CEMR collects data and evidence on the evolving nature of local and regional governments’ competences and responsibilities for TERRI study
CEMR is preparing the next edition of its flagship study on structures and competences, which examines how local and regional governments across Europe are organised and how their responsibilities change over time. The study, publication foreseen in autumn 2026, will explore recent reforms affecting municipalities and regions, and assess their impact on the effectiveness of public service delivery.
A core focus of the new edition will be housing policy, a growing priority for CEMR members. The study will examine housing as a key competence for local and regional governments, with a particular emphasis on how they balance housing demand and supply, and how governance arrangements influence policy implementation on the ground.
CEMR members are invited to contribute to the survey, with responses due by 4 May, to support the analysis underpinning the study.
The country profiles offer a short overview of national models of (decentralised) development cooperation frameworks in selected EU Member States. The aim is to provide insights into specific mechanisms and modalities of analysed national frameworks and identify enabling factors as well as challenges related to practical implementation, focusing on the role and opportunities for local and regional governments and their associations.
Based on the study, the Belgian framework for Decentralised Development Cooperation (DDC) is characterised by:
1) Municipal associations are central to DDC in Belgium. Brulocalis, Association of Flemish Cities and Municipalities (VVSG), and the Union of Cities and Municipalities of Wallonia (UVCW) act as key intermediaries in coordinating funded programmes and serving as the primary source of support and guidance for municipalities.
2) Focus on long-term cooperation with selected partners. Sustained partnerships help to ensure the effectiveness and added value of cooperation. There is a prioritisation of the least developed countries and fragile contexts.
3) Awareness-raising of Belgian citizens about international solidarity. Belgian actors, in partnership with NGOs, actively contribute to informing citizens about development cooperation-related topics through awareness-raising and education activities at home.
This article is part of a series of 7 Country Profiles examining DDC frameworks across Europe. The fifth edition, focusing on France, will be published in July. Stay tuned!
Read the Country Profile of Belgium, available in four languages:
You can find the rest of Mindcraft’s publications here.
CEMR encourages Belgian authorities to strengthen the role of Local and Regional Governments in development policy, not only as implementers, but also as strategic partners helping shape a more resilient, inclusive and effective development agenda.
This publication is produced within the Bridging and Mapping Knowledge Gaps in Decentralised Cooperation (Mindcraft), funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
What may appear as a technical discussion about figures and funding lines is, in reality, a political struggle over power, priorities, and governance. And it comes at a moment when Europe must define what it wants to become: a more centralised political actor, or a union that remains fundamentally different from the United States—more negotiated, more decentralised, and ultimately dependent on consensus.
A budget under pressure
As Olbrycht explains, the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) is being shaped by an unusually heavy context: war at Europe’s borders, growing global competition, the repayment of pandemic-era debt, and the prospect of enlargement.
The European Commission has proposed a significantly larger budget—potentially close to €2 trillion. But this ambition depends on new sources of revenue. Without them, the EU risks financing new priorities by cutting existing ones, turning the negotiation into a zero-sum game.
A shift in how Europe spends and governs
One of the central points raised in the discussion is that the most controversial change is not the size of the budget, but its structure.
Rather than organising spending around established policies like cohesion and agriculture, the proposal introduces broader categories and national plans that bundle different funding streams together. According to the Commission, this is meant to simplify the system and make it more flexible in times of crisis.
In practice, however, it redistributes power.
It strengthens the role of national governments while allowing the Commission to impose mandatory priorities—such as minimum spending on climate or support for less developed regions. As Fiorella Lavorgna, host of the podcast points out in the conversation, this creates a hybrid system that raises a key question: is this simplification, or a new form of centralisation?
The real fault line: who gets a say
This leads to one of the clearest political fault lines discussed in the episode: governance.
Will cities and regions be co-authors of these national plans, or merely consulted?
For organisations like CEMR—where Jan Olbrycht also served as of the vice presidents between 1995 and 2001—this is a red line. The experience of recent instruments, such as the Recovery and Resilience Facility, showed that consultation without real involvement risks weakening both effectiveness and accountability.
The European Parliament has taken a relatively strong position in favour of reinforcing the role of local and regional authorities. But within the Council positions remain divided, reflecting different national governance models.
