Danube Region Partnership Forum in Böblingen/Sindelfingen

Participants:

Representatives of local communities from Europe and Ukraine

From the first days of the Russian full-scale invasion, Ukrainian heads of communities have been on the front line – organizing the delivery of humanitarian goods, carrying out the evacuation of civilians, organizing territorial defense and trying to maintain the operation of critical and social infrastructure despite constant shelling.

As a result of decentralization reform in Ukraine communities became not only a stronghold of the state in wartime, but a driver for democratic transformations. Thus, communities will play a crucial role in the recovery of Ukraine after the war and future European integration.

 Closer integration of Ukrainian municipalities with their European partners, which nowadays express unprecedented interest in support of Ukraine, could bring European expertise and standards closer to Ukraine and will enhance true transformation of Ukraine after the war.

Strategy Municipal Partnership Forum in Sindelfingen/Böblingen aims at

• establishing contacts between Ukrainian and European municipalities;
• revealing potential spheres of cooperation between potential partner municipalities under available programs and raising municipal leaders’ awareness of the existing instruments to support partnerships;
• spreading best practices of municipal partnerships in the region.

Program of the event

Further details will be announced later

Day 1

16:00 Official opening

Host: CITIES 4 CITIES | UNITED 4 UKRAINE

Welcoming speeches:

Florian Hassler, State Secretary for Political Coordination and Europe in the State Ministry of Baden–Wurttemberg

Dr. Bernd Vöhringer, Lord Mayor of the City of Sindelfingen

Further welcoming speeches (tbc)

16:30 – 18:00 Resilience of Ukrainian communities at war

Speakers:

Ukrainian mayors from delegation telling stories of resilience – building territorial defense, energy security, crisis management, communication, territorial defence measures.

18.00 Screening of teaser of documentary film “Moskow Nightingale” about Russian propaganda about Ukraine

Speaker:

Oksana Ivantsiv, Arts and Rights

Dinner at the hotel restaurant V8 HOTEL PICK-UP and time for bilateral talks

Day 2

9:30 Get together

10:00 A new meaning of municipal partnerships -cases of successful partnerships in times of war

Can Germany become a bridge between Ukraine and EU countries? Cases of trilateral-multilateral partnerships and networks.

Speakers:

1. Fabian Zeuch, Urban Diplomacy Coordinator, Office for International Relations of the City of Dortmund
2. Iryna Gudz, Deputy Mayor of the city
3. Dr. Eberhard Kettlitz, Municipal Development Policy Сhief of the City of Gudenberg
4. Representative of VNG International, the Netherlands Association of local governments (tbc)

Coffee break

11:40 – 12:20 Strategic opportunities of town twinning  / city partnerships for the municipal reconstruction of Ukraine

1. Barbara Baumbach, Desk officer for municipal development policy, mobilisation, partnerships Ukraine/Eastern Europe, BMZ 
2. Katharina Lenz, Pillar Officer bei Danube Strategy Point | EU Strategy for the Danube Region
3. Representative from the European Commission (tbc)

12:20 – 13:00 Instruments and opportunities for establishment and  support partnerships through projects

1. Representative of SKEW EG 
2. Representative of GIZ Clinic partnerships (tbc)
3. Funding opportunities for civil society (Ukraine) projects in the Danube region – The Baden-Württemberg Foundation’s programme Perspective Danube: Education, Culture and Civil Society (speaker: Ms Amelie Pflugfelder, Baden-Württemberg Stiftung)
4. Representative of CITIES 4 CITIES | UNITED 4 UKRAINE

13:00 Lunch

14:30 – 16:00 Bilateral talks with interpreter – How to proceed with partnerships?

The communities will be split into pairs of potential partners (they will be pre-matched) and provided with the structure of conversation

16:00 – 17:30 Conclusions & short 3-minute presentations by the Civil Society Network EUSDR (Engagement for Ukraine in BaWü)

17:30 Dinner – open end – Evening programme and time for networking and bilateral talks

Arrival and departure

Please organise your own arrival and departure.

A contingent of accommodation at the v8 Hotel is available for you and can be booked free of charge as a part of your registration. Catering will also be provided during the forum.