Strasbourg, 04.05.2026 – A delegation from the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, composed of rapporteurs Zana Gümüş (Türkiye, SOC/G/PD) and Elianne Demollin-Schneiders (Netherlands, EPP/CCE) will carry out the second part of a monitoring visit to Portugal from 5 to 6 May 2026. The Congress delegation will meet  with national authorities in Lisbon and will also visit the Autonomous Region of the Azores to assess the application of the European Charter of Local Self-Government since the previous monitoring report adopted by the Congress in 2020. The rapporteurs will be accompanied by Professor Nikos Chlepas, Vice-President of the Group of Independent Experts on the European Charter of Local Self-Government (Greece).

During this part of the visit, the Congress delegation will continue to focus on the follow-up to   Congress recommendation 445/2020 “Monitoring of the application of the European Charter of Local Self-Government in Portugal”. Furthermore, particular attention will be paid to the functioning of regional and local self-government within the autonomous regions and to the implementation of the principles of the Charter in these specific contexts.

In Lisbon, the rapporteurs will meet with the Secretary of State for Local Administration and Land Planning of the Ministry of Economy and of Territorial Cohesion. In Ponta Delgada, meetings are scheduled with the President of the Association of Municipalities of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, the representatives of the Legislative Assembly and of the Regional Government of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, as well as the Azores Regional Section of the Court of Auditors.

Contact:  Svitlana Pereverten