The representative office of the European Association for Local Democracy (ALDA) has been opened today in Mariupol. The event took place after signing of a memorandum of cooperation. Mariupol became the second city in Ukraine that entered the Association.
The ALDA includes more than 180 members, including local authorities, associations of local authorities and non-governmental organizations from more than 35 countries. ALDA is a non-governmental organization promoting human rights by promoting citizen participation at the local level. The organization focuses on activities that promote the development of cooperation between local authorities and civil society.
The official meeting of the city authorities with representatives of the Association took place at the Administration Service Center. The guests were given a tour round the Center and they were shown how Mariupol had changed the approaches to the tools of power, namely, an open and accessible municipality.
During the meeting, Antonella Walmorbida, the ALDA Secretary General, Imislava Gorska, the ALDA Vice-President, and Pavel Adamovych, the Mayor of Gdansk, spoke about the work of the Association in other cities.
“ALDA is a platform to build trust and work for the benefit of democracy. And we are all here today to contribute to this goal. And, fortunately, we do not see any obstacles here in Mariupol”, - Antonella Walmorbida mentioned in her welcoming speech.
Pavel Adamovych said that he was very glad to visit Mariupol, a twin town of Gdansk. “Mariupol can be the best city not only in Ukraine, but also in Eastern Europe. The city has a good prospect. We need to work further”, - the mayor of Gdansk said.
Vadym Boichenko, the Mayor of Mariupol, told the honorable guests in detail about the city and what was done by the city authorities over the past 2 years. Particularly, the Mayor mentioned ‘new Mariupol residents’ and support programs for citizens.
Commenting on the event, Vadym Boichenko stressed that there has already been some opinion of the international community about our city that Mariupol is the eastern European city.
