TOWN TWINNING

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TOWN TWINNING

• alec, 14th of September 2006

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For the beginning
What is happening in the Baltic Countries?
() How are the French dreaming? () Of what are
Spanish afraid? () These are the main questions,
We have to raise, because we need to know Our
European partners neighbours. Only the ones we
know, we can love. (Emanuel Baroso)
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Association of Municipalities and Towns of
Slovenia (AMTS)
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Some facts about AMTS

• established in 1992
• 134 member municipalities (out of 193)
• covers over 1,700.000 citizens of Slovenia
• "official" representative of the municipalities'
  interests in relation to state institutions

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(No Transcript)
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AMTS tasks

• exchange experience and strengthen local
  self-government,
• organise debates, training
• consider draft laws relating to municipalities,
  and provide initiatives to the Government, the
  National Assembly and the National Council,
• assert and represent common interests of local
  communities in relation to state bodies and
  international organisations,
• modernise and rationalise municipal
  administrations,
• cooperate with Slovene and foreign organisations
  of local and regional communities,
• design joint development projects,
• encourage and promote intermunicipal cooperation
  in Slovenia and abroad,
• inform its members of the Associations
  activities and topical issues concerning local
  self-government,
• represent municipalities interests in
  negotiations

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Education, audiovisual culture Executive
Agency (EACEA)
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General Framework

• Council Regulation (EC) 58/2003 empowers the
  Commission to set up executive agencies
• Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive
  Agency became operational in January 2006
• Objectives
• - Better managed programmes and improved
  services to beneficiaries
• - Synergies between programmes

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EACEA Programmes

• Socrates
• Leonardo
• Youth
• Media Plus / Media Training
• Culture
• E-Learning
• Erasmus Mundus
• Citizenship

• Actions to support  Civil society  bodies
  active at European Level (in the fields of Youth,
  Education and Training, Culture, Town Twinning
  and Active Citizenship)

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Executive Agency Tasks

• Drawing up calls for proposals
• Evaluating proposals projects selection
• Contracting projects
• Financial management
• Operational budget for programmes gt 300
  million/year
• Administrative budget approx 34 million/year
• Monitoring of projects
• Information and communication with beneficiaries
• On the spot controls
• Annual work programme and activity report (to be
  approved by the Commission)

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Commissions Role

• Political and budgetary priority-setting
• Annual work programmes
• Programme evaluation and information
• Supervision of the Agency
• Chairing programme committees
• Management of certain programme strands

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Citizens as a heart of Europe

• Fostering dialogue
• citizens express sympathy and support towards
  European ideals
• difficulty to participate
• need to improve and to monitor the democratic
  legitimacy and transparency
• The Council established a Community programme to
  promote Active European Citizenship 2004 -
  2006
• future programme Europe for Citizens 2007 2013
• Both programmes seek to contribute to a better
  explanation and engagement of European citizens
  in European affairs

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Active European Citizenship 2004 - 2006

• Town twinning is an important tool to foster
  European identity on the local level, the level
  that is closest to European citizens. It is for
  this reason that town twinning has a major role
  in the community programme supporting active
  European citizenship.

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Town Twinning selection 2006
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Town-twinningTo know and understand each other
better

• ... that is the original idea behind the
  Town-twinning movement, which was born in Europe
  shortly after the Second World War. Nowadays
  twinning brings together municipalities
  throughout Europe, linking them in a dense
  network of citizens.
• Twinning provides the opportunity to find out
  more about the daily lives of citizens in other
  European countries, to talk to them and exchange
  experiences, and to develop joint projects on
  issues of common interest, such as local
  integration, the environment, economic
  development, and cultural differences.
• The EU support scheme was established in 1989
  following an initiative by the European
  Parliament. It has been well received by towns
  and municipalities in Europe. In 2005 more than
  2300 projects were co-financed.

