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Regionalisation in Azerbaijan: a state within a state #RoR2017

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The Republic of Azerbaijan is part of the Eastern Partnership, which is an initiative that enables closer political, economic and cultural relations among the EU, its member states and 6 eastern European partners. Azerbaijan belonged to the Russian Empire until World War I, during which period the Empire was dissolved. In 1918, Azerbaijan declared independence and established itself as the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. This first Muslim republic in the world only existed for two years, from 1918 to 1920, before the Soviet Army invaded Azerbaijan, which subsequently became part of the Soviet Union. Upon the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Azerbaijan re-established its independence. However, despite a cease re in place since 1994, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its conflict with Armenia over the predominantly ethnic Armenian Nagorno- Karabakh region, which declared itself independent from Azerbaijan in 1991.

The Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan states that it is a presidential republic with three branches of power – the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The president exercises overwhelming authority over the three branches, which demonstrates that the Azerbaijan system is a strongly centralized presidential one. In fact, although Azerbaijan’s system of governance can be considered three-tiered nominally, the local and municipal tiers are just an extension of the top tier, in which is the president is afforded the greatest authority.

A highly centralised government

The local tier of government, which is composed of Local Executive Authorities (LEA), can only be considered as such nominally, as they do not have independence and simply implement the decisions of the central government. A legal basis for this lack of decentralisation can be found in Article 124 of the Constitution, which stipulates that “heads of executive power bodies carry out executive power locally; heads of executive power bodies are appointed to their posts and dismissed by the President of the Azerbaijan Republic; the limits of authority of local executive power bodies are determined by the President of the Azerbaijan Republic”.

This lack of decentralisation can also be found in the municipal tier, as the implementation of their competences is controlled by the LEA, who are legally inclined to carry out the orders of the president of Azerbaijan, as mentioned in Article 124 of the Constitution. This same clause allows the President to define the limits of competences of the LEAs, meaning that the setting of boundaries and limits of municipal powers is subject to presidential discretion.

The European Charter on Local Self-Government

The overwhelming power of the president may seem to be limited by Articles 142-145 of the Constitution and the European Charter on Local Self-Government. Articles 142-145 of the Constitution define the key principles of local self-government including those related to municipalities and their competences. In addition, the European Charter on Local Self- Government, which was ratified by Azerbaijan in 2002, requires Azerbaijan to guarantee autonomy and exclusivity of powers to the municipalities. Nonetheless, despite the authority vested in Articles 142-145 of the Constitution and the European Charter on Local Self- Government, these clauses are not reflected in the Law on the Status of Municipalities, as municipalities cannot decide on local issues.

The Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic

There have been no substantial public administration reforms over the the past 25 years since Azerbaijan has gained its independence; neither municipalities nor LEA possess independence in decision-making. The only subnational authority that has self-governing powers is the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, which is a landlocked exclave of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

According to Chapter VIII of the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the status of Nakhichevan is that of an autonomous state, which can define its own constitution and laws, within the framework of the Azerbaijani constitution and laws. It stipulates that “legislative power in Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is implemented by ‘Ali Majlis’ (legislature) of Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic; executive power is implemented by the Cabinet of Ministers of Nakhichevan, and judicial power by the law courts of Nakhichevan”.

The Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic has its own competences. According to Article 138 of the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Nakhichevan Ali Majlis is competent concerning the following: “elections to Ali Majlis of Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, taxes, routes of economic development of Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, social maintenance, protection of environment, tourism, and protection of health, science, and culture”. In addition, according to Article 144, the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic has the right to establish its own taxes.

by Susannah Go

The Report on the state of Regionalisation in Europe.

More than 40 experts contributed to this work, by delivering detailed reports about the state of regionalisation and multilevel governance in chosen European countries. The study covers 41 countries, and each country report is based on a similar structure, thereby allowing a comparative approach among all studied countries.

  • The first part of the report gives the political impetus from the main European stakeholders
  • The second part of this report entails a summarised version of the country reports. The objective is to provide interested readers with a short overview of the main features of regionalisation in various European countries. The complete versions of the country reports are available on the AER website, under LINK
  • The third part provides a thematic approach based on the main findings delivered by the country reports and the current state of regionalisation in Europe. The trends and outlooks lead to open questions on the future of the regions in the European landscape, and more broadly on the role of subnational authorities in the shaping of the continent.
  • The fourth part gives the floor to the actual regional decision-makers in Europe, across a series of interviews and statements by Presidents, Vice-Presidents and elected representatives of the European regions.

Over the next months, we will be focusing on a different European country’s approach to regionalisation. During these months, look out for #RoR2017 on Twitterand/or Facebook and follow us at @europeanregions.

Strong European regions are a pathway to a stronger Europe.

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Turkey and EU grant scheme: Izmir is calling EU partners on accessible tourism and disaster management

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The AER member region,  İzmir Metropolitan Municipality (TR), is working on the submission of projects under the Town Twinning Action between Turkey and the EU Grant Scheme and is urgently looking for partners to complete the partnerships.

Two potential projects are considered, both with the purpose of enhancing living standards.

1. First project idea: services for citizens with disabilities and accessible tourism

The overall objective is to focus on applied methods for overcoming and removing the obstacles from disabled people’s life and to establish a long-term cooperation between the partners involved through seminars, conferences, workshops among other activities.

To this extent, İzmir Metropolitan Municipality – which has a strong background on this topic – is searching local authorities in the European Union with experience on disabled citizens and accessible tourism.

2. Second project idea: training on disaster management issues

The objective sets within this project is the sharing of knowledge and the exchange of good practices on methods used for vocational training service provision as well as roadmap for accreditation process according to the EU standards.

On this wise, İzmir Metropolitan Municipality – which counts internally on specific bodies equipped with recent technologies to develop preventive activities to avoid disasters – is searching specifically fire departments that have training centres providing training services within EU standards.

If you are interested to learn more about these projects or to be involved in the partnerships, please come back to us by 14th March 2018.

Contact

European Projects

Agnese Pantaloni

Phone: +32 2 400 10 52
E-mail: a.pantaloni(at)aer.eu
Skype ID: agnesepanta
Languages: it, en, pt

Articles by Agnese

  • EU funding
  • Calls for projects and tenders
  • Partner search

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The essential guide to contributing to the work programmes

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Spring is work programme definition season at AER! On the occasion of the Spring Plenary meetings in Arad, members of the three thematic Committees will decide what they would like to do together and how they will leverage regional initiatives via the network. The below elements will help you make the most of this opportunity.

