Placing local initiatives and decentralisation at the heart of the democratic process in the Eastern Partnership

Six countries – be they Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine – gathered together in 2009 to lay the foundation of the Eastern Partnership (EaP). The latter is thus aimed at strengthening the relations, both in terms of politics and socio-economic fields, with the European Union (EU).

Yet, how to unfold these thematic, and increase the bond among them? Strategies may be thousands, but surely enough, as also stress in the latest CORLEAP Report by rapporteur C. Cojocar; decentralisation or better explained “the decentralisation of power, from central governments to the people, including decentralisation from centralised governments to parliament and judiciary institutions” may represent a key turning point in the democratic process.

Within this framework the role of ALDA, especially the one carried out both by the ALDA office in Chișinău (Moldova) and by the Local Democracy Agencies (LDA) in Cimislia, Kutaisi, Gyumri Mariupol and Dnipro, acquires a unique and strategic value. Hence, the LDAs are a successful example of decentralised cooperation and a powerful tool to further contribute to the capacity of a society to commit themselves to democracy. Similarly, by engaging also with Local Authorities, the Agencies may stimulate a process of reforms and policy adjustment at institutional level.

LDAs are a successful example of decentralised cooperation in the Eastern Partnership

Moreover, the recents crises and wars, that the world population faces, underline – to some extent – the even more important role of Local Authorities and actors to ease, if not solve, people’s challenges. “EU4Accountability” represents one of the more recent initiatives launched in Moldova, among the EaP countries, by ALDA, in partnership with EPD and People in Need.

In addition, considering the profound bond that the Association has with Ukraine, the Secretary General of ALDA – Antonella Valmorbida – will attend as keynote speaker, on 4 November 2022, within the CORLEAP 11th Annual Meeting, the panel entitled “Reconstruction of Ukraine” together with Vitali Klitschko, Mayor of Kyiv; Jaroslav Kurfürst, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for European Issues; and Anatoliy Fedoruk, Mayor of Bucha. (Here the detailed agenda)

This series of initiatives and endless commitment clearly show the position of ALDA as a stakeholder in the Eastern Partnership region, and within CORLEAP.

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