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ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

• - municipalities and their twinning
  associations/committees
• - local and regional governments
• - associations representing local authorities
• Eligible countries
• The 27 Member States of the EU

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Europe for Citizens 2007-2013General Objectives

• Giving citizens the opportunity to interact and
  participate in constructing Europe, developing
  European citizenship
• Developing a sense of European identity, based on
  common values, history and culture
• Enhancing mutual understanding between European
  citizens, contributing to intercultural dialogue.
• Bring together people from local communities
  across Europe to share and exchange experiences,
  opinions and values, to learn from history and to
  build for the future

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4 actions

• 1- Active Citizens for Europe
• Measure 1 Town Twinning
• 1.1- Citizens Meetings
• 1.2- Thematic networking of twinned towns
• Measure 2 Citizens projects and support
  measures

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4 actions

• 2- Active Civil Society in Europe
• Measure 1 Structural support for think-tanks
• Measure 2 Structural support for civil society
  organisations at European level
• Measure 3 Support for projects initiated by
  civil society organisations

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4 actions

• 3- Together for Europe
• Measure 1- High-visibility events
• Measure 2 Studies
• Measure 3 Information and dissemination
  tools
• - to start in 2008

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4 actions

• 4- Active European Remembrance
• - to keep alive the memory of the victims of
  Nazism and Stalinism
• - to promote Europes values and achievements
  while preserving the memory of its past

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Citizens meetings

• Commitment to European integration
• Friendships in Europe
• Active participation
• Bilateral meetings 10 participants from the
  invited municipality
• Multilateral meetings 5 participants from each
  invited municipality

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eligibility criteria

• each invited municipality is twinned (or have a
  twinning officially in preparation) either with
  the host town or with another participating town
• municipalities from at least two eligible
  countries (one is a member state of EU)
• invited municipalities cannot consist mainly of
  elected local government representatives or
  municipal officials (more than half of the
  participants)

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grant

• The maximum grant is 20 000 per project.
• The minimum grant is 2 000 per project.
• Calculation
• organisational costs
• number of participants x the number of days x
  daily rate
• travel expenses
• number of participants x km x flat rate 0,025
  /km/participant.
• The daily rates for different countries to be
  consulted.

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eligibility criteria

• For conferences
• 50 participants
• from at least two eligible countries (one EU
  Member State)
• existing twinning agreement
• For seminars
• 20 participants
• For information campaigns
• 50 municipalities
• from two eligible countries (one EU Member
  State)
• co-operation with a partner organisation in
  every country
• which your information campaign covers.

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Thematic networking of twinned towns

• Conferences and workshops
• - the potential of the networks created by a
  series of town twinning links
• a defined target group
• address the priority themes of the Programme
• serve as a basis for future initiatives and
  actions between the towns involved

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Eligible criteria

• correspond to the objectives of the Programme
• always take place in the framework of town
  twinning
• min 20 participants from min 3 municipalities
  from 3 different countries (at least 1 EU member)
• min 25 of the participants from other than the
  host country
• take place in one of the participating countries
• min duration 1 day, max duration 3 days

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Grant

• event - flat rates apply (local and
  international participants)
• the minimum grant is 3.500,00 per project
• communication tools a publication, a DVD or
  CD-ROM, a website
• max 4.500,00

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Europe for Citizens 2007-2013

• New programme period 2007-2013
• Budget 215 Mio
• EACEA web Publication of the call for proposals
  2007 end October 2006 http//eacea.cec.eu.int/
  static/en/citizenship/index.htm

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Useful Information Citizenship Unit EACEA

• Our web http//eacea.cec.eu.int/static/en/citiz
  enship/index.htm
• Mailbox eacea-p7_at_ec.europa
• ? Executive agency Education Culture (EACEA)
  Unit Citizenship (P7) BOUR 00/13 B-1049
  Brussels
• ? General 32.2.299.11.11
• ? Town-twinning hotline [phone]
  (Tuesday- Thursday from 9.30 to
  12.30)
• Citizenship Fax [phone]

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Useful Information Association of Municipalities
and Towns of Slovenia

• Our web http//www.skupnostobcin.si
• ? Skupnost obcin Slovenije/
• Association of Municipalities and Towns of
  Slovenia Partizanska 1
• 2000 Maribor
• Slovenia
• ? 386 2 234 15 00
• Fax [phone]
• e-mail info_at_skupnostobcin.si
• Contact person for Town Twinning Saa Kek
• e-mail sasa_at_skupnostobcin.si

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• Thank you for your kind attention.