Rule nº1: everything is possible

The main idea is the following: if you want to carry out something within the network, just do it! Any idea is welcome!

The actions members can implement via the committees are diverse: project development, organisation of a workshop, seminar, international conference, study visit, brokerage event, breakfast briefing, webinar, collection of good practices, elaboration of a political report based on the experience of regions etc.

To have it included in the work programme, members should:

  1. Share their idea in the relevant Committee plenary meeting. This will be done in workshop style (see below). Members should explain what they would like to do and how they would like to implement their action.
  2. Explain how other regions will benefit: visibility? contacts? new collaborations? benefits for other regional stakeholders…
  3. Explicit what support they would need from other regions: speakers? Ideas? Partners for a project? Contacts to a specific stakeholder? Support for an advocacy action? Advice…
  4. Agree with other members on upcoming steps and be specific!

Rule nº2: everything is possible

The topics addressed in the three AER Committees are the following topics:

  1. Economy and regional development
  2. Social policy and public health
  3. Culture, education and youth

Because these topics are rather broad, many policy areas can be addressed within the different Committees. The topics which have been addressed recently give an idea of what is possible but shouldn’t be considered as a limit. As long as an action fits with the AER values, is in line with the AER priorities and has support from other regions, it can be included in the Committees work programmes.

Committee 1 works on issues covering innovation, economic development and SMEs, Cohesion Policy, transport and mobility, renewable energies and rural development. For the past year, there has been a strong focus on supporting the collaboration of regional innovation stakeholders. Members in partiular discussed the implications of the rise of artificial intelligence, on regional policy making. Long term investments and green investments are also high on the Committee 1 agenda as illustrated by the collaboration with the R20.

Committee 2 is supporting members in implementing e-Health services and exploring the potential of integrated care. It aims at building leadership on change management and innovation in the public sector. Active ageing is a major topic, especially for cooperation at EU level. Inclusion is also a key topics. Committee 2 members have started to collaborate with Committee 3 on the topic on youth mental health, exploring the possibilities for project development and sharing good practice.

Committee 3 focuses on culture, education and youth policies. The Committee has been particularly active in the fight against school drop-out. This resulted in the implementation of an ERASMUS+ interregional project to share good practices and improve regional policies for youth inclusion and empowerment and the publication of a handbook with good practices. Committee 3 furthermore shared regional good practices in the field of culture for inclusion and cultural heritage.

How this will be done

As with the London Spring Plenaries, Participants will be seated around round tables, where each table will work around one topic (or set of related topics). They will share their own ideas & develop jointly actions on the different topics the Committees are working on.

The 3 plenary meetings will be held separately and consecutively so that members are able to participate in all meetings, allowing for synergies & cooperation between Committees.

Members of the AER Youth Regional Network, the Summer Academy and the Eurodyssey programmes are invited to join the process as well so that they can provide ideas on how their work could integrate and feed the work of the committees.

At the end of the session the different actions will be brought together on a flip-chart and organised according to the 3 main categories:

  • Advocacy/ Lobbying
  • Projects
  • Good practice exchange

This document will then be adopted as the Committee’s action plan.

How to prepare?

In order to get involved AER members can

  • identify the needs they have in their region which could be addressed via the AER network
  • liaise with their colleagues from other regional departments to identify needs
  • define an activity they would like to carry out in the Committees
  • think about how other members could contribute and benefit from this activity
  • Join the AER Committees online community in order to already share and test ideas with other members
  • think how they can support other members who have suggested joint actions

What is a Committee?

The AER Committees are the backbone of the network’s activity. They are the place where knowledge and experience exchange happen and where new collaborations are shaped. To this end Committee members meet at least twice a year on the occasion of their Spring and Autumn plenaries. Workshops are organised along with the statutory meetings in order to dig deeper in specific topics and identify areas for policy innovation. Through experience sharing, including both good and bad practices, AER members engage in mutual learning. Whenever a need arises for focused cooperation on a topic, specific projects are set-up, to ensure the experience exchange will be sustainable and co-funded.

 

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Regionalisation in Montenegro: not regions, but municipalities #RoR2017

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An ancient Balkan state, Montenegro came under Ottoman control at the end of the 15th century, but became an independent kingdom from 1910 to 1918. Montenegro then joined the newly formed Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, which became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929. In 1991, 4 of the 6 Yugoslav republics declared independence, leaving Montenegro and Serbia to form a new republic in 1992, which was renamed the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro in 2003. Montenegro left the State Union in May 2006 by a popular referendum, and became an independent country once again. On 22 October 2007, the new Constitution of Montenegro was proclaimed. Montenegro became a candidate for EU accession at the end of 2010, and negotiations were opened in June 2012.

According to the current legislation, there is no administrative division of regions in Montenegro; thus, there is no decentralisation at the regional level. In fact, the constitution does not identify any entities on the regional level, although there were administrative regions in the past. The country adopted the Law on Regional Development in 2011, which introduced three statistical regions: the Coastal, Central and Northern regions. However, these regions were only established for statistical purposes with no legislative or implementing powers.

Self-government and municipalities

Despite the lack of decentralisation at the regional level, strides towards decentralisation have been made at the level of the municipalities. Currently Montenegro has 22 local self- government units and 2 urban municipalities. The local self-government units are: the Capital City of Podgorica, the Historical Capital of Cetinje, municipalities of Andrijevica, Bar, Berane, Bijelo Polje, Budva, Danilovgrad, Herceg, Novi, Kolašin, Kotor, Mojkovac, Nikšić, Petnjica, Plav, Plužine, Pljevlja, Rožaje, Šavnik, Tivat, Ulcinj and Žabljak. The urban municipalities are Golubovci and Tuzi; and they are a subdivision of the Capital City of Podgorica.

The conditions for decentralisation at the level of the municipalities in Montenegro were first established with the adoption of the Constitution in 2007. The right of local self-government is guaranteed in Article 22 of the Constitution. The Montenegrin system of local self-government is elaborated upon in Chapter 4, which identifies municipalities as the basic form of local self- government. The autonomy and financing of municipalities is specified in Articles 116 and 117 of the Constitution. Article 116 states that municipalities can constitute their own budgets, and are financed by their own resources and the state’s. Article 117 grants municipalities autonomy in carrying out their duties.

the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro

The legal framework for decentralisation also includes the Law on Local Self-Government. This law, which was adopted in 2010, outlines the specifics on the functioning of the municipalities and provides details on the structures, decision-making procedures and tasks of the municipalities. As laid out in Articles 16 and 127 to 130 of the Law on Local Self-Government, municipalities were provided with the means to form an association which represents their interests; subsequently, the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro (UOM) was formed.

