Local and regional authorities must play a central role in preparing candidate countries for EU membership, Csaba Borboly, Chair of the European Committee of the Regions' Working Group on Bosnia and Herzegovina, Vice-President of Harghita County (Romania) and member of the EPP-CoR Group, said during the seminar Preparing Locally for EU Accession: Impact Assessments, Reform Agendas and Local Readiness in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, North Macedonia and Ukraine, held at the European Committee of the Regions in Brussels. Bringing together local, regional, national and EU representatives, the seminar examined how municipalities and regions can be better involved in the enlargement process, the design of reform agendas and the implementation of the EU acquis, while exploring how current and future EU funding instruments can support local readiness for accession.
"Europe is delivered locally every single day. Whether we talk about environmental protection, energy transition, public transport, social services, or digitalisation — local and regional authorities are the ones building the infrastructure, managing the services, and engaging with citizens directly. The decisions taken at European level only become real when they are implemented on the ground, in our cities and regions," Borboly said.
Borboly stressed that local and regional authorities are not only responsible for implementing EU legislation, but also play a vital role in shaping better policies through their direct experience with citizens and communities. "Local authorities are not only implementers. Because we are closest to citizens, we know what works and what does not. We know where the rules are too complex, where the timelines are unrealistic, and where adjustments are needed. We feed that experience back into European policymaking. That is one of the core reasons why the Committee of the Regions exists."
Looking specifically at the enlargement process, Borboly underlined that preparing for EU accession cannot remain solely a national exercise. He called for local governments to be fully involved in designing reforms from the outset and equipped with the resources needed to implement them successfully. "Preparing for EU accession is not only a national task. It requires local authorities that are empowered, well-resourced, and genuinely involved in the design of reforms — not handed a final document when the decisions have already been made. The mayors in this room understand this. And our job is to make sure the European institutions understand it too."
The seminar focused on recent and ongoing assessments of the impact of EU accession on local governments in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, North Macedonia and Ukraine. Discussions also explored gradual integration into the EU, the role of local representatives in strengthening public trust and countering misinformation, and how future EU financing instruments, including those under the post-2027 framework, can better support local and regional authorities throughout the accession process.