5th International Mayors Summit in Moldova Gathers Nearly 500 City Leaders from Various European, UK, and US
The fifth International Mayors' Summit in Moldova brought together 480 mayors and high-ranking representatives from Moldova, Romania, Ukraine, Germany, Sweden, Slovakia, Lithuania, Estonia, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States and other countries.
For the first time in its eight years of existence, the International Mayors' Summit, founded in Ukraine, was held abroad, in Moldova, with the support of President Maia Sandu.
"European integration is the only way to ensure the prosperity of communities in Moldova, Ukraine and the European region. And the work on the country's transformation should be done in cooperation with local communities," Sandu said in her opening speech.
The mayors presented their projects aimed at reconstruction and sustainable development to their international colleagues.
The Mayor of Mykolaiv, Oleksandr Senkevych, announced the creation of a website to monitor international aid - a system of transparency and integrity that will help establish trust and rebuild the city.
Mihai Șurcu, Mayor of Oradea, Romania, shared his experience of attracting EU funding to build critical urban infrastructure, which helped attract investors, create new jobs and boost the city's economic development. According to him, Ukraine and Moldova also need European funding to get even more resources and opportunities in the future.
"In today's global world, mayors are not just managers who are temporarily hired to run cities. They are agents of change, ambassadors and visionaries working to create sustainable, competitive and happy places to live. This is not an easy task, and it becomes even more difficult for Ukrainian mayors in times of war," summed up Iryna Ozymok, founder of the International Mayors Summit and Head of Local Economic Development at WNISEF.
During the Summit, 10 pairs of cities were also awarded the Power of Partnership special prize for their joint projects in the areas of humanitarian aid, cultural exchange, education, infrastructure, etc. The following cities were recognised with this award: Mykolaiv (Ukraine) and Chełm (Poland), Vinnytsia (Ukraine) and Karlsruhe (Germany), Khmelnytskyi (Ukraine) and Siauliai (Lithuania), Ciechanów (Poland) and Chortkiv (Ukraine) and Caravaggio (Italy), Kopychyntsi (Ukraine) and Liskeard (UK) and Cavarzere (Italy), Bilohorodka (Ukraine) and Tireshe (Sweden), Dančeni (Moldova) and Filipesti de Pedure (Romania), Edinet (Moldova) and Alba Iulia (Romania), Becea (Moldova) and Oradea (Romania), Sireț (Moldova) and Tulucesti (Romania).
In addition, Ozymok announced the launch of the "Poles of Growth" study by the International Mayors Summit, WNISEF, CIVITTA, and EasyBusiness. The study aims to identify effective tools for economic growth for Ukrainian cities, proposals for better regional planning, taking into account local peculiarities, as well as approaches for the rapid development of depressed regions of Ukraine. The concept of "growth poles" was first applied in France as a tool for reconstruction after the Second World War, the essence of which is to create conditions for decentralised economic development and support for strong regions that can lead weaker ones. Today, this concept is successfully applied in more than 45 countries.
The Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF), funded by the U.S. government through USAID, is the first $285 million regional private equity fund in Ukraine and Moldova, having invested more than $188 million in 136 companies and helped to bring $2.4 billion to the region in its 29 years of operation.