Shiraka Training Programme in Urban Development 2023

The “Shiraka Training Programme in Urban Development” took place in 2023 in the Netherlands. This project was funded by Shiraka, a programme commissioned by the Netherlands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs and implemented by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO). With the Shiraka programme, the Netherlands partners with government organisations in the MENA region in order to cooperate on the improvement of public service delivery, while building a network of peers and fostering bilateral relations between the Netherlands and the MENA region.

The objective of the programme was to share the best practices on citizen engagement in sustainable urban development in the Netherlands and between the participants. Furthermore, the programme aimed at providing participants with effective tools to take participatory initiatives in their home countries.

The training was for 16 civil servants working in the field of urban development in their respective countries, with the participants coming from Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Libya and Tunisia.

The training programme on Citizen Engagement in Urban Development specifically aimed to inspire the participants with innovative projects in good governance, spatial justice, and resilient and inclusive cities from The Netherlands.

It took into account the specific challenges that are faced by countries in the Mediterranean region, and will focus on operational practices and examples from different strategic urban development perspectives that could inspire the participants to initiate change in their countries.

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