QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER OF THE UNION OF CYPRUS MUNICIPALITIES Wednesday, 31 March 2010 Issue No: 9 DECISIVE: DEVELOPMENT OF CYPRIOT TWINNING CAPACITIES THROUGH ACTIVE VOLUNTEERING After a proposal submitted by the Union of applications and run the projects). On the Cyprus Municipalities (UCM) in the other hand, municipalities that have the framework of the “Europe for Citizens” capacity to run Twinnings, develop them programme (Action 1: Measure 2.2 mainly with neighboring countries and only Support measures), the European give the possibility to a few of the citizens Commission decided through the to participate in them. Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) to finance the The same problems exist in other distant training of volunteers in the Municipalities and small geographical units such as the of Cyprus, in order to support the island of Chios - Greece. The DECISIVE development of Twinnings with other project targets all these problems: European countries. The project has a duration of 12 months, starting from the a) even if distance can be an obstacle for 4th January 2010 and the partners are the the creation of Twinnings, municipalities Union of Cyprus Municipalities (UCM), the often pay for travel and other expenses on Vereniging van Vlaamse Steden en their own, if the they think it’s useful. Gemeenten (VVSG) – Belgium and the Distance becomes, therefore, a minor Local Union of Municipalities and problem if a twinning is useful. Communites of Prefecture Chios (TEDK CHIOS) – Greece. b) the UCM had a part of the responsibility for the lack of information, despite the Cypriot municipalities currently efforts undertaken especially during the underexploit the possibilities offered by last two years. The DECISIVE project helps Town Twinning. According to the results of the UCM and other associations facing the a survey conducted by the UCM, the main same problems to further develop their reasons for that are: a) geographical capacities by creating a real dialog distance, b) lack of information on town between citizens, local politicians and twinning and most importantly c) lack of municipal officers concerning all practical qualified municipal personnel (to fill in and political aspects of town twinning. Future major DECISIVE activities: 9/5/10: Dissemination Event in Cyprus 18/5/10: First training session in Cyprus and launch of the webpage September: Study trip and training sessions in Belgium October: Dissemination event in Cyprus November: Final training session in Cyprus November: Dissemination event: Annual General Assembly of the Union of Cyprus Municipalities December: Quantitative Evaluation 3/2010 MUNICIPAL NEWS ISSUE 9 c) there are not many ways to deal with of the current twinning agreements that the lack of personnel. After discussing with remain inactive. A dissemination event will different associations of local authorities also take place on the 9th of May, helping around Europe, we have decided to exploit in this way citizens and local stakeholders and develop in Cyprus and Chios the to better learn and understand the methodology used in Flanders: it is the practical meaning of active European citizens themselves that voluntarily citizenship: citizens, local officials and local prepare and run twinnings. This method politicians working together for the same not only alleviates the administrative purpose and cooperating with European burden from municipalities but also regions that have the same problems and strengthens the citizens’ feeling of targets. ownership over the projects. Every Cypriot municipality has already DECISIVE, therefore, focuses on indicated a number of potential volunteers developing voluntarism and transferring along with local officials and politicians. knowhow from Flanders to Cyprus and This group of 250 people, along with the Chios, through training sessions in Cyprus representative of TEDK Chios will follow and Belgium. the first training session that will take place in Cyprus in May 2010. The trainers, five in total, will be selected by the VVSG as follows: Two trainers from a municipality where town twinnings are organised only by the town twinning committees (volunteers), two trainers from The project aims to promote volunteering a municipality where town twinnings are not simply as a principle, but also through organised by the municipality with the the development of specific skills for the collaboration and help of a town twinning participating volunteers. New skills (filling- committee and one trainer from the in of the Online Grant Application Form and Association. project management) will be developed not only amongst those who are After the first training session, a group of responsible for twinning activities at a local 39 potential volunteers will be chosen level but also among ordinary citizens that among the 250 initial ones. These, along will learn how to work with their local with the representantive of TEDK Chios will politicians and municipal officers. travel to Belgium at the end of September 2010 for a series of practical training This way