Reducing inequalities, ensuring economic recovery and inclusive and sustainable long-term growth with focus on co-creation for growth and inclusion, by engaging citizens, social partners, public authorities, businesses including SMEs, and social entrepreneurs, are key for the future of Europe. The trend of rural depopulation faced by many European countries and regions, is generating areas considered “Empty Europe”, who upfront specific and related challenges such as: demographic ones (ageing population, emigration to urban areas, low birth rates) and economic ones (high unemployment rates; low activity rates; high representation of primary sector in GDP) and a lack of public services. For example, in Hungary, rural areas are characterized by a strongly aging population and high unemployment rates, and decreasing the number of farming companies. This is especially true for the selected target region South Transdanubia.At the same time, these territories have a rich culinary heritage, gastronomy and/or food production, which at the same time can generate opportunities. The consumer perception of quality, ecological and sustainable food production stemming from these rural areas provides ample opportunities. But these are not only related to the creation and development of food, gastronomic and culinary products, but could also serve to attract tourism, as culinary experiences are an important aspect of cultural tourism and make local heritage an important economic factor. Many of the participating (remote) regions have in tourism an important source of income.SAGA aims to contribute to reducing inequalities, ensure economic recovery and inclusive and sustainable long-term growth through a co-creation and collaborative focus, engaging all relevant stakeholders, develop and validate a training programme for populations living in “Empty Europe”, but who at the same time have a rich culinary heritage and/or food production. SAGA develops and evaluates an innovative training programme for those living in these types of rural areas, addressing their pressing issues such as unemployment and economic and social revitalisation, giving them the knowledge, competences and skills to develop social enterprises in gastronomic, food and culinary heritage fields. More specifically is targeted to- (Potential) Individual social entrepreneurs belonging to disadvantaged groups (due to social, economical or geographical disadvantages).- (Potential) Individual entrepreneurs from the food, gastronomic and culinary heritage sector who want to align their business idea to the social challenges identified.Special attention and effort will be made to address women of these areas (directly or through the NGOS), as they are underrepresented in the employment or economic activity rates, have higher levels of unemployment and frequently have additional labour market barriers due to their caretaking role (e.g. for young children or elderly family members).These groups, although the primary target and beneficiaries, are not the only ones the programme engages as learners, it also foresees addressing NGOs and civil society organisations working directly with and for them. For instance staff from an NGO working with rural women can use the training programme to acquire skills and competence to create a social enterprise to provide employment opportunities to their beneficiaries, but also to support them in the creation of their own social enterprises. This generates a cascade effect which enhances the reach and impact of the programme further than by only addressing the inhabitants directly.The establishment of (collaborative) social enterprises provides an opportunity for professional and economic development. Through the use of action learning and e-learning methodologies on co-creation and entrepreneurship skills, SAGA, enhances the skills needed for the creation of socially innovative and impactful, collaborative social enterprises. The focus of the programme is on co-creation, co-sharing and co-operation as basis for survival of the envisaged enterprise, as well as on the particularities related to the ideation, creation and running of a social enterprise (such as social value creation and social impact measurement skills), within the specific field of gastronomy and food production/elaboration. Social value creation and social impact measurement skills