The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe and the City of Rabat organised, from 20 to 22 November 2017 in Rabat (Morocco), an international conference entitled " Building an inclusive community: integrating migrants, fighting violent extremism, involving citizens ". This event was part of the cooperation programme between the Congress and Morocco to strengthen local and regional democracy in the context of the reform of advanced regionalisation in Morocco.
The conference brought together elected representatives and administrative officials from Moroccan towns and cities, as well as their European counterparts, who shared their experiences within international networks such as the Intercultural Cities Programme (ICC) or the Alliance of European cities against violent extremism.
The conference was opened on 20 November by Lahcen LAMRANI, First Vice Mayor of Rabat, Nawel RAFIK-ELMRINI, Vice-President of the Current Affairs Committee of the Congress of the Council of Europe and Deputy Mayor of the City of Strasbourg, France, and José Luis HERRERO, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Rabat.
The three themes were introduced by Sabah BOUCHAM, Vice-President of the Municipality of Rabat, in charge of social, cultural and sports affairs, Nawel-RAFIK-ELMRINI, Marloes SOER, advisor on radicalization and the fight against terrorism, City of Rotterdam, Netherlands, Mohammed BOUDRA, President of the Moroccan Association of Presidents of Municipal Councils, and Andrew DISMORE, Member of the Council of Europe Congress and Member of the London Assembly for Barnet and Camden, United Kingdom.
On 21 and 22 November, several thematic round tables allowed participants to exchange experiences on the field presented by elected Moroccan and European, as well as by experts and academics. Concrete examples were examined, in particular, on participatory budgets, co-construction of public spaces, citizen participation, Morocco's strategy for refugees and migrants, foreign residents' councils, integration of migrants through employment, as well as prevention of radicalisation and violent extremism in Europe and Morocco.
The conference was organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation of Morocco, the Ministry of Interior, and the Moroccan Association of the Presidents of Municipal Councils (AMPCC).