the project will foster the sense sessions. One of the sessions will take of ownership of the European Union among place in the premises of the EACEA and will citizens: not only will they have the chance be focused on the filling-in of the Online to participate in a European project, they Grant Application Form, one in the will also have the opportunity to shape it premises of the Union of Cyprus and create something useful out of it. Municipalities where the Europe for Citizens programme and the CEMR website Finally, the project hopes to promote on twinning (www.twinning.org) will be twinnings at least between Cypriot and presented to them and another one, either Flemish towns - currently no twinning in the municipality of the trainers, or within exists between towns in the two regions. the UCM premises, in order for the By including citizens in the process and participants to be more thoroughly helping them understand the meaning of acquainted with the work of the Flemish Twinning, we also hope to revitalise some town twinning committees. 3/2010 MUNICIPAL NEWS ISSUE 9 The training session in Belgium will hold a • Preparation of an INFORMATION key role in the project since it will CAMPAIGN aimed to analyse thoroughly familiarize future twinning officers with the - by means of meetings addressed to work and personnel of the EACEA and the the officials responsible of each involved EU in general (information visit to the municipality – knowledge and skills on Committee of the Regions and potentially the subject of town-twinning. Special the European Parliament). attention will be given to themes dealing with: EU policies and tools and A final conference will again take place in EU co-operation among municipalities. Cyprus at the beginning of November 2010 Furthermore, the Seminars' aim will be with the participation of all (or even some the promotion and diffusion of the new) 250 potential “twinning officers” with SKILLS project, its contextualized the aim to conclude the work, set up results and learned lessons, as well as Cypriot town twinning committees and best practices to be transferred to other present ideas for the creation of new districts and territorial realities. The first twinnings or present new ones already meeting between Italian and Cypriot created via the project. Municipalities will take place on April 16th in Cyprus. Participation in the SKILLS project Thanks to a high-quality communication campaign and the accomplishment of information sessions, it will be possible to In addition to the DECISIVE project, the reach local authorities everywhere with Union of Cyprus Municipalities participates specific activities designed to provide as a partner in the SKILLS project, which "information, training, increased also aims to promote Town Twinning within awareness" to actively involve and alert the Municipalities of Cyprus. The lead them as concerns issues of the SKILLS partner of the project is ANCI Lazio. project. The project’s overall goal is to create innovative actions, to bring local authorities Study for the restructuring from the two associations closer, to of the Local Government encourage the two partners (Lazio Region and Cyprus) to participate more actively in On February 22th, the Minister of Interior Town twinning activities and to support of the Republic of Cyprus presented to the them in the creation and development of media, the Study for the Restructuring of long-term thematic networks for common Local Government of the Republic of priority issues. Cyprus, in an event attended by the Union of Cyprus Municipalities and the Union of The following actions have been identified Cyprus Communities, who have assigned as priorities for the SKILLS project: the relative study to the National Centre of • creation of a website linking local Public Administration and Self-Government authorities and paving the way to of Greece. participatory processes concerning European policies. The information Following the formal presentation, the system will consist of various tools / web study will be the subject of public dialogue, services, such as a RESEARCH PARTNER where all the municipalities, communities, tool and Project IDEA area for the political parties and other interested bodies exchange of project ideas within the will have the opportunity to express their European Community. opinion before implementation starts. 3/2010 MUNICIPAL NEWS ISSUE 9 CEMR Directors meet in The meeting concluded with an address by Cyprus former Mayor of Nicosia, Lellos Demetriades, who gave an overview of the The future of the Council of European situation in Nicosia economically and Municipalities and Regions (CEMR), the politically. new mandates at the European institutions and the reform of local government in Cyprus, were the main topics discussed at the meeting of Secretaries General and Directors of CEMR's member associations that took place in Nicosia, on 4 and 5 March 2010. Speaking at the opening of the meeting, the Cypriot Minister of Interior, Neoklis Sylikiotis, presented the reform process of local government that will soon take place in the country.