This draft report was prepared by rapporteur Jihad Khair, Mayor of Beit Sahour, Palestine, and revised following the fifth meeting of the ARLEM Commission for Sustainable Territorial Development in Brussels in October 2019, with a view to its adoption at the 11th ARLEM plenary session in Barcelona on 23 January 2020.
This report covers Euro-Mediterranean regional integration and the role of local and regional authorities (LRAs) in helping to stimulate it in a tangible way by promoting decentralised cooperation and territorial diplomacy.
The common framework for action at all levels of government is the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals. Working towards ending poverty, protecting the planet from degradation, laying the foundations for prosperity and promoting peaceful societies will also foster regional integration in the Mediterranean region.