The 133 enrollees learned about the European funds and funding programmes targeting the municipalities

Today was the closing ceremony of the fifth edition of the Seminar on European funds: Tools and opportunities for funding for local entities organised by Catalonia Internacional and the two municipal entities that form part of the Consortium, the Catalan Association of Municipalities (ACM) and the Federation of Municipalities of Catalonia (FMC), with the collaboration of the Department of Foreign Action and European Union of the Generalitat de Catalunya (Government of Catalonia), the Public Administration School of Catalonia (EAPC), and Barcelona Provincial Council.

The event was attended by Sergi Penedès, assistant secretary general of the ACM; Conxita Font, general deputy director of European Union Relations at the Department of Foreign Action and European Union; Antoni Montseny, director of International Relations for Barcelona Provincial Council; Miguel Comino, president of the Area of Development and Local Strategy of the FMC and mayor of Sant Vicenç dels Horts and Laura Foraster i Lloret, managing director of Catalonia Internacional. Foraster explained that the entity has three main lines of work -to connect, project and teach- and that the seminar is a clear example of the educational role of the Consortium. All those involved highlighted the importance of this type of initiatives in strengthening the capacity of the municipalities in obtaining European funding, and they congratulated themselves for the high level of institutional collaboration.

The seminar targeted workers from local entities in order to improve their knowledge of European funds and increase their chances of receiving European funding. The sessions were given by over thirty experts, including officials from the European Commission, university professors, experts from the Government of Catalonia responsible for managing European funds, experts from different Spanish ministries, and experts from councils that have obtained European funding, who provided an overview of the different funds and the specific tools and instruments that Europe provides for local authorities.

This fifth edition, which started in September 2024, included 133 enrollees from local councils, district councils, provincial councils and other local bodies, who received training on European funds and funding programmes with special emphasis on the Next Generation funds, the new European Bauhaus, and the circular economy. The seminar was held on line with two final practical sessions in person, in which the students put the theory learned during the course into practice. One of these two practical workshops was held prior to the closing ceremony, which discussed the management of and participation in projects with European funding. It was given by Anna Martínez Codina and Mireia Sanabria Redon, experts from the European Funds and Programmes Unit of the Barcelona Provincial Council Office of Europe and International Strategy.