Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions

Session 5: Territorial Cohesion, the Lisbon Agenda and Regional Development

Bayonne, France, 3 October 2008

Speech by Ludmila Sfirloaga, President of the Chamber of Regions, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe

Mr Chairman,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great honour for me to address today the General Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe, as newly elected President of the Chamber of Regions of your long-standing partner, the Council of Europe Congress of Local and Regional Authorities. Your Conference enjoys observer status with the Congress, and I am particularly pleased to be here to day to reaffirm our close relationship of cooperation in many areas of common interest, of which territorial cohesion and regional development are among the most important. The Congress is also in synch in its efforts with the Committee of the Regions, our partner and friend in the European Union, and I welcome the intervention of the Committee’s Vice-President Michel Lebrun, which showed once again the ever-present need for concerted action of all European organisation to succeed in our mission.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

There are two aspects to the Congress’s work on territorial cohesion, which can be described as standard-setting in a broad sense, and implementation of specific projects and initiatives in favour of territorial cohesion and regional development in a narrow sense.

The Congress’ standard-setting action is based on our conviction that a common general framework for regional democracy and self-government is much needed in Europe today. We see regions as the level linking national governments and territorial communities; in many countries, regions are playing an important political role on the national scene. The issues of regional identity, regional languages, regional cultural development are among political priorities of many Council of Europe member states.

It is not surprising because regional economic development today underpins national economies in many European countries, propelling into political prominence the regional dimension of European integration. Many national parliaments in Europe have regional representation or the second chamber; a growing number of countries have regions with legislative power; still others are in the process of developing regional structures. The role of regions in political, economic and social fields has been steadily growing for several decades now, pushing the question of regionalisation in Europe higher and higher on the political agenda of European organisations and institutions, and the Congress is no exception. 

Ever since the regional dimension was added to the activities of the Conference of Local Authorities, the Congress’ predecessor, making it Conference of Local and Regional Authorities in 1975, regionalisation has been one of its main priorities. Our work in this area resulted in the European Charter of Regional Democracy, approved at the Congress’ plenary session in May 2008 after a long period of elaboration and consultations. Once adopted by the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers, this Charter will become the cornerstone of regional democracy in Europe in the same way as the Congress’ European Charter of Local Self-Government is for local democracy. Needless to say, we count on your support in convincing national authorities of your countries of the expediency of such a legal instrument for regions.

Apart from being the first legal text laying down the tenets of regional democracy, the Charter reaffirms respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity as one of its main principles, and offers a variety of flexible models for regional autonomy and self-government, already existing in European countries. However, the new Charter will serve first and foremost to preserve and enhance regional identity and development in the political, economic, social and cultural spheres.

We in the Congress strongly believe that this Charter will make a valuable contribution to territorial cohesion by boosting transfrontier and interregional cooperation and the creation of networks of regions and transfrontier regions. For us, the future of European integration lies in transfrontier regions and cooperation transcending national borders, which can already boast good examples of giving an impetus to regional economy, strengthening territorial cohesion and facilitating interaction and dialogue between communities. In this regard, it is symbolic that we are supported in our conviction by the region of Alsace and its capital, Strasbourg, which is a host city of the Council of Europe and our Congress. The City of Strasbourg has recently launched an initiative of creating a Euro-District with the bordering German city of Kehl and the German Ortenau kreis, whereas Alsace is participating in the Tri-National Metropolitan Region of the Upper Rhine, established in January this year and involving the bordering regions of France, Germany and Switzerland. 

It is clear that transfrontier co-operation is a way of helping to improve relations between the countries and regions of Europe and achieving greater economic and social cohesion which leads to a reduction in regional disparities.  In our culturally diverse Europe, it is also a good tool for intercultural learning and dialogue, and for creating cultural links contributing to mutual understanding.

It is in this spirit that the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities put forward an initiative of setting up Euroregions of a new generation around European semi-closed seas – Euroregions which would bring together local and regional communities from both member and non-member countries of the European Union. I am certain that this initiative is of particular interest to the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions, as it deals directly with the issues of concern to your organisation. The first such Euroregion, the Adriatic Euroregion, was established in 2006; its governing body, the Adriatic Council has its seat in Pula, Croatia. Last Friday, on 26 September, we launched the Black Sea Euroregion at a conference in Varna, Bulgaria. We strongly hope that this new Euroregion, whose goal is to create people-to-people synergies and reinforce territorical cohesion in the Black Sea basin, will contribute to the ‘Black Sea Synergy’ of the vast geographical area. This Euroregion includes also countries not having direct access to the Black Sea but closely linked to it. I am talking about Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Greece, Moldova and Serbia, all members of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organisation, BSEC.

The main areas of cooperation within the Black Sea Euroregion were identified as the protection of the environment, coastal management, development of intercultural exchanges and social cohesion, management of migration flows, transport, energy, promotion of sustainable tourism, and exchanges of good governance practices. Much as the Adriatic Euroregion, the one in the Black Sea basin has been conceived to serve as a cooperation framework for local and regional authorities, and a launching pad for multilateral projects and initiatives between regions and municipalities, using also existing national, European and international financial mechanisms.

