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, 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.
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.
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