The UOM is a national association of local authorities in Montenegro, which aims to develop local democracy and realize common interests of local government units, to improve organisation, work and functioning of the local government, to create conditions for developing various forms of cooperation in all areas of the local community’s work in Montenegro, and to cooperate with international organisations and local government unions. To this end, UOM is engaged in developing and improving the legal system and the position of the local government, accomplishing mutual cooperation between local governments in order to address the local population’s interests, and cooperating with international organisations of local governments and other international organisations.

Local finances

In addition to the UOM, another step towards decentralisation was taken with the Law on Local Self-Government Financing, which establishes the financial autonomy of the municipalities. According to Article 5 of this law, municipalities are partly funded by their own resources. These resources include real estate tax, surtax on personal income tax, local administrative charges, local communal charges, fees for utility equipment of construction land, fees for the use of municipal roads, fees for environmental protection, resources from the sale and rental of municipal property, income from capital (interests, stakes and shares, etc.), fines imposed in misdemeanour proceedings, revenues from concession fees for performing communal a airs and other activities, revenues collected by municipal bodies, services, and organisations through their own activities, revenues from grants and subsidies, and other revenues set by the law.

A wide range of competences

Competences of the municipalities are wide-spanning. They cover the fields of local development, urban and spatial planning at the local and regional level, construction permitting, construction land development and management, performance and development of communal affairs, maintenance of communal buildings and communal order, environmental protection, water management, agricultural land, social welfare, transport, tourism, culture and sports, investment policy, protection and rescue of the local population, and consumer protection.

by Susannah Go

The Report on the state of Regionalisation in Europe.

More than 40 experts contributed to this work, by delivering detailed reports about the state of regionalisation and multilevel governance in chosen European countries. The study covers 41 countries, and each country report is based on a similar structure, thereby allowing a comparative approach among all studied countries.

  • The first part of the report gives the political impetus from the main European stakeholders
  • The second part of this report entails a summarised version of the country reports. The objective is to provide interested readers with a short overview of the main features of regionalisation in various European countries. The complete versions of the country reports are available on the AER website, under LINK
  • The third part provides a thematic approach based on the main findings delivered by the country reports and the current state of regionalisation in Europe. The trends and outlooks lead to open questions on the future of the regions in the European landscape, and more broadly on the role of subnational authorities in the shaping of the continent.
  • The fourth part gives the floor to the actual regional decision-makers in Europe, across a series of interviews and statements by Presidents, Vice-Presidents and elected representatives of the European regions.

Over the next months, we will be focusing on a different European country’s approach to regionalisation. During these months, look out for #RoR2017 on Twitter and/or Facebook and follow us at @europeanregions.

Strong European regions are a pathway to a stronger Europe.

Follow AER!
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Eurodyssey in Valencia

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Hello Four New Interns!

Ayuntamiento de Alzira, offering creative and practical solutions to many of citizen´s demands has been hosting volunteers and interns for several years. As we said goodbye to our two interns from France and Madeira, we recently welcomed four new interns entering via program Eurodyssey.

Their projects include European Projects Management, Local Development and since this year our interns will also help out with Tourism Promotion and Arboriculture.

Program Eurodyssey consists of five months of practical experience and one month of intensive language training in Valencia in the beginning of their stay. That helps interns to understand more about local culture and lifestyle and to integrate more easily.

Altogether 35 participants from ten different European regions have a chance to enter the program in one call and to take the opportunity to elevate their skills in international environment and learn more about local history, culture and people.

Let’s meet them! Left to right:

Fabio (Madeira, Portugal), Aurélie (Franche-Comté, France), Sara and Coraline (Belgium)

 

The original publication can be found here. Visit Eurodyssey website for internship opportunities!

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Regionalisation in Czech Republic: between independent and delegated competences #RoR2017

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The Czech Republic is a country located in central Europe. It comprises the historical provinces of Bohemia and Moravia as well as the southern tip of Silesia, which are collectively often called the Czech Lands. At the end of the World War I, with the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the state of Czechoslovakia was established. The democratic and post-communist Czechoslovakian state lasted only four years (1989-1993). Indeed, on January 1, 1993, Czechs and Slovaks decided to dissolve the union of their nation-states. As the Czech Republic, the new country joined the European Union (EU) in 2004.

Regions: territorial communities of citizens

In the Czech Republic, in accordance with the law on regions, a region is considered a territorial community of citizens who have the right to self-government. At the same time, a region is a public corporation with its own property, that it administrates independently under the conditions stipulated by law and in accordance with its budget. Regional bodies include the Regional Assembly, Regional Council, President and Regional Office. The president can also set up additional bodies. Several tasks are carried out independently by regions (independent regional competence), whereas other tasks are fulfilled on behalf of the state, on the basis of delegation (delegated regional competence).

The Czech Republic is divided into 13 regions: Karlovy Vary Region, Liberec Region, Moravian- Silesian Region, The Pardubice Region, The Ústí Region, Vysočina Region, Zlín Region, South Bohemian Region, Hradec Králové Region, The Olomouc Region, The Pilsen Region, Central Bohemia Region and Southern Moravia Region. With the City of Prague, they form the fourteen greater territorial self-governing units of the State. According to EU statistics, these fourteen units are considered NUTS 3 regions.

Regional Governance

Czech regions are administrated by an elected Regional Assembly. The president of the Czech Republic declares elections to the regional assemblies at least ninety days before they are to be held. Every Czech citizen over 18 years of age with a permanent residence in the region has the right to vote. Foreign citizens permanently residing in the region’s territory have the right to vote as well. Voters can also be elected as member of the assembly.

Regional Assemblies are elected for a period of four years. Election wards correspond to the territory of each region. Only political parties, movements and coalitions can contest elections. Seats are distributed proportionately to those candidates who received at least five per cent of all valid votes. Elections to the regional assembly took place for the first time in 2000, and 33.64% of eligible voters took part in them.

