Speech by Giovanni Di Stasi,
President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities,
at the conference on “European local and regional governance – good practices and policies innovation”
(Athens 8-9 April 2006)

Mr Chairman,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear friends,

First and foremost, I would like to express my gratitude to PASOK and personally Mr Papandreou for the kind invitation giving me an opportunity to address this conference. Needless to say, I am a strong believer that the Socialist movement plays an extremely important role in the process of European integration at all levels and in improving the quality of governance on our continent, which is the central theme of this event.

A Chinese proverb says: “May you NOT be living in a time of change”. Its premise is that in a time of change, the traditional systems are shaken up, and things become blurred, unclear and confusing. However, a period of change also represents an opportunity to improve things, establish new systems, to move forward – in other words, an opportunity for innovation.

Ladies and gentlemen, we ARE living in a time of change. Europe has been undergoing tremendous transformation since the end of the Communist regimes, which brought about vast opportunities for the future. For the first time in history, almost the entire continent – with the sole and regrettable exception of Belarus – is united on the basis of the shared values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. Forty-six European democracies are represented today in the Council of Europe, including all member states of the European Union.

Dividing lines are disappearing, and so are national borders, and joint international structures are being created, sometimes with supranational powers. However, on the other hand, last year’s referenda on the EU Constitutional Treaty showed that the process of European integration is a bumpy road. It showed the need for more dialogue between government and citizens, the need to restore public trust and confidence in politicians and the governmental machinery. The European Commission began to talk about “Plan D” for “dialogue”.

At the same time, the former President of the EU Committee of the Regions, Mr Peter Straub, said that the Plan D also stands for “decentralisation”. Last year’s events also clearly demonstrated the necessity of accelerating the devolution of power towards the territorial level, towards regions and municipalities – in other words, towards citizens. We are already witnessing today the shift in the national/local balance as territories take on a growing importance in the political, economic and social spheres, including economic development and inter-territorial competition.

This is why I think that this conference is very timely. Today, we need to talk about delivering good governance – the only way of restoring public confidence in democratic institutions. But, at the same time, we need to talk about regional and local governance, which is part and parcel of the system of government of our democratic societies – not least because the results of governance at local and regional level are most tangible and felt the most by our citizens. Local and regional authorities are also best placed to explain to people the intricacies and importance of the European integration process.

The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Coucil of Europe, of which I am the President, represents more than 200,000 territorial communities of our continent. The Congress is equipped with – and is developing more – legal and practical tools to promote good governance at territorial level, including through inter-territorial cooperation. In fact, one of our basic juridical instruments – the European Charter of Local Self-Government – paved the way for giving territorial communities a role at the European level. The Charter established the principle of subsidiarity, according to which governance must be delivered at the level closest to the citizen. This principle was recognised in the EU Constitutional Treaty.

The main mission of the Congress is to be the political judge of territorial democracy in Europe by promoting decentralization, monitoring the state and development of territorial democracy and assisting territorial authorities in implementing Congress resolutions and recommendations. This is why the Congress will be actively participating in the work of the newly created Centre of expertise on local government reform. The decision to create the Centre was taken at the Warsaw Summit of Council of Europe Heads of State and Government last May.

It is symbolic that we are holding this conference today in Athens, in Greece – the cradle of democracy. It is here, in the Agora square, where participatory democracy at local level was born. It shows us clearly that local democracy is the pillar of a democratic society, and if local democracy dies, there will be no democracy at all.

This is why we cannot stop at what we have already achieved. We are living in a knowledge-based, globalising society which requires a new strategy for promoting good governance and delivery of public services not only at the national but also the regional and local level. We understand that we cannot achieve it without innovation, novatrice practices and innovative action – what the Assembly of European Regions, another very representative body, aptly called “innovaction”. This is why we are cooperating closely with the EU Committee of the Regions, with which the Congress has a cooperation agreement, to implement the Lisbon Strategy adopted by the European Union.

