Functional Areas in the EU Best Practices at the EUI Event

The Functional Areas in the EU project participated in an event aimed at fostering the development of Functional Urban Areas in Hungarian SUD Cities. One of the core objectives of the project is to improve functional area approaches within the EU by exchanging knowledge. As such, the event titled Fostering the development of functional urban areas in Hungarian SUD Cities, organized by the European Urban Initiative (EUI) team, provided the opportunity to transfer knowledge and enhance coordination and cooperation across administrative boundaries for 43 Hungarian cities.

Aiming to strengthen the understanding of functional area approaches and foster knowledge, the event included three case studies featuring best practices from other post-socialist European countries: the Brno Metropolitan Area, Wroclaw Metropolitan Area, and Cluj Metropolitan Area – all of which are part of the Functional Areas in the EU project. These three European best practices showcased various modalities for achieving territorial cooperation, highlighting both challenges and successes, and providing a practical insight for the participants.

• The case study of the Brno Metropolitan Area (BMA) was presented by Ms. Soňa RASZKOVÁ, the head of Foreign Cooperation and Marketing department. At the national level and beyond, the Brno Metropolitan Area (Czech Republic) stands out as an exemplary European functional area.
• The case study of the Wroclaw Metropolitan Area was presented by Mr. Łukasz MEDEKSZA, the deputy director of the Strategy and City Development Department. The Wroclaw Functional Urban Area (Poland) stands out as a developed and dynamic functional urban area.
• The presentation of the ‘Functional Areas in the EU’ project and the case study of Cluj Metropolitan Area, along with other European best practices and opportunities for the future of functional urban areas, was delivered by Mr. Marcel IONESCU-HEROIU, Senior Urban Development Specialist at the World Bank. Cluj Metropolitan Area (Romania) stands as one of the largest urban areas in Romania and holds particular importance in the historical region of Transylvania.

The audience of the event was diverse, including politicians, officers, and experts from the 43 Hungarian cities. This event was important as it served as a building block to understand the benefits of functional area approaches and guide the local governments in preparing for the eventual prioritization of Functional Urban Areas (FUAs) in the next programming period. Overall, this one-day event provided an opportunity for active learning through keynote presentations, case studies, and a workshop session on how to build capacity at a functional urban area level.

We were honored to be part of it and support the development of functional urban areas in Hungarian SUD cities. For more information on the event, please refer to the EUI website:

https://www.urban-initiative.eu/events/cooperation-across-functional-urban-areas-hungarian-cities

You can access the presentation below: