MINSK, 22 May (BelTA) – Local and regional government agencies should be more active, BelTA learned from Markku Markkula, President of the European Committee of the Regions, after a session of the Bureau of the Conference of the Regional and Local Authorities for the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP) in Minsk on 22 May.
Markku Markkula said: “Our organization is aimed at tackling development matters. Local and regional government agencies should play a more active role.” The main purpose of the European Committee of the Regions is to help local government agencies in the Eastern Partnership countries to raise living standards of their citizens. Regular support is provided to this work.
According to the source, participants of the session discussed a number of important matters. The sides reached understanding and approved measures, which will have to be taken by November 2017 when a summit of the Eastern Partnership Initiative is scheduled to take place in Brussels. Energy effectiveness was one of the matters. Apart from that, the sides discussed the need to build up potential at the local level. Certain educational events targeting all the CORLEAP members as well as Eastern Partnership Initiative countries are available. “These efforts should be channeled into getting everyone — cities, towns, villages, the general public, mayors, and civil society — to work to decentralize the authority, into enabling local democracy, and addressing various tasks involving services for people. All of that provides a positive influence on the wellbeing of our citizens,” believes Markku Markkula.
Participants of the session also discussed ways to step up economic cooperation and the role that city mayors and regional governors can play in it. “It is necessary to build a serious base, enable conditions conducive to the development of such cooperation. Then we will be able to attract more investments. Thanks to this investors from regions of the European Union countries will show their personal business interest in the [Eastern Partnership Initiative] countries and will come to work here,” said Markku Markkula. In his words, the organization of municipal elections in Belarus was discussed bearing this aspect in mind. Municipal elections are expected to be a good foundation for the economic development of the country.
The Eastern Partnership countries have cooperated with the European Committee of the Regions as the Conference of the Regional and Local Authorities for the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP) since 2011. Belarus is represented in CORLEAP by the council for interaction of local self-government agencies under the upper chamber of the Belarusian parliament.
CORLEAP is chaired by two co-chairs — the current president of the European Committee of the Regions and a representative of an Eastern Partnership country. Belarus is co-chairing CORLEAP in October 2016 – September 2017. CORLEAP comprises 18 representatives of Eastern Partnership countries (three from each country) and 18 representatives of the European Committee of the Regions.