The Adriatic and Black Sea Euroregions are just two examples of the Congress’ action in promoting interregional and transfrontier cooperation – the action which will now be channelled through the recently created Working Group on Interregional Cooperation of the Congress, composed of elected regional representatives with extensive, practical experience of the issue at hand. In 2009, the Group’s Chairman, Karl‑Heinz Lambertz, Minister-President of the German-speaking Community of Belgium, will present a report to the Congress, which will assess the state of transfrontier cooperation in Europe and examine the conditions necessary for its success.  The conclusions will provide food for thought for the future priorities of the Working Group and the Congress.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Among the most recent Congress’ texts aimed at strengthening territorial cohesion and promoting regional development, I should mention resolutions and recommendations on services of general interest in rural areas as a key factor in territorial cohesion policies, adopted in March this year, and on challenges and opportunities for peripheral and sparsely populated regions, adopted in 2007.

In both sets of texts, the Congress stressed the need to consider polycentric spatial development models and trans-border cooperation to ensure the development of integrated regional infrastructures in sparsely populated and peripheral areas. We reaffirmed the crucial importance of territorial dimension for achieving sustainable development, the economic and social well-being – and I would add, the environmental well-being – of our communities, which is also in line with the Territorial Agenda of the European Union.

We insist in this regard that sustainable development concerns should be mainstreamed into all aspects of territorial policy, in particular to counter the growing urban-rural divide and the overall decline in the quality and accessibility of services of general interest, which is especially acute in peripheral and sparsely populated regions and rural areas. The Congress recommended greater decentralisation of public services to local and regional level, to make sure that they are adapted to citizens’ needs and expectations, as well as broader partnerships with all stakeholders in the delivery of public services, the use of modern technologies and innovative approaches – such as mobile and online services – and the development of comprehensive public transport networks, among others.

In 2007, the Congress discussed in great detail issues related to peripheral regions, sparsely populated regions and mountain regions and islands. All these regions often face an accumulation of disadvantages due to problems related to their remoteness and inaccessibility.

In our analysis of the different regions and the different challenges, we saw the need to broaden the concept and the definition of peripheral regions. Even in the central part of Europe regions can be peripheral meaning that they face challenges of decreasing population, insufficient infrastructure and unfriendly landscape.

To improve the situation for the peripheral and sparsely populated regions, the Congress  point at two areas of action:

One is increasing the role of local and regional self-governance, which gives the regions possibility to be in charge of their situation without being dependent on decisions made by others far away;

 

the second area is the concept of polycentric spatial development, which I have already mentioned and which focuses not on the relation of peripheral regions to central parts of Europe, but on their potential for integration in the global economy and sustainable development of their local communities.

Regional self-governance and polycentric spatial development give these regions possibilities to engage in networking with other regions, in trans-border cooperation and other international contacts, for instance making use of Euroregions. Peripheral regions networking with each other and with other regions in a system across Europe gives a sustainable base for economic growth – and this brings me back to the question of transfrontier cooperation, with which I began my speech.

The Congress will be pursuing its work on transfrontier and interregional cooperation, which is a crucial factor in territorial cohesion and regional development, as one of its priorities for future action, and in line with the EU Territorial Agenda and Lisbon Strategy. In this regard, I should also mention that to complement the EU Lisbon Strategy of the European Union, the Council of Europe prepared the European Strategy for Innovation and Good Governance at local level, approved by European Ministers of Local and Regional Government in Valencia, Spain, in October 2007. We in the Congress strongly believe that a prerequisite for good governance is close involvement of local and regional authorities, which serve as a link between national governments and territorial communities. Their active stand underpins any action at the national level, mustering popular support for it. This is why local and regional authorities will be key actors in implementing the European Strategy at the territorial level, and it comes as no surprise that the Congress, their representative body at the pan-European level, fully supports this initiative. The Strategy, which sets out 12 principles of democratic governance at the local level, is closely intertwined with the Lisbon Strategy, and is also aimed at promoting innovation and raising the level of knowledge of our populations, using new technologies and making them accessible for all our citizens.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In conclusion, I would like to recall that in 1993, the Vienna Summit of Heads of State and Government of Council of Europe member countries stressed that “the creation of a tolerant and prosperous Europe does not depend only on co-operation between States. It also requires transfrontier co-operation between local and regional authorities, without prejudice to the constitution and the territorial integrity of each State.”

Back then, the Heads of State urged the Council of Europe to pursue its work in the field of transfrontier co-operation.  The European integration process, the power shift towards the level of territorial communities – municipalities and regions – and the transfer of competences and financial resources which accompanied it opened up the way for strengthening and deepening transborder cooperation, which goes hand in hand with local and regional economic development.

And this, in turn, serves the overall goal of consolidating democratic stability in Europe and achieving a greater unity amongst the 47 Council of Europe member states and the 800 million Europeans living in more than 200,000 territorial communities – which now are increasingly able to cooperate with each other regardless of political or administrative borders.

Thank you.