Competences of the regions

Within the framework of their own creation of norms, regions issue commonly binding regional ordinances pertaining issues within the region’s independent competence. They also produce regional decrees concerning issues within the region’s delegated competence. Both types of regulations must be in accordance with the law; in addition, decrees must be in accordance with other legal regulations issued to carry out the law as well. The state can interfere in regional decisions related to independent competence only if required by the protection of the law and in ways permitted by law.

Within the framework of their independent competence, regions can submit proposals for legal regulations and to the Constitutional Court. They can issue commonly binding ordinances, co-ordinate, approve and secure territorial development programmes, approve land zoning documentation for the region’s territory, establish measures to develop regional tourism and decide on the basic transportation service in the region. In addition, they can make decisions on regional property transactions, which includes acquiring and transferring real estate, providing subsidies to civic organisations and municipalities, as well as forgiving debts.

In the Czech Republic, regions do not have autonomy in taxation, which is established by the Czech Parliament. The financing system of local administrations is continuously developing. During the first two years of the regions’ existence only a provisional resolution was in place: according to it regions were financed mainly through government subsidies, granted for specific purposes. As required by law, regions are currently in charge of the areas of regional development, highway maintenance, transportation, schooling, social care, culture and health care facilities. However, finances given to regions to cover these tasks independently have proven to be insuficient.

Association of Regions in the Czech Republic

In June 2001, one year after the regional system was put into effect, the Association of Regions in the Czech Republic was founded. It is a private interest group that aims at promoting the regions’ joint interests. All Czech regions, as well as the City of Prague, are part of it. In 2002, regions became the recipients of a portion of shared taxes, which amounted to 3.1% in 2004. The Czech Republic is currently working on a reform of public finances, which is expected to increase the portion regions receive in shared taxes. Regions are asking to change the public financing system because in its current form it does not reflect their changing competence. In addition, regions consider such system not sufficient to cover the extent of new tasks they are in charge of. Therefore, they are advocating a legislative amendment that would support sufficiently financing the performance of these new capacities.

Czech Regions and the European Union

The Czech regions are affected by the European Union legislation in many ways. Regions are currently actively connected to projects and programmes financed by EU structural funds. The Czech Republic’s share of tapped EU finances is strongly influenced by regions that have the necessary administrative capacity. Some regions have also opened a permanent office in Brussels in order to monitor ongoing regional policy decisions taken by European institutions. Taking into account the EU’s statistic methodology, the Czech Republic is also divided into 8 NUTS 2 regions: NUTS 2 Prague, NUTS 2 Central Bohemia, NUTS 2 South-West, NUTS 2 North- West, NUTS 2 North-East, NUTS 2 South-East, NUTS 2 Central Moravia and NUTS 2 Moravia- Silesia.

by Gianmartino Contu

The Report on the state of Regionalisation in Europe.

More than 40 experts contributed to this work, by delivering detailed reports about the state of regionalisation and multilevel governance in chosen European countries. The study covers 41 countries, and each country report is based on a similar structure, thereby allowing a comparative approach among all studied countries.

  • The first part of the report gives the political impetus from the main European stakeholders
  • The second part of this report entails a summarised version of the country reports. The objective is to provide interested readers with a short overview of the main features of regionalisation in various European countries. The complete versions of the country reports are available on the AER website, under LINK
  • The third part provides a thematic approach based on the main findings delivered by the country reports and the current state of regionalisation in Europe. The trends and outlooks lead to open questions on the future of the regions in the European landscape, and more broadly on the role of subnational authorities in the shaping of the continent.
  • The fourth part gives the floor to the actual regional decision-makers in Europe, across a series of interviews and statements by Presidents, Vice-Presidents and elected representatives of the European regions.

Over the next months, we will be focusing on a different European country’s approach to regionalisation. During these months, look out for #RoR2017 on Twitter and/or Facebook and follow us at @europeanregions.

Strong European regions are a pathway to a stronger Europe.

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EGCT in Central Europe: example of Hungary and Poland 

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The main objective of the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC), as a new legal instrument of cooperation, is to strengthen economic, social and territorial cohesion in the EU and the implementation of the Europe 2020 goals. Its involvement in the creation and operation of the groupings in different countries is much diversified. Despite some similarities between EGTCs established by Hungarian and Polish local governments, differences in the governments’ attitude towards the role of groupings exert considerable influence, especially concerning the number of registered EGTCs.

Euroregion and EGTC

International cooperation of local government, especially in the case of borderlands, was an important part of the European integration process after the Second World War. These bottom- up initiatives, inspired by local needs, were ahead of intergovernmental projects and regulations. The first regulations were prepared by the Council of Europe. Conventions, supplemented by model agreements, contracts and status were the basis for formalizing cooperation. Over the years, the most popular formula of cooperation became the Euroregions. Especially active were regions in Germany, France, the Netherlands and the Scandinavian countries. The first cross-border relationship – called Euregio – was created on the German-Dutch border in 1958. Cooperation through the Euroregion formula gradually spread to other countries of Western Europe, and after 1989 also to the countries of Central Europe.

Cross-border cooperation was an important part of preparation for EU membership for Central European countries. Important stimulators also included pre-accession funds used to exchange experience, for infrastructure projects and to support the development of tourism. The first Euroregion with the participation of Polish local governments was established in 1991. Two years later, the Carpathian Euroregion was launched in Hungary. It was formed by representatives of the regional administration of Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine (…).

EGTC- Poland and Hungary

Despite many differences between EGTCs created with Polish and Hungarian local governments, there are also some similarities. Both countries present traditions of cross border cooperation. The Euroregional cooperation and twin city relations were developed after the system transformation during the 1990. In both countries the local/regional government or its association participates in this form of cooperation. Similarities are also found in the main objectives. They focus on quite traditional cross-border initiatives related to territorial cohesion, regional development, culture, tourism and transport. Many of them emerged from informal cooperation platforms or Euroregions structures.

by Adriana SKORUPSKA

Follow her on Twitter @AdaSkorupska 

Adrianna Skorupska is an analyst at the Polish Institute of International Affairs in the Eastern Europe Programme. Her interests include international cooperation of local government and cross-border cooperation. 

The Report on the state of Regionalisation in Europe.

More than 40 experts contributed to this work, by delivering detailed reports about the state of regionalisation and multilevel governance in chosen European countries. The study covers 41 countries, and each country report is based on a similar structure, thereby allowing a comparative approach among all studied countries.

