“Local and regional authorities, and their respective associations, are key partners who must play a vital role in the dialogue to strengthen local democracy and to coordinate integration efforts, with a view to ensuring stability in the region” affirmed Breda Pecan (Slovenia, SOC), Vice-President of the Congress, at the General Assembly Meeting of the Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South-East Europe (NALAS) in Vienna (Austria), 19 May 2017. Ms Pecan took the opportunity to outline the importance of the NALAS Position paper on “Western Balkans in the loop, Local Governments and their associations as key stakeholders in the EU integration process” in this regard. Reiterating the Congress’ support to NALAS, Ms Pecan highlighted the achievements of NALAS as an inspirational platform recognised for the quality of its work, for its networking capacity, and for the spirit of co-operation it maintains in the region and with its partners. She underlined the synergies between the work of NALAS and the Congress’ priorities which, for 2017-2020, focus on two main lines of action: “Enhancing the quality of local and regional democracy” and “Building safe and inclusive societies that respect diversity”.
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