Transcript PNG fond transparent - Union of Cyprus Municipalities

THE EUROPEAN TOWN TWINNING MOVEMENT
Role and activities of CEMR
Manuella Portier
Project Officer - Citizenship
Brussels, 3 November 2010
Introduction
Founded in 1951 by a group of European
mayors
Oldest and broadest association of local
and regional authorities
Members: 53 national associations of
towns, municipalities and regions from 39
European countries
CEMR’s members
Activities
 Influence European law and policy
 Enhance local and regional contribution to
the shaping of the EU
 Promoting a united Europe based on local
and regional self government and
democracy: twinning as a tool
 Exchange experience at local and
regional level
 Cooperate with partners in other parts of
the world
Political structure
President
Michael Häupl
Policy
Committee
Executive
Bureau
Secretariat
General
CEMR’s President
 Is elected by the Policy Committee
for a three year term
 Represents CEMR and chairs the
statutory meetings
 In December 2005, the mayor of
Vienna, Michael Häupl, was elected
president
 His predecessor was Valéry Giscard
d’Estaing
Policy Committee
→ Over 100 members elected for 3 years
CEMR’s main governing body
Approves the budget and the annual
work programme
Decides on the broad policy lines and
on the new members’ application
Executive Bureau
→ President + Vice-Presidents + Executive Presidents
Follows up the Policy Committee’s
decisions
Is responsible for CEMR’s work and
policy
Meets twice a year
Secretary General
 Elected by the Policy Committee for a six
year term
 Ensures CEMR’s daily functionning
 In 2009, Frédéric Vallier elected
Secretary General
 Staff of around 20 based in Brussels and
Paris
Fields of activities
 Local and regional
government as an
employer
 North South
Cooperation
 Local and regional
democracy
 Equal opportunities
 Employment
 Energy
 Environment
 Governance & future
of the EU
 Twinning
 International local
government
 Regional Policy
 Social Affairs
 Urban and rural
policies
 Public services /
Procurement
 Transport
 Information Society
Facts and figures
39 countries
53 associations
budget : +/- 2,000,000 €
± 20,000 twinning links
between towns of all over
Europe
100,000 towns and regions
www.ccre.org
CEMR’s
publications
The origin of the European town
twinning movement
 1st wave of town twinning links in the ’50s in the aftermath
of WWII
 Upon an initiative of a handful of Mayors convinced that
friendship between the citizens was the necessary first step
to rebuilding a stable and peaceful Europe
 Closely linked to the EU construction process
 First twinning agreements were mostly signed between
France and Germany
 Creation of CEMR in 1951 : to support the birth of the
twinning movement and the structuration of associations of
local authorities
 Local authorities: closest level to citizens; crucial role to
build up Europe from citizens’ perspective
The role of the twinning after the war
 Solidarity between citizens to rebuild towns and
infrastructures after the war
 Reconciliation between citizens from enemy
countries after the war
 Starting remembrance process after the holocaust
 Knowing history not to repeat the mistakes of the
past
 Taking part in the EU construction process from a
local level
 Birth of friendship links between towns in Europe
 Intercultural dialogue beyond physical, mental and
linguistic barriers
Evolution of twinning in the 1980s
 A new context
- 1989: Fall of the Iron Curtain: Europe searches for new
unifying values
- 1992: Maastricht Treaty (European Citizenship, new
fields of activities and principle of subsidiarity)
 Role of twinning
- Help to prepare for independence (structuration of local
authorities)
- Help to prepare for future EU enlargement (exchange of
practices, intercultural competences)
- Help European citizens to share a feeling of belonging
to the same community
- Help to define common values and experiment
differences
EU support to town twinning
 Action of CEMR advocating for a EU institutional
support for European twinning movement
 1989: creation of a EU budgetary line dedicated to
town twinning links in Europe (report from Nicole
Fontaine, EU Parliament)
 Impact: significant growth of the European twinning
movement: 8 500 twinning links in 1991, 20 000 in
2010 (117 in Cyprus mainly with Greece, then France
and Germany)
 2007-2013: « Europe for Citizens » programme;
Action 1 : « Active Citizens for Europe » (50% of total
budget)
 CEMR: referee association to EU institutions for
twinning, consulted by European Commission on
content of next EU twinning programme
Role of CEMR to support town twinning
 Coordinates the work of its member national
associations in the field of twinning: a working group of
“European twinning officers”
 Chair of CEMR’s Twinning Group: Mayor of Oswiecim
(Auschwitz), Janusz Marszalek
 Working group meets regularly to share practices,
exchange experiences of the use of action 1 of « Europe
for Citizens », set topical priorities for town twinning in
Europe (social cohesion, public services, citizenship,
etc.)
