Related items

• EU Covenant of Mayors marks 10th anniversary in the Eastern Partnership region

  Over 200 representatives of local and national authorities from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, and the EU Member States have met in Tbilisi for a two-day conference dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the EU Covenant of Mayors in the Eastern Partnership region.

  A series of discussions organised throughout the event included a regional workshop hosted by the EU4Climate project, a joint EU and UNDP initiative to assist Eastern partnership countries in fulfilling their climate pledges.

  The workshop participants discussed the implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and low-emission development strategies on local and regional levels.

  Find out more

  Press release

• Covenant of Mayors in Eastern Partnership marks its 10 Years in the region

  Over the course of ten years of its fruitful work, the Covenant of Mayors East brought together national stakeholders, regional authorities, local governments, civil society, and communities from almost 500 municipalities from the six Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries. With more than 42% of the total population living in the municipalities committed to CoM East objectives, there is a clear positive trend of local authorities in the region joining the initiative.

  The cooperation within the initiative aims to embark on the path of energy and climate transition, share the experience among signatories of the project, exchange the best practices, take advantage of the technical expertise and funding opportunities, encourage each other, and jointly search for efficient solutions to shared obstacles.

  Organised in the framework of the EU-funded project Covenant of Mayors – Eastern Partnership, the high-level conference “10^th Anniversary of the Covenant of Mayors in the Eastern Partnership Region” will take place on 29-30 November 2022 in Tbilisi, Georgia. The Conference will host over 150 representatives, including local and national authorities, associations of local officials, and other stakeholders from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine, along with the EU institutions, EU Member States and international organisations’ representatives.

  “I am very happy to see that the Covenant of Mayors initiative in the Eastern Partnership is ready to deliver on the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. The ambition to cut emissions by 35% by 2030 demonstrates that your municipalities are truly stepping up to this challenge. With over 460 signatories, the Eastern Partnership region is a frontrunner and a great example for local authorities around the globe,” said Lawrence Meredith, Director for Neighbourhood East and Institution Building from the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) at theEuropean Commission.

  During the Conference, speakers will present the progress achieved by the Covenant and its signatories, and will reaffirm the EU’s strong political will to support EaP authorities in designing and implementing sustainable policies. The event will offer opportunities for discussing the main bottlenecks and barriers encountered by the signatory cities, providing effective recipes for success. It will also outline the future of the initiative and EU support to EaP municipalities in the perspective of the Green Deal and other European initiatives. The workshops, taking place on the second day of the event, will create a space for dialogue between local, national, and EU representatives on the implementation of SECAPs, examples of demonstration projects, and climate policy objectives.

  Along with the project’s 10^th Anniversary in the Eastern Partnership countries, the event also marks the launch of the CoM East third phase that started its work earlier this year. Moreover, from 2014 to 2021 a total of 33 Covenant of Mayors demonstration projects were implemented in the framework of the initiative with the budget of around 38.5 M€.

  The Eastern Partnership countries, throughout the past ten years, were able to build a strong and supportive Covenant community, where both ministries and regional authorities’ associations play an important role by assisting the signatories in meeting their CO₂ reduction commitments and implementing climate change adaptation measures.

  For further information about the event, please contact the CoM East Secretariat Communication Manager, Ms. Elena Nikitina (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ), or visit our website where you can find all project-related information, including newsletters, action plans, and detailed information on all six Eastern Partnership countries available in all respective languages: https://com-east.eu/en/

• Don’t miss out! Free EU opportunities for young people across the Eastern Partnership

  Whether you are a student or a young professional, involved in your community or even still at school, the European Union offers a wide range of free opportunities to young people in the six countries of the Eastern Partnership, ranging from scholarships to trainings, studying or volunteering abroad, internships, special facilities or grants.

  Whether you are looking to widen your horizons, help your community, develop your skills or start a business, the EU has opportunities for you. But they can be hard to find: so to help you along, we have developed guides to youth opportunities in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova or Ukraine.

  Each guide is specific to its country, and highlights both international and local opportunities, as well as local contacts to help you to apply.

  These guides are divided up into sections, with opportunities for:

  • Students
  • Civil society activists, young leaders, and volunteers
  • If you are still at school
  • Internships and training
  • Young professionals

  And if you’re looking for inspiration, a final section highlights the experience of young people like you, who have already benefited from EU opportunities.

  So don’t miss out: start looking now and get ready to sign up!

  Armenia

  Azerbaijan

  Belarus

  Georgia

  Republic of Moldova

  Ukraine

• EIB approves €4 billion credit line to support Ukrainian refugees in all EU countries

  On 18 May, the Board of Directors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) approved a €4 billion credit line (or programme loan) to help national authorities, cities, regions and local communities in all EU Member States address urgent investment needs and help welcome and integrate people fleeing the war against Ukraine.

  The EIB pledged these funds back in April, at ‘Stand Up for Ukraine’, a global pledging campaign for Ukraine and its refugees, but board approval was required. The EU and Canada then raised €9.1, including €4 billion from the EIB and €1 billion from the European Commission.

  The EIB credit line will help to provide this support by making financing available to the development of key infrastructure and services for refugees and host communities, such as housing, schools, hospitals and access to jobs. The financing can also cover eligible operational expenditures related to the supply of equipment, facilities and services for the integration of war refugees.

  This financial package will be complemented by EIB advisory support thanks to the EMBRACE Advisory Platform, a new initiative by the EIB and the European Commission.

  “All EU Member States can make use of this funding opportunity and bespoke advisory for projects that help refugees start a new life in their host countries,” said EIB President Werner Hoyer. “This initiative comes together with the €668 million support we gave in early March to the Government of Ukraine to cover their urgent liquidity needs; both are part of our Solidarity Package for Ukraine, which we set up together with the European Commission.”

  Find out more

  Press release

• EU4Youth cancels grant call to adapt to impact of war in Ukraine

  In response to the ongoing war in Ukraine, the EU4Youth programme has announced that it has decided to terminate its call for proposals “EU4Youth phase III Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship: Fostering Youth Employment and Societal Change through Social Entrepreneurship”, which was published on 26 January 2022 and extended on 3 March.

  “Following the military aggression initiated by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, the war in the country and the flood of refugees have comprehensively changed the demographic situation, social environment and labour market in Ukraine and other Eastern Partnership countries,” the programme said, adding that the need to address the immediate war-related needs and to build capacities for crisis response, including re-qualification, integration to labour markets, and development of entrepreneurship skills, had significantly impacted the context of EU4Youth Phase III. 

  In order to address these challenges, the priorities of the grant, and the requirements for applicants and procedures will be revised accordingly. 

  Depending on the situation, further information about the status of the call for proposals “EU4Youth phase III Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship: Fostering Youth Employment and Societal Change through Social Entrepreneurship” is planned to be announced until the end of April.

  All those interested in the programme and potential grant applicants should subscribe to the EU4Youth newsletter for updates.