Competitiveness vs cohesion
Another key tension highlighted in the discussion concerns the balance between competitiveness and cohesion.
The proposed competitiveness fund reflects a shift toward innovation, strategic industries, and investment attraction—an acknowledgement that Europe must strengthen its global economic position. This raises concerns about the future of cohesion policy, which has long been central to reducing regional disparities.
This is not simply a budgetary trade-off. It is a political one: a more competitive Europe that deepens internal inequalities risks undermining its own foundations.
Enlargement and the limits of unity
The conversation also touches on enlargement.
Integrating countries like Ukraine or Moldova is not only a financial challenge—it is a political one that requires unanimity among Member States. As Olbrycht stresses, enlargement ultimately depends as much on the willingness of current members as on the readiness of candidate countries.
This reinforces a central feature of the EU: its dependence on consensus.
Not a United States of Europe
When asked who one should “call” to speak to Europe in ten years’ time, Olbrycht’s answer is telling: not one leader, but several—reflecting a system where authority is shared rather than concentrated.
For him, the EU is not moving toward a single-leader model like the United States. Instead, it will maintain its own specificity: a political system built on balance between institutions and Member States, where decisions emerge from negotiation rather than hierarchy.
The next EU budget embodies this reality. It is not just a financial framework, but a test of how Europe functions: whether it can act strategically without becoming centralised, and whether it can remain cohesive without becoming fragmented.
Ultimately, what is at stake is not only how much Europe spends, but how it governs itself. And in that sense, the outcome of these negotiations will say as much about the EU’s political future as any treaty reform.
From principles to practice, making the European Commission’s new Gender Equality Strategy 2026-2030 deliver
The European Commission’s new Gender Equality Strategy 2026–2030 starts from an important premise: gender equality is not a side issue, but a principle that must shape public life as a whole. Built on the Roadmap for Women’s Rights and its Declaration of principles for a gender-equal society, it sets out a broad vision across education, health, work, leadership and online life, while also confronting cyberviolence, anti-gender narratives and backlash against hard-won rights.
This approach closely reflects CEMR’s own long-standing work. For almost 20 years, the European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life has advanced the same principle: equality must be anchored in shared commitments, but progress only comes through action at every tier of government. That is why the real test of the new EU Strategy, as with the Charter itself, will be implemented.
That matters because women and girls are still too often pushed out of public life. CEMR’s Women in Politics: Local and European Trends shows that around 32% of women in politics have experienced violence, with cyberviolence rising sharply. The fact that the Commission’s Strategy itself draws on the CEMR study underlines the importance of local and regional experience in shaping the wider European agenda. The study also highlights wider structural barriers: women are still less likely to be drawn into political life and, once elected, are too often denied the most influential responsibilities. Politics cannot be meaningful if it excludes half the population.
Governments must therefore ensure that the safety of women and girls is never pushed to the margins when other priorities arise. Girls must feel that their voice will be heard and that it will lead to action. Only then will they believe there is a place for them in politics. CEMR’s more recent study, Local Truth, Shared Trust, reinforces this message by showing how closely trust in institutions is linked to people’s sense of safety and inclusion, especially for those considering entering public life. Women must have not only a voice in politics, but a safe space in which to use it.
While the Strategy acknowledges elements of CEMR’s work, this recognition represents a welcome first step rather than the destination. To ensure the Strategy’s ambitions translate into meaningful outcomes, there is value in more systematically integrating the depth of local and regional evidence that CEMR and its members have built over two decades. After all, gender equality is shaped on the ground: in towns, cities and regions where policies take effect and where women experience the impact of public action on their lives. Taking local and regional realities into account throughout the EU policy cycle, from data collection to programme design, delivery and monitoring, would help the Strategy reflect women’s lived experiences and enable more effective, inclusive implementation across Europe.
As CEMR marks the 20th year of its Charter, it looks forward to working with the European Commission and partners across Europe to turn principles into lasting change. That same message was recently carried to United Nations at this year’s 70th Conference on the Status of Women, where Flo Clucas, CEMR’s spokesperson on gender equality brought the local perspective into a wider discussion among women and men in public office: local political life must be genuinely open to both women and men, and women cannot participate fully if safety is not guaranteed. The work is far from finished. But the direction is clear: women and girls must be able to participate fully and safely in public life, without fear of violence or intimidation, in every town, city, region and country.
