PLATFORMA - Local & regional international action

Local governments and their associations can lead international efforts to achieve sustainability. Consider the Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South-East Europe (NALAS) and its partnership with the Mongolian province of Darkhan-Uul.

With funding from the EU's FRIENDSHIP project, NALAS is supporting the province and the efforts of its capital, Darkhan, to become a national model city for urban sustainability and livability, with a vision of becoming a “smart and green city” by 2032. But can this transition happen in practice?

One key aspect is knowledge and expertise. Since its set-up in 2004, NALAS has evolved over time into the main knowledge platform of local government affairs in south-east Europe. In particular, the NALAS e-Academy provides knowledge on topics relevant for local government professionals in the areas of investment planning, improving local services, energy efficiency, municipal finance, water management, gender equality and much more.

The idea then came of enabling Darkhan-Uul to create its own e-Academy to train its provincial and local officials. To achieve this, content and knowledge from the NALAS e-Academy will be transferred to the Mongolian province.

From reflection to reality
A Memorandum of Understanding was prepared, coordinated, and agreed between the project partners, including the School of Agroecology and Business, Mongolian University of Life Sciences. The document was signed during a NALAS study visit to Darkhan-Uul province in July.
In particular, the agreement aims to:

1. Strengthen the capacities of municipal staff, elected representatives and relevant local stakeholders in governance.
2. Transfer NALAS know-how in virtual capacity development.
3. Contribute to the setup of an e-Academy at Darkhan-Uul Province Municipality.

The immediate next steps will be to include staff from Darkhan-Uul province and the School of Agroecology and Business in upcoming NALAS e-learning courses, identify together the courses to be transferred, include staff in developing online moderation and facilitation skills in a virtual environment and provide technical advice and support for the transfer and the initiation of activities.
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During the study visit, the mayor of Darkhan city also invited NALAS to support the setting up of the Mongolian Association of Municipalities. Drawing from NALAS' extensive experience in municpal network-building, the next steps will be defined during Darkhan-Uul officials' upcoming visit to south-east Europe in October 2022.