The Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) took part in the round table on interregional cooperation, at the plenary session of the Congress of local and regional authorities of Europe, on 15 October 2009, in Strasbourg.

 

Gianfranco Martini of the Italian association of CEMR (AICCRE) called on participants not to put too much emphasis on "practical, material" aspects of interregional cooperation, neither to overlook the local dimension of it. Yes, he said, cooperation between regions must embrace issues such as transport, infrastructure or the crisis; however it would be a mistake to limit it to these "down to earth" aspects. Interregional cooperation must also be a tool to strengthen European identity, via town twinning for instance.

 

Also during the plenary session, Gianfranco Martini was awarded the Congress' medal for his 47 years of work within it. In his speech, he stressed that the Congress of local and regional Authorities, and CEMR, must launch initiatives that, far from focusing exclusively on administrative, legal or financial aspects, would contribute to create a genuine European cultural area... in order to make us genuine European citizens while remaining faithful to our respective countries.

 

The October plenary session was also Ulrich Bohner's last as secretary general of CLRAE.

 

Gianfranco Martini's speech at CLRAE's plenary session (in French)