  • The first part of the report gives the political impetus from the main European stakeholders
  • The second part of this report entails a summarised version of the country reports. The objective is to provide interested readers with a short overview of the main features of regionalisation in various European countries. The complete versions of the country reports are available on the AER website, under LINK
  • The third part provides a thematic approach based on the main findings delivered by the country reports and the current state of regionalisation in Europe. The trends and outlooks lead to open questions on the future of the regions in the European landscape, and more broadly on the role of subnational authorities in the shaping of the continent.
  • The fourth part gives the floor to the actual regional decision-makers in Europe, across a series of interviews and statements by Presidents, Vice-Presidents and elected representatives of the European regions.

Over the next months, we will be focusing on a different European country’s approach to regionalisation. During these months, look out for #RoR2017 on Twitter and/or Facebook and follow us at @europeanregions.

Strong European regions are a pathway to a stronger Europe.

Photo by Serhii Pererva on Unsplash

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AER 2018 Summer Academy in Maramures

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It’s official! Maramures will host the 2018 AER Summer Academy from August 6-11. This unique forum brings together policy makers and young people to exchange experience related to regional development in Europe. Since its establishment in 1996 AER’s Summer Academy has developed into one of its most popular programs, helping to transfer best practices on issues of common interest.

Introducing the 2018 Summer Academy

Maramures has been a member of the Summer Academy Organising Committee for many years and hosted the 2006 Summer Academy on European integration, which left vivid memories with all participants. The theme of the 2018 edition of the Summer Academy will be Cultural Heritage for Regional Attractiveness. Cultural heritage remains a central part of our lives and societies. It is visible in architectural and natural wonders. It is experienced in the traditions we pass on from generation to generation, the art we create, and the food we eat. Cultural heritage binds communities together and creates a common identity.  It is a vital component to each region’s visual appearance and can be found in things as diverse as industrial and urban heritage. This year, AER’s Summer Academy’s topic coincides with the European Year for Cultural Heritage which encourages people to embrace and explore Europe’s cultural heritage. AER looks forward to another fruitful Summer Academy in 2018.

Photo Credits: CameliaTWU, Flickr

Photo description: Bârsana Monestary in Maramures

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A milestone in the Silver Economy Project: 2017 European Week of Regions and Cities

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The AER and the SEED Consortium can only be proud of the great success of the workshop “An Alternative for the future: Silver Economy for cities and regions”!

Through the framework of the European Week of Regions and Cities 2017 in Brussels, the workshop on October 10 attracted around 250 representatives from local and regional authorities, business and service providers, academia and civil society to hear about the social and economic benefits that lay in the European Silver Economy.

A High-level Opening

The workshop was opened by the First Vice President of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) Markku Markkula, and was moderated by Anne-Sophie Parent, Secretary General of AGE Platform Europe. The former, who was officially announced as the moral patron of the European Silver Economy Awards, stressed out that today’s responsibility is to find sustainable solutions to the overwhelming growth in the number of people aged 60+ across Europe.

Emphasizing the role of both digitalization and demographic change, Mr. Markkula called for a “bottom-up strategy for the European Silver Economy that can only be achieved by creating synergies among European stakeholders, and by taking into account the economic, ecological, social and cultural dimensions of sustainability”. From Ms. Parent’s side, she pointed out that “the goal of AGE Platform is none other than to reduce the costs of silver economy by mainstreaming older persons’ needs in larger services and products”.

The workshop opening was further complemented by a talk of European Commission’s Programme Officer Horst Krämer, who addressed the transformation of healthcare in the Digital Single Market. He raised concern about the fact that “the rapidly aging of European population is a common political challenge that needs to be addressed by joining forces from all sectors”.

Showcasing concrete solutions to feed the debate

The workshop also addressed wide-raging issues such as sustainability, innovative financing models, user involvement, new business models, emerging sectors through six inspiring examples from different cities and regions: Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy), Free State of Saxony (Germany), Gelderland Province (Netherlands), Varaždin County (Croatia) and North Denmark Region (Denmark).

The presentations were followed by an engaged Q&A debate and a live poll session between panellists and the audience. Moreover, the workshop also included a networking session which enabled the participants to continue discussing burning issues linked to the Silver Economy and to establish contact for potential partnerships and future synergies.

Check the following highlights of the Live Poll Session:

Mainstreaming regions as solution providers

As a conclusion, although rapid demographic ageing is a major societal challenge, it also offers great opportunities for economic growth and jobs in Europe and elsewhere.

According to the European Commission, the Silver Economy is the sum of the economic opportunities arising from the public and consumer expenditure related to ageing and the specific needs of the population over 50. It covers various domains like tourism, care, housing, mobility or financial services, and requires the mobilisation of all stakeholders, in particular cities and regions.

Their actions are crucial and some have already developed comprehensive strategies to address demographic ageing while supporting and developing local business, demonstrating that the Silver Economy as a broad political and economic paradigm holds the promise to benefit to older persons themselves as well as to the public welfare systems and the private economy.

This is why the European Commission has awarded the SEED project (Horizon 2020) that is currently setting up the first European-level award scheme rewarding ICT-based innovative solutions that support the growth of the European Silver Economy.

Do you want to know more about the Silver Economy Awards? If so, please click on the following link: http://silvereconomyawards.eu/

Application still open until the 15th of November!

(Check the whole workshop album of pictures provided by the Committee of the Regions: https://www.flickr.com/photos/euregionsweek/sets/72157687706180204)

Photo credits: @flickr https://www.flickr.com/photos/euregionsweek/sets/72157687706180204

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Workshop on smart green and integrated transport systems

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The AER working group on Transports and Mobility held a workshop on smart green and integrated transport systems on 14 September, during the Nancy plenary meetings.

The aim was to enable AER members to discuss issues of sustainable mobility, including the European Strategy on Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-ITS), and the role regions can play in a C-ITS environment.

European Strategy on Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-ITS)

In November 2016, the European Commission (EC) adopted a European Strategy on Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-ITS), a milestone on the path towards cooperative, connected and automated mobility (COM(2016) 766).

The objective of the C-ITS Strategy is to facilitate the convergence of investments and regulatory frameworks across the European Union (EU), in order to see deployment of C-ITS services in the EU by 2019.

It involves the adoption of a legal framework at EU level by 2018 to ensure legal certainty for public and private investors, the availability of EU funding for projects and the continuation of the C-ITS and the C-ROADS platforms.

