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Entities developed to foster cross-border cooperation, such as working communities and Euroregions, are conceived as mechanisms of democratisation through the decentralisation of regional or\/and local governmental bodies. However, scholarly debate suggests that the top-down policy-making process that is characteristic of cross-border programmes seems to cast doubt on the fulfilment of a European participatory democracy. In this respect, the cross-border cooperation process seems to contribute an added value to the dilemma of the European democratic deficit. The objective of this paper is to present a regional contribution to this debate through a study of local experts\u2019 perspectives on the implementation and impact of cross-border cooperation policies in the southern Portugal\u2013Spain border region and the possibilities for local and social participation. This paper utilises data from two related investigations in the southern cross-border area between Portugal and Spain, including qualitative interviews, focus groups and content analysis of secondary data. The results reveal a positive attitude towards the recent regional top-down initiatives of European integration, although local experts question the potential for the inclusion of local perspectives in cross-border initiatives. In addition, during this period of economic crisis, political contradictions may be observed, and political initiatives related to the Spanish\u2013Portuguese border may hamper the existing cross-border flows and dynamics of progressive integration. In this sense, local authorities play an important role as the nexus between transnational institutions of cross-border cooperation and the inhabitants of border regions.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1177\/0969776413518781","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2014,1,29]],"date-time":"2014-01-29T21:20:48Z","timestamp":1391030448000},"page":"468-480","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":12,"title":["Reporting a bottom-up political process: Local perceptions of cross-border cooperation in the southern Portugal\u2013Spain region"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"23","author":[{"given":"Teresa","family":"Gonz\u00e1lez-G\u00f3mez","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Huelva, Spain"}]},{"given":"Estrella","family":"Gualda","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Huelva, Spain"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2014,1,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"bibr1-0969776413518781","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s11524-006-9052-7"},{"key":"bibr2-0969776413518781","volume-title":"Practical Guide to Cross-Border Cooperation","author":"Association of European Border Regions (AEBR)","year":"2000","edition":"3"},{"key":"bibr3-0969776413518781","volume-title":"White Paper on European Border Regions","author":"Association of European Border Regions (AEBR)","year":"2006"},{"key":"bibr4-0969776413518781","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.5771\/9783845210834"},{"key":"bibr5-0969776413518781","volume-title":"Decentralisation of Future Interreg Programmes: Operational Programmes with Sub-Programmes","author":"Association of European Border Regions (AEBR)","year":"2010"},{"key":"bibr6-0969776413518781","volume-title":"Improving Governance in Programmes and Projects, Letter to DG REGIO, European Commission","author":"Association of European Border Regions (AEBR)","year":"2010"},{"key":"bibr7-0969776413518781","unstructured":"Association of European Border Regions (AEBR) (2013) Regions. 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