Zemgale planning region

Zemgale Planning Region is an institution supervised by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development with the status of a derivative public person. It unites six municipalities, which after the regional reform "cover" 20 former municipalities and two large cities - Jelgava and Jēkabpils. Currently, the Planning Region comprises the national capital, Jelgava, as well as the regions of Aizkraukle, Bauska, Dobele, Jelgava and Jēkabpils, which include three development centres of regional importance - Aizkraukle, Bauska and Dobele.

The Development Council, composed of the heads of each of the six municipalities, has decision-making power, with one of them elected as chair for a two-year term, renewable for another two years, on a rotating basis. The task of the administration and its specialists is to plan and coordinate the development of the region within their respective spheres of competence, to define its priorities and guiding principles in the long term, as one of the main functions of the Planning Region is also to draw up and update Development Programmes and to ensure that they are put into practice.

Therefore, the NDPD not only plans and coordinates public road transport in the region, coordinates cultural and vocational education activities, but also develops and implements regional and international projects that are in line with the development priorities of Zemgale, mainly based on the recommendations and needs of municipalities, trying to cover as much territory as possible.