Representatives of Latvian municipalities on tour in Belgium
Our Latvian partner LALRG organised a second study visit in Belgium on 15-16 May. In Brussels, Latvian local elected officials engaged in several impactful meetings, including sessions with CEMR, the Committee of the Regions, and DG NEAR. They also visited the municipalities of Bornem and Mechelen in Flanders. This tour was centred around the theme « Development Cooperation and the UN Sustainable Development Goals for local development during crisis and uncertainty. »
The study visit, led by Gints Kaminskis, Chairman of the Latvian Association of Local and Regional Governments and Head of the Latvian delegation to the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), was a proactive step towards preparing for the Local Sustainable Development Week which will take place in several Latvian municipalities between 20 and 29 September 2024, simultaneously with the Global Goals Week 2024 organised by the United Nations.
The visit was designed to elevate awareness of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Latvian municipalities and to facilitate the deliberate integration of the UN SDGs in the development cooperation activities between Latvian and Ukrainian municipalities.
During the meeting with CEMR, Eva Baños de Guisasola and Pedro Bizarro introduced the members of this delegation to the RFSC online tool (the Reference Framework for Sustainable Cities) which can help municipalities of any size in both Latvia and Ukraine to create, implement and monitor integrated and sustainable development of municipalities following the Sustainable Development Goals.
Bella Tskhelishvili joined the Latvian delegation at the meeting with the European Commission DG NEAR. The representatives from the European Commission introduced the Ukraine plan: the proposed reforms regarding decentralisation and regional policies and presented the possible involvement of local authorities. Participants shared practical experiences of city-to-city cooperation between Ukraine and Latvia and underlined the importance of financial means to continue peer-to-peer exchanges.
This activity is a part of the PLATFORMA Eastern Neighbourhood programme and will be implemented during the programming period until 2027.
Read more about this visit on LALRG website (in Latvian).