By making it possible to bring vehicle that can talk to each other and to the infrastructure on EU roads, the EC intends to contribute to improved road safety and traffic efficiency and reduced energy consumption and emissions from transport, while reaping the benefits of digitisation.

As part of the evaluation of the 2010 ITS Directive (Directive 2010/40/EU), from May to July 2017 the EC carried out a public consultation to gather input on the contribution of the Directive to the coordinated deployment of ITS and the functioning of the road transport system, as well as on the need for continued EU action in this field. This will feed into the ongoing preparation of the legal framework that the Commission will set up in 2018 for the provision of C-ITS.

The European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism, for its part, is also preparing an own-initiative report on the European Strategy on C-ITS.

Key Milestones:

To accelerate the deployment of these innovative transport technologies across Europe, in 2010 the EU introduced common rules for road transport and interfaces with other modes under the ITS Directive (Directive 2010/40/EU).

Early 2014, the EC decided to take a more prominent role in the deployment of connected driving, by setting up a C-ITS Platform. A cooperative framework in which national authorities, relevant C-ITS stakeholders and the Commission provide policy recommendations for a deployment strategy for C-ITS in the EU.

In 2016, joining forces with Member States and industry, it launched the C-ROADS Platform as a set of projects on connected, cooperative and automated driving, co-funded through EU Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).

Also in 2016, EU Member States’ transport ministers adopted the Declaration of Amsterdam, where they urged the EC to develop a European strategy on connected and automated driving, adapt the EU regulatory framework and coordinate research and innovation.

For more information, visit the European Commission Directorate General for Mobility and Transport webpage here.

Read more about the European Strategy on C-ITS in the European Parliamentary Research Service Briefing available here.

AER working group on Transports and Mobility

The AER working group on Transports and Mobility has been set up to address key transport system issues, such as connectivity and permeability, seamless transport services, freight management & data, smart green infrastructure, financing of infrastructure, regulation of state aid and regional airports; as well as to promote knowledge and experience exchange among regions. It is currently chaired by Martin Tollén, County Councillor from Östergötland (SE).

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Culture and digitalisation in the spotlight

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In Nancy at the AER Committees’ plenaries culture will be in the spotlight. We’re asking the question: “is there a future for culture in the digital age?”. IT has been permeating all aspects of society. So what does this mean for culture? Will we get more, better, awful or awesome culture or will culture disappear altogether?

Culture in the digital age

Culture is a crucial part of regional policy-making. It is of specific interest for governments, businesses and investors as it ranges from cinema to tourism or education, and brings together diverse public and private actors. Culture is a policy area which reaches a large spectrum of population. Today, culture is shifting: kindles and iPads replace books and leaflets, 3D movie glasses, interactive museum guides and apps have become common features. An enhanced cultural experience often means digital supports need to be available.

The utility of drones has come to new edges, a futuristic trend that has been proven extremely useful in the preservation and diffusion of cultural heritage. Drones are now able to fly over endangered world heritage, like in Syria, and project their images into museums a hundred miles away, for people to take advantage of every bit of the beautiful legacies the world is made up of.

According to a study for the General Directorate on Heritage of the French Ministry of Culture and communication, more than one third of the people interrogated use internet while visiting a museum, an art exhibit or a monument and 16% of them have virtually visited the premises. This illustrates a substantial impact of digitalisation on culture.

The below a graph shows the most influential museums on social media, by number of tickets sold, likes on Facebook and followers on Twitter.

Indeed, culture has already gone through a new wave of digitalisation. Such innovation is highly encouraged by Ministries of Culture around Europe, now talking: E-Culture, E-education and E-tourism. The new culture industry features 3D, motion capture, augmented reality, and virtual reality, that can be used in films as well as in cultural heritage preservation. As we’ll see in the next paragraphs, these represent remarquable opportunities for regions.

Economics

With globalisation, culture and heritage has gained a tremendous worldwide recognition. In Europe, it translated in more than 9 million employments in the field of tourism and a European market for preservation and restoration of heritage estimated at around €5 Billion per year.

Thus, digital cultural economy comes out as a great source of employment and business creation. As cultural consumption shifts rapidly, linked to the expansion of Internet and the boom in the sales of connected objects, it creates a true pool of opportunities for stakeholders: including digital companies, big technology groups cities and regions!

What’s at stake for regions?

The digitilisation of culture multiplies the initiatives within regions. New centers for research, innovation and excellence integrate more and more areas dedicated to creation, live performance or digital arts! And, they are flourishing all over Europe! Regions and municipalities are also important actors in promoting new museum practices and the use of digitialisation in all sectors of culture.

In the context of the year of Cultural Heritage, the region of Gävleborg decided to intensify its virtual reality project to share the beauty of its decorated farmhouses of Hälsingland. A strategy that uses cultural heritage as a resource for achieving a sustainable and inclusive society, from the social, economic and environmental point of view.

Our debate “Is there a future for culture in the digital age” followed by the breakfast briefing on the role of regions in Culture will answer a key feature of the challenges set by a world in constant evolution.

For more information on AER’s work on Culture check out the Committee 3 for Culture, Education and Youth.

You can also get all the information necessary on our Autumn plenaries on the event page.

Sources:

Photo by Alicia Steels on Unsplash

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Regionalisation in Albania: a must for EU Accession

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Albania derives from a deeply centralised tradition of the pre-pluralist era. The transition from a centralised to a democratic system led to the inclusion of Albania in a comprehensive process of political, economic, fiscal and administrative decentralisation.

Albania’s history of decentralisation

The period from 1991 to 1998 marks the first phase of political decentralisation – the transition from de-concentration to decentralisation and the creation of local government units. During this phase, political decentralisation prevailed over fiscal decentralisation and economic reforms. The Constitution, approved in 1998, sanctioned three levels of governance in Albania: national, second level-regional (qarks) and first level – local (municipalities and communes).

The period 1999-2003 marked the start of the second phase of decentralization with the presentation of the National Strategy for Decentralization and Local Autonomy, the adoption of Law No. 8652 (31.07.2000) “On the Organisation and Functioning of Local Government,” which institutionalised regions as the second level of local government. In this context, 12 regions were created instead of the 36 existing districts, but the district continued to appear in the Organic Law.

In 2000, Albania adopted and then ratified the European Charter of Local Self- Government. The adoption gave major impetus to the decentralization process in Albania. In fact, it was followed by the adoption of the Decentralization Strategy in 1999 and the Legislative Package in 2000 that included the New Organic Law on Local Government no. 8652, Law no. 8654 on the Organisation and Functioning of the Municipality of Tirana and the Law no. 8653 on Administrative-Territorial Division.

