The distance between Campofelice di Rochelle and the Fontanka municipality (Odesa oblast) is over 2,000 km in a straight line and more than 3,000 km by road. U-LEAD’s Bridges of Trust initiative allowed representatives of the Ukrainian and Italian municipalities to shorten this distance, get to know each other and discuss promising areas of cooperation.
“The U-LEAD with Europe Programme helps Ukrainian municipalities to find friends and partners in European countries. We are always happy to support cooperation between municipalities, and I hope that today’s meeting will result in joint projects and initiatives, mutual assistance and exchange of experience. This cooperation is especially important in these difficult times, which the Ukrainian people are going through,” said Andrej Horvat, Deputy Director of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme.
“We are grateful to Italy for the help it provides to Ukrainians who were forced to leave Ukraine, and today we have the opportunity to build a virtual bridge between the Black and Tyrrhenian seas,” said Yuliia Molodozhen, Head of the Odesa Office.
The presentations revealed that the Fontana municipality and the municipality of Campofelice di Rochelle had much in common. Geographically, both are located on the sea coast and fill similar niches in the economy: tourism, agriculture, trade, etc.
“We are sincerely happy to have the opportunity to establish such an interesting cooperation. Our municipalities have a lot in common, starting with the fact that both are led by women. I believe that our cooperation will improve the lives of the people in our municipalities,” said Michela Taravella, Head of Campofelice di Rochelle.
She also named potential areas of cooperation, including the exchange of experience and best practices in medicine, production of organic food, marketing and promotion of locally produced goods, development of tourism, as well as support of youth exchange programmes.
In her speech, Nataliia Krupitsa, Head of the Fontana municipality, also emphasised the importance of establishing partnerships, especially in preparing and implementing joint grant projects, sharing experience in cooperation with the business community, participating in cultural events and holding business forums, organising interaction between schools and youth organisations. Another important direction is the provision of humanitarian aid for the restoration of infrastructure facilities, because residential buildings and a large shopping centre were destroyed in the municipality by missile strikes.
After the presentation, introduction and discussion of further steps, the representatives of the municipalities agreed to prepare an action plan for further cooperation.
U-LEAD believes that it is important for the two municipalities to be able to independently maintain constant communication, form teams that would be responsible for interaction and work both on the formal aspect of the partnership through the conclusion of an agreement and on practical efforts.