and regional stakeholders, representing a great variety of interests, who would collaborate in order to improve regional development. The new policy was promoted, besides being more efficient, as a way to broaden political participation and to break male-dominated structures. This thesis discusses whether the regional partnership actually favours ?women's interests?, in terms of how the relationship of power between women and men is constituted by the model. At a theoretical level, it is argued that partnerships are distinguished by formal status, a horizontal relationship between the participants and a policy based on an achieved agreement. These premises are evaluated through a gender approach. An empirical perspective is provided by interviews with participants in the regional partnership of Skåne. The results of the study are ambiguous. It can not be ruled out that the regional partnerships are more inclined to reproduce existing structures than to altering them.