EU Funded International Urban and Regional Cooperation Asia-Australasia Programme in India officially launched
NEW DELHI, 24 February 2022: The EU funded International Urban and Regional Cooperation (IURC) Asia & Australasia programme in India was officially launched in a virtual event on 24th February in the presence of Shri Sanjay Kumar, Additional Secretary (International Cooperation), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, Dr. Ronald Hall, Senior Advisor, DG REGIO, EU Commission, and Ms. Kamilla Kristensen Rai, Counsellor, Delegation of the European Union to India.
As part of this city-to-city cooperation, 25 city authorities from Europe and India will work together until end 2023 in the areas of ecological transition, urban and regional renewal and innovative, sustainable and carbon neutral ecosystems. The cities of Surat and Rotterdam (The Netherlands), Kochi and Messina (Italy), Panaji and Almada (Portugal) and Porbandar will work on flood management. The cities of Gangtok and Albacete (Spain), Leh and Trikala/ Farkadona/ Meteora (Greece), Jamshedpur and Alto Minho Functional Area (Portugal) and Jaipur on Solid Waste Management - Circular Economy. The cities of Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority and Karlsruhe (Germany), and Gwalior and Leuven (Belgium) and Jaipur as well as Leeds will work on urban planning and governance. The cities of Chennai and Trier (Germany) and Ranchi and Reggio Emilia (Italy) will work on Urban Mobility. The cities of Kanpur and Patna will work on air quality.
Speaking on this occasion, Shri Sanjay Kumar, Additional Secretary (International Cooperation) in the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs emphasized the importance of ongoing rapid urbanization as an enabling factor in economic growth and poverty reduction in India. As the urban areas of India are the major recipients of FDI and technological innovations, the importance of establishing linkages with global centres of growth cannot be overemphasized. He felt that the proposed partnership between Indian and the EU cities will help exchange of best practices and contribute to the sustainable urban development goal of India.
Congratulating both sides on the launch of the project, H.E. Ugo Astuto, Ambassador of the European Union to India and Bhutan, said, “IURC will further contribute to the Partnership on Smart and Sustainable Urbanisation between the EU and Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India. Through this project we aim to not only strengthen cooperation with India on sustainable urban development but also decentralise it by involving European and Indian cities. We hope this will also help to demonstrate the role of cities in finding local and global solutions in the areas including urban water challenges, urban resilience and urban mobility.”
The event on 24th February was also attended by representatives from Indian and European cities, European Union Member States, partner organisations NIUA and TERI, academic institutions, and other organisations. A short video presented the cities and highlighted the key cooperation topics.
Dr. Hall, DG REGIO, EU Commission introduced the EU priorities regarding sustainable urban development, stressed the importance of strengthening integrated and participatory approach, and reiterated the need for innovations and capacity building. Dr. Hall stated that the objective is to “build partnerships, strengthen networks, promote the successful emergence post COVID and create a global family of cities to exchange experience and best practices.”
Dr. Panagiotis Karamanos, IURC Country Coordinator (India), acted as the moderator of the event, introduced the IURC programme and concluded by stressing the importance of sharing best practices between EU and Indian cities and stakeholder involvement.
About the European Union
The EU, which consists of 27 countries, has the world's second largest economy and its third largest population, after China and India. Though richly diverse, the countries that make up the EU (its 'Member States') are all committed to the same basic values: peace, democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights. By creating a frontier-free single market and a single currency (the euro) which has been adopted by 19 Member States, the EU has given a significant boost to trade and employment.
EU-India relations: The EU and India are marking 60 years of diplomatic ties in 2022. For 60 years, the EU and India have worked together to reduce poverty, prevent disasters, expand trade, secure global public goods, enhance security around the world and promote joint research in energy, health, agriculture and many other fields of mutual interest.
About International Urban and Regional Cooperation (IURC)
Funded by the European Union, the International Urban and Regional Cooperation (IURC) programme aims to promote multi-city cooperation on sustainable urban development and to build partnerships between EU and non-EU cities. Participating local governments will be enabled to implement pilot projects engaging research, civil society and business partners.
The IURC contributes to the objectives of the UN New Urban Agenda, the Agenda 2030 (SDGs), the Urban Agenda for the EU and the European Commission’s priorities for a “Stronger Europe in the World” with the European Green Deal and the Next GenerationEU (post COVID-19 recovery plan) at the centre. The programme is implemented in the geographical area of Asia and Australasia in nine countries, namely India, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam.
The following cities are part of IURC in India: Kochi, Panaji, Surat, Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority, Chennai, Leh, Gwalior, Jamshedpur, Patna, Gangtok, Jaipur, Ranchi, Porbandar and Kanpur. The cities in Europe are Leuven (Belgium), Karlsruhe and Trier (Germany), the Group of Municipalities: Trikala/Farkadona/Meteora (Greece), Messina and Reggio Emilia (Italy), Almada and Alto Minho Functional Area (Portugal), Albacete (Spain), Rotterdam (The Netherlands) as well as Leeds (UK).