England's Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) were established in 1999 to spread economic prosperity and opportunity to everyone in the nine regions of England.
The Regional Development Agencies are helping to create prosperity across England. They are strategic leaders, bringing together views of the people who live and work in each region, and combining these with a unique set of business and economic insights to make the most of the opportunities globalisation brings.
To do this, they are strengthening and growing regional economies, guided by the principles of sustainability to ensure a healthy long term future for everyone. Each RDA is working with partners to build on their region's natural assets, develop the knowledge-based economy, revitalise places and meet the needs of regional businesses.
The RDAs provide strategic direction for economic development, ensuring the needs and opportunities for every region are taken into account. They work to make lasting improvements in the economic performance of all regions and to reduce the gap in growth rates between the regions.
The RDAs focus on the specific regional priorities that drive economic growth. They support business development and competitiveness by encouraging public and private investment, and by connecting people to economic opportunity. They work to improve levels of education, learning and skills, and do all that they can to enhance their region's environment and infrastructure.