**6. Conclusion**

The research on rural development carried out by the UNLP was a result of the university's increased involvement with society and its surroundings. As a result, the university's contribution facilitated work which benefited the community and also reinforced academic training among degree students, through the work experience they took part in across different communities. This work has facilitated the creation of cooperative processes between the university and the community in Punta Indio, with a dual objective: (a) the creation of a development strategy to strengthen the socioeconomic base and; (b) the development of a competence process with the local action group for managing projects according to IPMA standards, based on three leader specifications applied across the region. The purpose of developing competencies in the community is deeply linked to the idea of strengthening the capabilities of the developed group leaders and being at the very heart of project management and development in rural areas. In order to develop these competencies, it was necessary to incorporate a series of factors aimed at achieving the objectives of the development across three areas of competence: technical, behavioral and contextual. From the competence process that took place, it was clear that the leader specification used by the most elements from the three areas is "local action group or partnership." As would be expected, the skills of those who have to decide which projects should be chosen and the reasons why, relate to: the project's requirements and objectives, quality, project structure, teamwork, problem solving, etc., among others elements. All the elements that commit and motivate people's activity and confidence to make their work more reliable ultimately guarantee the sustainability of the activities carried out. The experience achieved the following results: (1) creation of the LAG in Punta Indio: "Amigos del Parque Costero Sur"; (2) creation of a development strategy with 10 main priorities, 17 measures and 154 specific development actions to achieve. The LAG's activities have so far produced 18 projects, focused on the following areas: assessment of local production, training, promoting tourism heritage; protecting and preserving the environment and treating places of interest for Punta del Indio.

The local action groups have great potential in countries such as Argentina, when it comes to carrying out rural development. The creation of these local governance structures is a key element of a new concept of planning for rural development, based on a territorial focus and decentralized management.