Inside Bonn’s 40-year effort to advance gender equality
The city of Bonn (Germany) signed the European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life nineteen years ago. Yet Bonn’s story promoting gender equality does not begin there. It stretches back more than forty years, to a time when gender equality was little more than an ambition, and when the structures needed to drive real change barely existed.
In 1984, Bonn established a dedicated Office for Equal Opportunities, a bold move for its time, signalling that equality was not an abstract value but a governance priority. By 1991, the city had introduced its first bylaws on equal opportunities. A decade later, in 2001, Bonn adopted its first comprehensive Equal Opportunities Plan, laying the foundations for long‑term, structural change in work, care, safety and representation.
Bonn’s commitment has remained unwavering. Today, the city hall maintains a near-equal gender balance in senior management, while women in middle management are empowered to assume leadership responsibilities through structured mentoring programmes.
Deputy Mayor of Bonn, Ursula Sautter, explains that the local administration “advocates and promotes equal care solutions” due to the “still unequal division of work and care”.
Sautter also highlights that the city actively combats all forms of violence and stands firmly with victims. This effort is reinforced by the new German Violence Assistance Act of 2025, which strengthens support frameworks across the country.
Bonn has been a signatory of CEMR’s European Charter for Equality since 2007, demonstrating its commitment to turning principles into action. As Sautter mentions, “the European Charter for Equality is a beacon of empowerment for us, uniting us with a multitude of diverse cities in this important endeavour”.
Ursula Sautter, Deputy Mayor of Bonn
20 years of the European Charter for Equality
This year, we mark the 20th anniversary of the European Charter for Equality,a milestone that invites reflection, celebration and renewed ambition.
Since its creation, the Charter has become one of Europe’s strongest frameworks for driving equality at the local and regional levels. Today, more than 2,053 signatories from 36 countries are part of this growing movement of cities, towns, and regions committed to turning equality principles into reality.
Developed by CEMR together with its national associations and project partners, the Charter brings together diverse European visions of equality. Hundreds of local and regional representatives contributed to shaping a shared framework that considers the diverse competences and contexts across Europe. Signing the Charter is a public and formal commitment, a pledge to advance gender equality through policies, programmes, and concrete actions implemented in cooperation with local partners and civil society.
While the Charter is not legally binding, it is intentionally ambitious. CEMR recognises that achieving these objectives requires time, dialogue, and structural change. That is why signatories are encouraged to adopt a progressive approach, identifying priority areas for action while steadily expanding their efforts.
To support signatories, CEMR established the European Observatory on the Charter, dedicated to helping local and regional authorities develop and implement strong equality policies.
The Observatory’s mission is threefold:
Support the development of Local Action Plans for gender equality
Monitor implementation and progress on the ground
Evaluate impact and share knowledge across Europe
By connecting municipalities, facilitating exchanges, and making progress visible, the Observatory ensures that the Charter remains a living, evolving tool, anchored in real practice.
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Discover the story of Aubagne (France), which signed the European Charter for Equality in November 2025.
Bonn is a member of CEMR’s association Deutscher Städtetag.
Europe’s housing crisis has reached unprecedented levels, with direct consequences for citizens living in towns, cities and regions across the continent. The European Commission’s EU Affordable Housing Plan is a meaningful step forward, but it will only deliver if the full potential of local and regional governments is unlocked.
CEMR’s new position paper, “A local plan for housing”, sets out proposals to the EU Affordable Housing Plan, arguing that Europe’s ambitions will only translate into real results if towns, cities and regions are fully empowered to act.
To make this happen, CEMR identifies four priorities that must be unlocked so local and regional governments can deliver on the ground:
1. Mobilise investment where it matters most
Inadequate and unpredictable funding is one of the main barriers to expanding affordable and sustainable housing for towns, cities, and regions. Local and regional governments need long‑term investment frameworks. CEMR calls for:
Simpler and wider access to EU and national funding, including cohesion policy and EU budget 2028-2034 instruments, so municipalities of all sizes can plan and deliver.