According to the Organic Law 8652, the role of regions consisted in the design and coordination of development policies and strategies at the regional level; coordination between central and local government levels; providing services delegated by the central government and region’s constituent local units. Anyway, this definition remained general and theoretic.

Last phase of decentralisation: empowering local government

The period from 2003 onwards marked the third phase – the continuing of economic reforms and fiscal decentralization.

The Cross-cutting Strategy for Regional Development, (CSRD, 2007) primarily dealt with the needed institutional setup and regional strategic planning and management processes, while nancial mechanisms were developed independently through the fiscal policy (competitive grants, since 2010 under the Regional Development Fund).

In 2014, the Parliament approved the New Administrative-Territorial Reform that aimed at empowering the local level of government. This reform, upheld the actual number of regions sanctioning the division of Albania’s territory into 61 units, named municipalities, which included smaller territorial units (communes and smaller municipalities). With the local elections of 21 June 2015 the new territorial division will come into force as part of the ongoing reform process.

Regional development on hold

From 2003 to today, whereas the role, functions and competencies of first level, government units were clearly defined, the role, functions and competencies of the regions haven’t undergone thorough analysis, and remained controversial and subject to government initiatives under the framework of the decentralization and regional development reform. In general, the decentralization process has functioned normally for the first level government units, but it has stopped for the regions.

The phenomenon of “ financial gap” and the superposition of the risk of competence with de-concentrated structures of central government, constitute major drawbacks of regional self-government in Albania that require further consolidation of the regional level and a deep reform in regional finance system.

In this context, a lack of political will is evident as regards regions and the regionalisation process. The enhancement of their position is mentioned only under the framework of European Integration and Structural and Cohesion Policy Funds.

So far, the country has not effectively implemented a regional development policy, while the Candidate Country status and integration process into the European Union require the adoption of the EU cohesion policy principles and practices by the domestic RD policy framework. As of today, there is no special law about regions and regional development.

Respecting the subsidiarity principle, an administrative-territorial reform proposing a new territorial division cannot be considered apart from the redistribution of local unit functions.

In this regard, the reform of 2014 failed to define the number of local government tiers, the degree of government decentralisation, the fiscal decentralisation, the relations with the de-concentrated power and the election system modalities for local and regional authority bodies. Therefore, further steps need to be taken in order to correct what the reform failed to achieve as regards the regional level governance.

Albania and the EU

Finally, the vision of EU and Albanian regional actors for qark is its continuous empowerment and consolidation, considering it as an important institution that ensures a sustainable regional and economic development.

In this context, the Albania EU Candidate Status requiring policies and regional development processes, encourages the presence of a second tier with appropriate competencies. This presence should increase the efficiency of the LGU functions, ensure scale for economic development, proper planning in areas such as territory and tourism, education, environmental protection, transport, rural mobility, while respecting at the same time historical boundaries, social interaction, common culture and traditions.

by Lorena Totoni & Kristo Frasheri

The Report on the state of Regionalisation in Europe.

More than 40 experts contributed to this work, by delivering detailed reports about the state of regionalisation and multilevel governance in chosen European countries. The study covers 41 countries, and each country report is based on a similar structure, thereby allowing a comparative approach among all studied countries.

  • The first part of the report gives the political impetus from the main European stakeholders
  • The second part of this report entails a summarised version of the country reports. The objective is to provide interested readers with a short overview of the main features of regionalisation in various European countries. The complete versions of the country reports are available on the AER website, under LINK
  • The third part provides a thematic approach based on the main findings delivered by the country reports and the current state of regionalisation in Europe. The trends and outlooks lead to open questions on the future of the regions in the European landscape, and more broadly on the role of subnational authorities in the shaping of the continent.
  • The fourth part gives the floor to the actual regional decision-makers in Europe, across a series of interviews and statements by Presidents, Vice-Presidents and elected representatives of the European regions.

Over the next months, we will be focusing on a different European country’s approach to regionalisation. During these months, look out for #RoR2017 on Twitter and/or Facebook and follow us at @europeanregions.

Strong European regions are a pathway to a stronger Europe.

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Regionalisation in Luxembourg: municipalities reign, but are merging

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The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, one of the world smallest countries, is located in North- Western Europe. It lost part of its territories to France (1659), Prussia (later Germany, 1815) and Belgium (1839), whereas its independence was established by the Treaty of London of 1839. Luxembourg is a unitary State with a municipal level of decentralisation, established under the 1868 Constitution. It was one of the founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community (1952) and of the European Economic Community (1957), which later became the European Union (1993). Three languages are practiced and recognised in Luxembourg: Luxembourgish, French and German.

Luxembourg is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy, characterised by a flexible separation of powers. Its Parliament (Chambre des députés) is unicameral. The Government is led by the Prime Minister, whereas the Head of State is the Grand Duke. The central government has exclusive legislative power in all fields related to the national interest. In addition, it has general legislative and administrative powers, except for local powers specifically de ned by the law.

Regional Governance

Luxembourg was divided administratively into three districts (Luxembourg, Diekirch and Grevenmacher), abolished on 3rd October 2015. Each district was led by a commissioner, appointed by the central government. They were in turn subdivided into cantons and municipalities (communes). Districts could not be considered as a level of government, but only as a de-concentrated level of State administration, used for territorial and administrative purposes.

The Grand Duke appointed a District Commissioner in each district. They were state officials responsible to the Home Minister and to the Government, and served as contact points between the central Government and local administrations. They also acted as coordinating points between Municipalities. All local administrations (except Luxembourg City) were under the District Commissioner’s direct supervision. As most decisions taken by the Municipalities are subject to the approval of the Grand Duke or the Government, the District Commissioners reported to the Home Minister on problems concerning the management of Municipalities. The cantons are 12: Capellen, Clervaux, Diekirch, Echternach, Esch-sur-Alzette, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg, Mersch, Redange-sur-Attert, Remich, Vianden and Wiltz. They do not have an administrative structure. Instead, they serve as territorial units, used to define the four electoral constituencies (south, centre, east and north).

Municipalities, created at the time of the 1789 French Revolution, are governed by an elected council and a mayor. They maintain links with the central government and act as its local agents. Art. 107 of the 1868 Constitution provides the right to local self-government. Municipalities are considered as legal entities in charge of their own bodies, heritage and interests.