 Is dialogue partner for DG EAC and EACEA on EU
twinning programme : consultation meetings
 Work with local/regional authorities to bring voice from
the ground to the EC and EP for adequate EU policy to
support twinning
 Informs its member associations about EU twinning
programme’s updates and events
 Organises twinning-related events (e.g. 9th European
Twinning Congress in Rhodos in 2007)
 Produces studies and guides including a practical
handbook, “Twinning for tomorrow’s world” (with best
practices examples)
 Has developed a website dedicated to European and
International town twinning: information in 23
languages about funding and possibility to search for
a twinning partner in Europe and beyond
Role of CEMR’s national associations to
support twinning
 A twinning officer designated for each country where CEMR
has member associations
 The associations represent their members at national level:
towns, provinces, counties or regions
 They provide assistance in the area of twinning to their
members
 They help finding a twinning partner in Europe or beyond
(through the website)
 Help their members put in place twinning partnerships
 They train their members to the management of town
twinning project
 They produce information supports on town twinning for
their members including news on the EU twinning
programme (newsletters, websites, etc.)
 They provide their members with information about
funding opportunities for twinning activities and
events
 They aggregate twinning data at national level
(number of twinned towns, type of activities, contact
points, etc.)
 They are dialogue partner at EU level as members of
CEMR for European institutions
 They are dialogue partner at national level for their
members in the field of European/international
cooperation
 They promote and communicate on local twinning
actions at national level
 They support their national government in negotiating
accessibility of non EU member states to the
programme “Europe for Citizens” (Balkan countries)
European twinning Congresses
9th Twinning Congress in 2007 in Rhodos, Greece:
"Twinning for Tomorrow’s World”
 Over 500 local and regional elected representatives and
activists of the twinning movement
 Publication of a practical handbook “Twinning for
Tomorrow’s World”
It gives an overview of town twinning activities in Europe and
in the world, features example of good practices on various
issues, gives advice for setting up good twinning links and
informs on EU funding possibilities
 Creation of the twinning website
A virtual multilingual meeting place for local government from
Europe and beyond which provides information about town
twinning (What is town twinning? Why is it relevant and
useful? How to fund a twinning link? Tips for successful
twinnings...)
European twinning Congresses
10th Twinning & Citizenship Congress
in 2011 in Rybnik, Poland
 During the Polish presidency of the EU
 3 regional seminars to prepare the content of the event
- in March 2010 in Tallinn (Estonia)
- in June 2010 in Malta
- in November 2010 in Cologne (Germany)
 Objective of these seminars:
- to focus each time on a specific geographical area (North,
South and Centre/East of Europe)
- to examine, with the local actors, the different approaches to
twinning and the expectations of citizens and towns towards
twinning links in today’s Europe
- to draw an overall assessment of twinning practices in
Europe and to continue the reflection on the modernisation
of the community programme
TWINNING WEBSITE
 Launch in November 2008
 Adress: www.twinnings.org
 A unique tool (interactiv platform) available in 23
languages (and soon in Albanian and Turkish)
 Still under construction (future improvements to come)
 428 ads published in September 2010 (129 in March
2010)
 3 ads from Cyprus municipalities
 Objective: to facilitate exchanges of information and the
search of partners
 A tool to facilitate and reinforce the twinning movement,
to emphasize the work of the national associations, to
disseminate the twinning movement in the broader
Europe
 Key role of the national associations by validating the
ads
FURTHER INFORMATION
Council of European Municipalities and Regions
CEMR – Paris Office
15 Rue de Richelieu, F-75001 Paris
www.ccre.org
Sandra Ceciarini, Director of Citizenship and
International Cooperation
Manuella Portier, Project officer Citizenship
[email protected]