Reforms to fiscal rules and modernisation of State aid, treating affordable and energy‑efficient housing as long‑term investment rather than ordinary expenditure.
Support to strengthen construction capacity and innovation, from skills to circular, climate‑resilient building and renovation.
2. Enable faster and more coherent planning to accelerate delivery
Fragmented, complex procedures delay urgently needed homes across Member States. CEMR urges EU and national authorities to:
Streamline planning and environmental assessments, reducing duplication while upholding strong sustainability standards.
Enable place‑based approaches, giving towns, cities and regions the flexibility to access land, regenerate brownfields and plan integrated, inclusive neighbourhoods.
Advance the single market for construction, harmonising technical standards to reduce delays, boost innovation and lower costs.
3. Improve efficiency through digital permitting
Digital permitting can bring faster renovation and new construction, but many local and regional governments lack resources to implement it. CEMR calls for:
Dedicated funding, training and technical assistance are needed for interoperable local–national–EU permitting systems.
Clearer guidance for applicants and developers will improve submission quality.
4. Activate Europe’s full potential through a real multilevel partnership
The EU Affordable Housing Plan will only succeed through genuine cooperation across levels of government. CEMR asks for:
Structured multilevel governance, with local and regional governments fully involved in design, implementation and monitoring.
Stronger municipal autonomy and legal clarity, ensuring responsibilities are matched with financing.
Adequated resources for the European Housing Alliance with structured participation of local and regional governments, which also serves to cooperate beyond the EU to address shared housing challenges.
Europe’s housing challenge demands swift and coordinated action. The EU Affordable Housing Plan sets an important framework, but its success will depend on how well it empowers the governments closest to citizens. By unlocking investment, planning flexibility, digital efficiency and genuine multilevel governance, Europe can move from ambition to delivery.
CEMR’s “Local Plan for Housing” offers a clear pathway: start locally, invest wisely and collaborate across levels of government. Only by working through cities, towns and regions can Europe ensure that affordable, sustainable and inclusive homes become a reality for all.
CEMR launches new study on local governments’ role, responsibilities in housing governance
In 2026, CEMR will update its flagship study on governance trends, the Terri Report. The previous edition, published in 2021, focused on the role of local and regional governments in public health. The new edition will place housing policy under the spotlight — a policy field that clearly illustrates how responsibilities are shared across levels of government and how effective coordination shapes tangible outcomes and the well-being of citizens and local communities.
For many years, CEMR has monitored territorial and governance developments across its membership, analysing what institutional and territorial changes mean for democracy and the quality of public decision-making. As governance challenges grow more complex and increasingly differ between places, traditional top-down approaches are proving less effective. Strong coordination across national, regional and local levels is therefore more important than ever.
Alongside updating data on governance structures and administrative reforms, the study will use housing as a lens to examine how competences, financial resources and implementation capacities are distributed across levels of government — and what this implies for addressing territorial disparities and delivering place-based solutions.
To support this work, CEMR’s members will receive a detailed questionnaire in early March 2026, addressed to national associations and experts with practical knowledge of housing policy at municipal or regional level. The questionnaire is structured in two parts: • Part I focuses on governance arrangements, competences and reforms. • Part II examines housing policy as a case study of multilevel cooperation.
This is a substantial, expert-level exercise rather than a quick survey. The evidence gathered will form a key foundation for CEMR’s advocacy on effective multilevel governance and housing policy. Members will have approximately three weeks to respond.
The study is expected to be published in autumn 2026, and CEMR looks forward to your participation in this work. Your contribution will strengthen our collective evidence base and advocacy for better governance and stronger place-based policies across Europe.
Pol Morillas (CIDOB), MEP Hanna Jalloul and local leaders reflect on the current geopolitics and its effects in Europe, global disorder, and why local leaders matter more than ever
At a time when global politics is increasingly shaped by power rivalries and zero-sum logic, cities and regions may appear peripheral to the big geopolitical chessboard. But according to Pol Morillas, Director of CIDOB (Barcelona Centre for International Affairs), this perception is deeply misleading.