The Constitution does not describe municipal competences in detail. An important legal source concerning the division of powers between the State and municipalities is the Municipal Organisation Act (loi communale) of 1988. The distribution of competences is further specified in several other laws. Municipalities dispose of general competence for all matters concerning municipal interests, but only have administrative competences. Municipal competences are divided into mandatory and optional.

Municipalities’ functions

The mandatory functions of municipalities include: organisation of the municipality, education (buildings and school organisation, but not the curricula and pedagogical matters), municipal road network, traffic management, local planning, water supply and waste management, emergency services, police matters (jointly with the State), public hygiene and health, as well as social welfare.

Optional functions carried out by municipalities include: public transport, management of clinics and hospitals, sporting activities, music education, economic development (e.g. the creation of industrial, commercial and craft areas), tourism and cultural affairs.
The municipalities’ financial resources are derived from autonomous taxation (33.8%), grants (44.3%) and other sources of revenues (21.9%). Since municipalities are rather small, a process has started to merge several local authorities. There are currently 105 municipalities in Luxembourg.

by Gianmartino Contu

The Report on the state of Regionalisation in Europe.

More than 40 experts contributed to this work, by delivering detailed reports about the state of regionalisation and multilevel governance in chosen European countries. The study covers 41 countries, and each country report is based on a similar structure, thereby allowing a comparative approach among all studied countries.

  • The first part of the report gives the political impetus from the main European stakeholders
  • The second part of this report entails a summarised version of the country reports. The objective is to provide interested readers with a short overview of the main features of regionalisation in various European countries. The complete versions of the country reports are available on the AER website, under LINK
  • The third part provides a thematic approach based on the main findings delivered by the country reports and the current state of regionalisation in Europe. The trends and outlooks lead to open questions on the future of the regions in the European landscape, and more broadly on the role of subnational authorities in the shaping of the continent.
  • The fourth part gives the floor to the actual regional decision-makers in Europe, across a series of interviews and statements by Presidents, Vice-Presidents and elected representatives of the European regions.

Over the next months, we will be focusing on a different European country’s approach to regionalisation. During these months, look out for #RoR2017 on Twitter and/or Facebook and follow us at @europeanregions.

Strong European regions are a pathway to a stronger Europe.

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AER attended the Copernicus for Cultural Heritage Workshop

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Following the outcomes of the AER Spring plenaries in London where members highlighted their interest on cultural heritage both in terms of exchange of good practices and project development, AER attended a workshop in Brussels focused on Copernicus in support of cultural heritage, in particular for what concern preservation.

Therefore, AER had the possibility to get deeper insight into the Copernicus Programme and wish now to share it with member regions and partners. The Programme supports technological tools and services to tackle societal and territorial challenges in diverse fields, among which cultural heritage.

Why do we care?

Cultural heritages are under threats of material degradation and/or change of cultural landscape. 76% of World Heritage Sites are affected at least by one geo-hazard. There has been already a link between remote sensing and cultural heritage, however, it has many limitations beside its potentials and it is still a peer area in Europe. Developing technological tools and services are needed for regular protection, monitoring, documenting and sharing information about our heritages, for example, these technologies are useful for cultural heritage maintenance to reduce disaster risks.

Copernicus is useful for policy makers, researchers, commercial to private users at all scales to enable understanding of the Earth by providing different services such as emergency management and land monitoring. Copernicus is coordinated by the European Commission in partnership with EU Member States. According to [email protected] Online Database, 49 regions highlights the importance of culture and creative industries as regional priority to stimulate knowledge-driven growth. Regions are important users, however, they have difficulties with compliancy and implementation of EU directives and policies concerning natural and built environment. On the other hand, regions are also “producers” as main authorities for spatial data infrastructures and services of environmental agencies.

If you are interested in cultural heritage preservation, you can find all the materials about the contents of the event on the Workshop website. On that occasion, an interesting presentation was provided by our partner network NEREUS -the Network of European Regions Using Space Technologies – which stressed the benefits of space technologies for end-users such as public authorities and tourism players.

 

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#ShineBright Arad

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Arad County Council

25 years of existence and 24 years on the European map of Regions

The Arad County Council (Romania) joined the Assembly of the European Regions (AER) at the General Assembly in Benidorm (Spain), in December 1993. It was the second Romanian administrative-territorial entity to join AER following the Hunedoara County, that joined one year earlier in Santiago de Compostela.

It was considered a privilege and an honour to be a fully-fledged member of such a wide European network of regions, to be part of a select club where expectations were rather high.

In many ways we were pioneers and forerunners of the Romanian counties, lobbying for AER and convincing other regions to join the organisation. Subsequently, many Romanian regions started looking beyond the horizon and sought new opportunities, leading to their immediate integration into the AER family.

In this manner, Romania as a country is very well represented, out of 41 counties 32 are full members with an active participation in the life of the organisation. The Arad County Council even hosted two commission meetings.

The immediate benefits did not fail to show. Members of the political level and civil servants took part in the Centurio Programme, to be trained in European standards, to share their experience, knowledge and examples of good practice to others and to display other ideas in their home regions. The Eurodyssey Programme has been another successful achievement the Arad County Council was involved in. In fact, AER inspired regions and acted as an incubator for the ideas of all its members.

The Arad County Council, as a local actor and decisional exponent, was an efficient promoter of the basic AER concepts and principals of subsidiarity and cohesion.

Today, the unemployment rate in the county is lower than 2.5% and in the Arad city lower than 1%, due to the well trained labour force, economic and development potential and important investors. Arad County has access to the highway, linking Arad to Budapest, Wien and the rest of Europe.

The Arad County Council is currently working on the development of a metropolitan area in the Western part of Romania, to create an urban agglomeration of 1 million inhabitants, unique in the region.

We are now in an important process of presenting Arad and the Arad County as tourism destinations; therefore we would suggest you visit our website www.visitarad.ro and discover the many features of Arad, including multiculturalism, diversity and natural experiences.

Now, that the Arad County Council celebrates its 25th anniversary and 24 years of AER membership, we wish to continue further on that fruitful cooperation with AER and all its member regions, with all our friends from abroad. We modestly started our relation with Europe in 1993; we kept on learning and building, open to the exterior, with a European attitude and today we are proud to be a development role model at regional level. www.cjarad.ro

 

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