Local development policy in a societal crisis: municipal–industry dialogues in Sweden during Covid-19

Abstract

This paper analyses local development policy by investigating how this worked during a crisis situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic from spring 2020, with major effects on the economy. This empirical study covers local government in Sweden. The results reveal two major findings. First, that decentralized dialogues between local government and industry, being a key facet for local growth policy, were exposed to challenges in striking a balance between nurturing a sense of a shared interest versus upholding the understanding of divergent roles, between the municipality and businesses. Second, that the dependencies for local development policy on the central state were still vital. This is a reminder of the importance of being careful to understand what decentralized development policy refers to and how this involves resources for local actors to adapt this policy to local conditions, as advocated through the ideal of bottom-up approaches for local development.