Speaking at a UCLG gathering of the European section, alongside MEP Hanna Jalloul, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, and representatives from municipalities and regions across Europe, Morillas offered a sharp diagnosis of the global moment, and a compelling argument for why local and regional leaders are essential actors in Europe’s response to it.
“We are entering a world we were not built for”
Morillas describes 2026 as the year when “brutal geopolitics” has fully taken shape.
“We are not living in the world the European Union wanted”, he explained. “The open markets, rules-based globalisation, and cooperative multilateralism that Europe championed are giving way to power politics, transactional alliances, and the return of the state as the dominant actor”.
*Pol Morillas, Director of CIDOB (Barcelona Centre for International Affairs)
This shift goes beyond any single election or leader. While the return of Donald Trump to the White House has accelerated trends, Morillas sees a broader transformation driven by major powers — including China and India — embracing national interest and zero-sum competition.
In this emerging order, actors are reacting differently. Some are accommodating. Some are resisting, particularly youth movements across the globe. Others are disoriented.
“And the European Union”, Morillas noted, “is navigating this disorientation”.
Europe’s three strategic choices
According to Morillas, Europe is currently debating three broad strategies:
Keep the United States engaged, even if it requires tactical appeasement, especially in areas like security and intelligence where Europe lacks full autonomy.
Build new alliances with middle powers such as Japan, India, and Mercosur countries to preserve elements of a rules-based order.
Pursue greater autonomy, particularly in areas like technology and geo-economics — though, as Morillas cautioned, “there is often more talk of autonomy than real action”.
These strategies coexist, sometimes uneasily, as Europe attempts to redefine itself in a harsher global landscape.
But this is only part of the story.
New diplomatic opportunities for cities and regions as “laboratories for finding solutions”
While geopolitics grabs headlines, Morillas argues that some of the most urgent crises are concentrated in cities and regions and that is precisely where their diplomatic relevance lies. “The role of cities and regions will be most important when they are laboratories for finding solutions to crises that are most held in cities and regions”, he said.
He pointed specifically to:
Housing
Cost of living
Energy
Youth mobilisation and the response to young people’s demands
“These areas are far away from brutal geopolitics and do not have defence as their main component”, Morillas explained. “They are low-hanging fruits for cities and regions to play an interesting diplomatic role”.
In other words, while states compete over security and strategic dominance, local governments are managing the everyday pressures that shape citizens’ trust in democracy. Their ability to innovate and respond effectively becomes a form of diplomacy in itself.
Youth mobilisation and democratic response
Morillas also underlined a growing global trend: youth resistance to national political systems perceived as unresponsive.
“We are seeing increasing numbers of young people resisting national politics and proposing alternative models of understanding society”, he said.
For cities and regions, this presents both a challenge and an opportunity. Local governments are often the first institutional level confronted with youth demands — from climate action to housing affordability. The quality of their response will shape democratic resilience in Europe.
A multipolar world, including the local level
The global order’s fragmentation is also reshaping inter-city cooperation. The CIDOB director pointed to new forums emerging beyond traditional Western-led networks, including initiatives linked to BRICS+.
“This multipolar world also takes place within regions”, he observed. “European cities and regions need to be aware of these new forums”.
Global alignment is no longer only a matter for foreign ministries. It is increasingly reflected in how cities cooperate, partner, and position themselves internationally.
From consultation to co-decision in Europe
Perhaps most significantly, Morillas sees cities and regions gaining weight within the European architecture itself. “It is not only a question of member states”, he argued. “Cities can play an important role in the European architecture — sometimes only as being consulted but increasingly having something to say about the future of European integration”.
From housing initiatives to urban energy transitions, European policy debates are increasingly touching areas where cities have primary competence.
To advance this agenda, CIDOB has launched the “Local Europe” initiative with the support of Barcelona City Council, aiming to reinforce what Morillas calls “the Europe of cities”.
The underlying message is clear: the future of European integration will not be decided solely in national capitals.
How should local leaders look at the world?
How, then, should local and regional leaders look at the world — and how are they perceived within it?
The discussion made clear that towns, cities and regions are no longer peripheral actors but central pillars of Europe’s global credibility.
