Hoan Kiem lake in Hanoi (Source: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – Hanoi and Ho Chi MinhCity are paired with Milan (Italy) and Kosice (Slovakia), respectively, underthe World Cities project launched by the European Union (EU) in Hanoi on June12.
The project aims to promote the sharing ofinformation and experience in building urban and regional development policiesamong the participating cities.
Addressing the launching ceremony, AmbassadorBruno Angelet, Head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam, said both EU and Vietnamhave recognised that developing cities is an important factor in promotingsustainable development in the world.
The EU and its member nations pledged tocooperate with partners in the world to create cooperation opportunities amongcities and boost experience exchanges as well as urban solutions to addresschallenges in sustainable development in partner countries.
During the event, senior officials from the fourcities of Vietnam, Italy and Slovakia discussed initiatives for smart and greencities.
The World Cities project, worth 700,000 EUR isfunded by the European Commission’s Department for Regional and Urban Policy(DG REGIO) in Brussels.
The project will be implemented in pilot citieswith specific short-term cooperation agenda, including urban innovation (smartcity), green technologies (energy efficiency, low carbon development).
Concrete actions will be decided upon byparticipating cities and regions with strong support from the project’s staffand in cooperation with DG REGIO and the EU delegations to the participatingnations.
The project is expected to promote marketopportunities and create jobs along with pursuing sustainable economicdevelopment in the cities, thus strengthening bilateral cooperation for mutualbenefits.
The project has also been carried out inAustralia, Indonesia, South Africa and the Republic of Korea.-VNA
VNA
