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CEMR welcomes the publication of the EU Agenda for Cities and the renewed recognition of local and regional governments as essential partners in delivering Europe’s priorities

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The publication of the Agenda for Cities marks an important step towards strengthening the urban dimension of EU policies. It does acknowledge the key role of local and regional governments in implementing 70% of EU legislation, and the importance therefore to better inform and associate local governments in the preparation of European legislations. But the agenda falls short of answering the “ambition” level announced by President Ursula von der Leyen in her mission letter to Executive Vice President Raffaele Fitto.

Beyond a catalogue of policy areas where cities play an important role, and a list of initiatives already implemented by the European Commission, several elements will require clarification and improvement to ensure the Agenda truly delivers solutions for cities of all sizes and contribute to better policy making by transparent and representatives partnership with local and regional governments at European level. 

The Agenda for cities is just one piece of the puzzle 

While the EU Commission states that the Agenda applies to cities of all sizes, as well as suburbs and towns, the continued reliance on the Eurostat definition of “urban centres” (50,000+ inhabitants) risks leaving much of Europe behind. As we have seen with the implementation of the European Innovative action, the Eurostat definition has become the minimum population criteria in calls for proposals directly managed by the European Commission. This approach may inadvertently exclude small and medium-sized municipalities, which make up the majority of local governments and are at the heart of delivering EU policies.  

But beyond the Agenda for Cities, CEMR regrets that this initiative has not been enshrined in a broader more comprehensive territorial development strategy for Europe. As set out in our position paper Towards an inclusive EU agenda for cities of every size and context, an effective EU Agenda must reflect the full territorial diversity of the EU and avoid reinforcing urban–rural divides.  

A welcome recognition of cities’ role, but structured multilevel governance is still missing 

CEMR welcomes the acknowledgement of local and regional authorities as key implementers of EU legislation. However, the governance model proposed in the Agenda still relies heavily on ad hoc consultations, including the reference to the June 2025 Implementation Dialogue, which lacked transparency and representativity. 

We reiterate the need for a permanent, structured and inclusive multilevel governance mechanism involving local and regional governments and their representative associations at national and European level. This is essential for shaping, not only implementing, EU policies. In this respect, associations representing local and regional governments at European but also national level must be the go-to partners for the European Commission, to ensure representativity and legitimacy of their consultation processes.  

When mentioning the preparation of the “National and Regional Partnership Plan” for the EU budget post 2027, the Commission states that structured multilevel dialogue will be key feature in the preparation and implementation of the plan, but did not include any binding measure to ensure this is the case. CEMR also made concrete recommendations to secure the involvement of local and regional governments in preparation of these plans. 

Better Implementation must become a priority of the EU Agenda 

It is positive that the Agenda includes some specific support under a new “EU Cities platform” for capacity building, innovation and participation in dialogue. It will be important that this support offer is not restricted to few cities but available to all subnational governments.  
CEMR calls in particular for a dedicated Better Implementation pillar as part of the EU Urban Agenda with: 

• Governance and competence impact assessments for all new EU proposals, 

• capacity-building resources in the reforms pillar of the next MFF, 

• regular and inclusive implementation dialogues, 

• and a one-stop-shop integrating all support tools for subnational governments. 

These elements are indispensable for translating EU ambitions into real local outcomes.  

Funding: more clarity, but uncertainties remain 

We welcome the launch of the new EU City Portal, which can help cities navigate funding opportunities more easily. At the same time, the future EU Facility – to be directly managed by the European Commission raises questions about the future of existing programmes (EUI and URBACT) and on governance, accessibility, and safeguarding participation of smaller municipalities. To unlock the full potential of local governments, the EU must deliver simpler, fairer and better-aligned funding, as outlined in our position paper.  

Promising measures in the agenda, if they remain accessible to all

CEMR welcomes new initiatives announced in the Agenda, including: 

• “potential” access to the European Competitiveness Fund for clean transition and industrial decarbonisation, as well as for resilience, security and defence 

• High and technical levels consultations of urban stakeholders 

• strengthened support for capacity building, including on public procurement, 

While cities are encouraged to adopt the “mission approach” it remains unclear whether that is mere suggestion or whether it will come with a new call and potential funding for these “Mission Cities”. 

These measures can help cities accelerate the green and digital transitions—as long as access is equitable and not restricted to larger or well-resourced municipalities. 

Our final message 

Today’s publication is a milestone for Europe’s urban future. But an EU Agenda for Cities must be inclusive, territorially balanced and grounded in genuine multilevel governance. CEMR stands ready to work with the European Commission, Member States, and its member national associations to ensure that this Agenda becomes a truly transformative framework—one that delivers for cities, towns and regions of every size and context. 

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