The mayor of Rijeka, Marko Filipović, also the vice-president of NALAS, together with his associates hosted a reception in honour of the governor of Darkhan-Uul province Azjargal Boldbaatar, Tulgaa Togtokhsaikhan, governor of the city Darkhan soum in Darkham-Uul province, and the mayor of the city of Leskovac, Goran Cvetanović, NALAS president – Network of Associations of Local Authorities of SE Europe under whose auspices the Friendship project is being promoted.

Mayor Marko Filipović

The goal of the Friendship project is to define opportunities for the development of cooperation between Mongolian Darkhan-Uul province and the EU through the exchange of knowledge and best practices available in the EU.

While presenting Rijeka to his guests, Mayor Filipović said that the vision of the city’s development implied Rijeka as a smart, open and resilient city. He recalled on a number of very important projects that were being carried out in Rijeka, such as the construction of transport and railway infrastructure projects realised in cooperation with the Government of the Republic of Croatia, the project titled “Improvement in water and utility infrastructure in the territory of the Rijeka Agglomeration”, and the project “Renewal of the heating system in Rijeka” aimed at increasing the energy efficiency of the heating system and the reliability of the heating energy supply.

Visit paid by a delegation from Mongolia

“Rijeka should soon get a new marina, which will certainly encourage nautical tourism. In cooperation with a private investor, we‘ll realise the project “Western Žabica Complex” and I am very proud that a number of renowned companies, such as the Lurssen Group and Ericsson Nikola Tesla, have decided to open their offices in Rijeka, which means that a positive climate is being created for the development of entrepreneurship” said the mayor. He also mentioned the infrastructure realised within the European Capital of Culture project. “Old industrial buildings have become places of culture, the investment in Art Quarter Benčić, the largest  investment in cultural infrastructure since the independence of Croatia while the ECC title has raised the visibility of Rijeka in Europe,” pointed out Filipović and explained how all those and many other projects, were changing the perspective of Rijeka.

visit paid by a delegation from Darkhan-Uul province, Mongolia

The governor of Darkhan-Uul province Azjargala Boldbaatar thanked for the hospitality and pointed out that the project was a sort of a bridge of friendship between Europe and Darkhan-Uul province. “I am glad that we have an opportunity to exchange experiences of good practice in various fields. It is particularly interesting for us to find out how you create conditions for a successful development of entrepreneurship, especially when it comes to start-up entrepreneurship at local level and how you strengthen and support their business. I am looking forward to the fact that we will be able to talk more about this topic over the next few days”, said Azjagrala Boldbaatar.

NALAS president Goran Cvetanović and Tulgaa Togtokhsaikhan, governor of Darkhan soum city also expressed satisfaction with their participation in the second study visit within the Friendship project.

Visit paid by delegation from Darkhan-Uul province, Mongolia

During their stay in Rijeka, the project participants will visit RiHub, where the Rijeka Startup Incubator will be presented to them and will meet with users and mentors of the Startup Incubator, and they will also visit the Kantrida swimming pool complex. Also, a presentation of the Rijeka Gateway and Western Žabica projects will be held for them, as well as a presentation of the construction of a new waste water treatment plant that will be built within the project “Improvement in water and utility infrastructure in the territory of the Rijeka Agglomeration”.

Through the Friendship project, it has been envisaged that an interregional platform would be established that would function through the exchange and transfer of knowledge and best practices from EU cities and regions to Darkhan-Uul province. Also, the project aims, among others, to strengthen smart e-government with the participation of citizens, support the development of small and medium-sized enterprises, and support green development.

NALAS brings together 14 associations representing about 9,000 local authorities, directly elected by more than 80 million citizens in South-East Europe. The network promotes the process of decentralisation in cooperation with central governments and international organisations, considering local self-government to be crucial in the processes of transition and European integration of the whole of South-East Europe.