As Carola Gunnarsson, CEMR spokesperson for international affairs and local councillor of Sala, Sweden, underlined also during this session, “municipalities and regions are not merely implementers of European policy. We are co-creators of Europe’s credibility”.
*Carola Gunnarsson, CEMR spokesperson for international affairs and Lord Mayor of Sala, at the Leaders’ Summit in 2025
In a geopolitical environment marked by ideological confrontation and democratic strain, consistency between local governance and global ambition becomes decisive. “If we would like Europe to be a strong global actor, we must be consistent both internationally and locally”, she stressed.
Echoing this call for coherence, MEP Hanna Jalloul, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, underlined the direct impact of EU decisions on citizens’ daily lives.
Yet, she questioned the persistent democratic disconnect: “Why have we reached only 50% participation in European elections?” According to Jalloul, “many citizens don’t fully realise how economic and agricultural decisions taken here directly affect them.”
*MEP Hanna Jalloul, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, European Parliament photo
Beyond internal policy, she stressed the importance of consistency in Europe’s external action. “We speak of peace, but our multilateral system — which we’ve defended since 1945 — must be consistent.” In a challenging geopolitical environment, she argued, the European Union must align its commercial priorities and strategic autonomy with its foundational values.
When democratic disconnect reaches the local level
This disconnect between European decision-making and citizens’ perception, participants warned, does not remain abstract. When people feel that decisions are distant, unclear or inconsistent with proclaimed values, frustration grows — and it often manifests first at the local level.
As highlighted by Eider Enunciaga, spokesperson for local democracy at CEMR and representative of Bilbao City Council, local leaders are increasingly experiencing hostility and intimidation — both offline and online. “The future of our democracies in Europe is at stake here,” he stressed, noting that geopolitical tensions, disinformation and polarisation are directly affecting municipalities and regions.
*Eider Enunciaga, spokesperson for local democracy at CEMR and representative of Bilbao City Council, at the CEMR event on the launch of the European Observatory
In response to this growing pressure, CEMR, together with the City of Bilbao, Bocconi University and the Basque Association of Municipalities, has launched the European Observatory for Democracy at the Local Level. The initiative aims to gather data on threats against local representatives, identify emerging trends and better understand the drivers behind attacks on democratic institutions.
“By strengthening democracy at the local level, we are also strengthening the European project,” Enunciaga concluded.
As the European Union prepares its next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2028–2034, the Global Europe instrument will define the EU’s external action for the years ahead — encompassing development cooperation, humanitarian aid, enlargement support and Global Gateway. Discover PLATFORMA detailed policy position outlining how this strategic instrument should be shaped to foster sustainable global partnerships and advance inclusive governance.
At a time marked by intersecting global crises — from climate breakdown and shrinking development funds to geopolitical instability — the role of local and regional governments (LRGs) is more critical than ever. PLATFORMA’s paper is thus anchored in the belief that effective global action starts from the ground up.
Local and regional governments as co-decision-makers, implementers and partners
PLATFORMA’s position starts from a stark reality: despite their proximity to citizens and deep knowledge of local contexts, LRGs remain under-recognised in EU external action frameworks. The coalition calls for the Global Europe instrument to move beyond symbolic references to “local authorities” and embed mechanisms that genuinely empower LRGs as co-decision-makers, implementers and partners in EU external policies.
Key recommendations
The Policy Paper makes 9 key recommendations to EU decision makers:
Strengthen multilevel governance in Global Europe and place local and regional governments in the driving seat of territorial development
Pair flexibility and simplification with ambitious official development assistance targets, and enhance accountability and transparency mechanisms
Unlock Global Gateway’s potential through the involvement of local and regional governments
Foster EU delegations’ engagement with local and regional governments
Recognise and empower local and regional governments as unique and effective development partners in fragile contexts
Advance the localisation of the Sustainable Development Goals to achieve decarbonised societies and climate justice
Involve citizens through Global Citizenship Education as a key component of decentralised development cooperation
Foster inclusive and participatory local governance: empower youth, women, and disadvantaged and underrepresented groups
Strengthen local governance through the EU Eastern neighbourhood and enlargement strategy
Through these recommendations, PLATFORMA aims to improve the current proposal for the Global Europe instrument, so that it fully recognises, acknowledges, and supports the contribution of local and regional governments to EU external action, notably through decentralised cooperation as a development aid modality.