The Lisbon Strategy is very important to respond to the requirements of the changing world, in which we can clearly identify today two big processes: globalisation, on the one hand, and decentralisation, on the other. The second process, decentralisation, requires strong territorial powers to carry out the Lisbon Strategy and to accelerate the process of European integration at local and regional level. Of course, the transfer of powers and competences must be accompanied by the transfer of the necessary resources, and the Congress is actively working with the EU Committee of the Regions on the issue of effective use of structural funds at the territorial level.
[New structural funds 2007-2013]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me now mention some concrete recent action and initiatives by the Congress. As we are in Greece, I will start with our activities in South-East Europe, as we expect a strong commitment from Greece to bringing stability to this region and boosting its economic and social development. The Congress has been active in South-East Europe for more than 12 years when we began the programme of setting up Local Democracy Agencies in the former Yugoslavia. The Programme was aimed at developing local democracy and promoting confidence-building measures among the populations which had just suffered from the consequences of war. Local Democracy Agencies proved to be such a success, that the Association of Local Democracy Agencies (ALDA) was created, and we are now working on establishing Local Democracy Agencies in South Caucasus, another troubled region of Europe.

Our most recent initiative in South-East Europe was the creation of the Network of Associations of Local Authorities (NALAS), which united local authorities representing almost 60 million people. The Network was established last year but already proved to be a useful tool for promoting teritorial cooperation to achieve greater economic and social cohesion in the region. The Congress is working now on setting up a similar network in South Caucasus. The Network of Local Authorities in Georgia (NALAG) has already been launched, and the setting up of an association of local authorities in Azerbaijan is on its way.

Another important field of activity of the Congress is the creation of Euro-regions of a new generation, bringing together national, local and regional authorities from both EU and non-EU member states. These Euro-regions, built around semi-closed European seas, will have a special statute and will serve to achieve greater political, economic, social and cultural cohesion in these areas, boost local economy and contribute to the process of European integration. The first such region, the Adriatic Euro-region gathering six countries bordering on the Adriatic Sea, was launched in February this year at a conference in Venice. I would like to point out the very important participation of South-East European countries in this Euro-region, and the interest of Greek territorial authorities to join it and to transfer it into the Adriatic-Ionic Euro-region.

On 30 March, the Congress organised a major conference in Constanta, Romania, under the Romanian Chairmanship of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers. The objective of the conference was to discuss issues relating to cooperation in the Black Sea basin and to beging the process of preparing the Black Sea Euro-region. We find this initiative to be very important not only because it will help to bring stability to the region but also because the ecosystem of the Black Sea basin is becoming increasingly fragile and requires joint international effort to address the environmental issues. However, as we speak about the Black Sea basin we look at a larger picture – not only the countries geogrphically bordering on the Black Sea, but also the countries belonging to the basins of, for example, the Danube or the Dniester – both rivers, of course, flowing into the Black Sea.
Finally, we are beginning to look at the possibility of creating the Baltic Sea Euro-region. There are many intergovernmental organisations in that region, of course, much as in the Black Sea region, but the new Euro-regions will be the first to reinforce local and regional democracy and promote cooperation also at local and regional level, not only at national level.

Last but not least, the Congress has been promoting the idea of establishing a Centre of interregional and transborder cooperation in St Petersburg. This Centre will wok to strengthen regional – but also local – democracy and achieve greater cohesion among European regions, including in the sphere of economy. The Centre will also allow to establish links and build bridges between the regions of EU and non-EU countries, and in particular with the regions in Russia. We count on active support of the governments of the Council of Europe member states, including Greece, for this initiative.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

This was a quick look at how the Congress and I personally see the role of local and regional authorities in the process of European integration and strengthening European institutions. This was also a quick look on the concrete recent action by the Congress to reinforce regional and local democracy and thus the role of regional and local authorities in the European integration. I would like to conclude the way I have begun and to correct the old Chinese adage by saying with optimism: “May you BE living in a time of change!”

But while introducing changes, we must be clear about our unchanging political goals of building a society of democracy. More than 2,500 years ago, during the Athenian Golden Age, Pericles, looking at the Acropolis, said: “They will say of us that we have created the most beautiful and happiest of the cities.” A happy and prosperous society which will last for thousands of years, for ever, is our main goal, and democracy is the only way of achieving it.

We have many challenges ahead of us, and this conference has many important issues on its agenda. I wish all of you – all of us – every success in our endeavour. Let us build the happiest of the cities.

Thank you.