Het Goud van Noordwest

Gold in the ground.
Nowhere else in the Netherlands has as much gold been found as here in North-West Friesland. Our mounds are like treasure chambers; we have discovered sparkling jewellery in the ground, glistening coins and gleaming precious metals. This tells us that, up until the year 1000, this region was one of the richest areas in our country. With a thriving North Sea trade and international contacts. Through hard work, often against better judgement, human hands shaped our landscape, the mienskip: each other! Harlingen, Waadhoeke and the north-western rural part of the municipality of Leeuwarden are set to strengthen the region’s economic structure through a unique collaboration between education, government and business. We know that the residents here are happy, but on the other hand, North-West Friesland scores lower economically. And that there are challenges in finding sufficient and skilled staff.

ᴡᴇʀᴋᴇɴ ᴀᴀɴ ᴇᴇɴ sᴛᴇʀᴋ ɴᴏᴏʀᴅᴡᴇsᴛ-Friesland.
The programme team of Het goud van Noordwest (working title for the implementation of the Socio-Economic Action Programme – SEAP) is focusing not only on boosting innovation in the economy, but also on retaining talent, improving accessibility and fostering better cooperation between education and the labour market. Het Goud van Noordwest has been funded since 2024 through the Central Government’s Regio Deals (2022–2023 by the municipalities of Waadhoeke, Harlingen and the rural border area of the municipality of Leeuwarden). The programme aims to strengthen the region through carefully selected business cases.