PLATFORMA also calls on the European Commission to issue an updated Communication on the structured involvement of local and regional governments and their associations in the new (geo)strategic approach to EU external action.
Meet the Local Hero: Eider Inuntziaga, building trust from the streets of Bilbao
When Eider Inuntziaga talks about local government, one word comes up again and again: closeness.
Since 2023, she has served as a city councillor in Bilbao, after years of political engagement within the Basque Nationalist Party. It is her first public mandate, and the experience has changed how she sees political life.
Before, she observed politics from the inside. Now, she experiences it daily — in the street, in neighbourhood conversations, and in the direct reactions of citizens to local decisions. The distance between elected representatives and residents is minimal, which makes local politics both uniquely meaningful and uniquely exposed. She also brings this experience to the European level as one of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions’ spokespersons on Local Democracy.
Across Europe, these challenges are increasingly visible. To better understand and address them, CEMR and its partners, including the City of Bilbao, have launched the European Observatory for the Defence of Democracy at the Local Level — an initiative that collects data, documents threats and harassment against local elected representatives, and helps develop practical tools and responses to better protect those serving their communities.
As she puts it, “local governments are the closest level of administration; we are the face of democracy.”
That proximity builds trust, but it also concentrates frustration. When people are unhappy, local leaders are often the first — and easiest — target.
Social media: useful, but risky
That visibility now extends far beyond the street.
Inuntziaga describes her relationship with social media as “conflicted.” While it can help connect people and share information, she also sees clear downsides.
“Social media can connect people and stories, and it can be useful—up to a point. But it also creates noise, polarisation, and sometimes hate. It can be dangerous.”
For local politicians, the effects are concrete. “It affects integrity, it affects how we speak, and it can silence people. It can make people leave the work they’re doing—or become afraid of what’s happening.”
She keeps her presence limited, using Facebook and LinkedIn, and mixing personal and political communication carefully.
Participation beyond election day
Despite these challenges, Inuntziaga remains firmly optimistic about the role local governments can play in strengthening democracy.
Her approach is simple: stay close, listen carefully and involve citizens as much as possible. For her, elections are only the starting point. Day-to-day participation matters just as much. In Bilbao, this philosophy has taken concrete form through participatory initiatives that invite residents to help shape the city’s direction.
One example is “Bilbao City of Values,” a process through which citizens collectively identified a shared set of principles to guide public life. The idea is to create a common framework that strengthens belonging and counters misinformation. The goal, she explains, is not only better policies, but stronger relationships between institutions and the people they serve.
Learning from Bilbao’s past
Bilbao’s history has also shaped how she thinks about governance.
The city has experienced profound transformation over the past decades — from industrial decline and unemployment to renewal driven by long-term planning and cooperation between public institutions, private actors and civil society. For Inuntziaga, this experience shows that change does not happen overnight and that stability requires patience.
She often points to three elements behind Bilbao’s recovery: cooperation, shared values and long-term vision. Quick fixes rarely work. Instead, consistent decisions taken with the future in mind gradually rebuild trust.
“Decisions must be made with the long term in mind,” she says, describing democracy and stability as mutually reinforcing.
Eider Inuntziaga during the launch of the European Observatory for the Defence of Democracy at the Local Level.
Rooted locally, thinking European
Although her work is grounded in municipal politics, Inuntziaga keeps a strong European outlook. She follows debates beyond Spain closely and draws inspiration from leaders such as Kaja Kallas, whom she admires for her perspective on Europe’s role in a changing world.
Still, her focus remains firmly local. For her, cities are where democracy is tested every day — where policies meet real life, and where trust is either built or lost through everyday interactions.
It is not the most visible level of politics — but, in many ways, it is the one where democracy is felt most directly.
To hear more from Eider Inuntziaga, you can listen to the full episode of Call Simone, also with Gianmarco Daniele of Bocconi University, . They discuss how growing harassment and disinformation are affecting local leaders across Europe, and how the launch of the European Observatory for the Defence of Democracy at the Local Level can better track threats and protect local democracy.
