Cities and regions committed to share their knowledge for enhancing prevention, preparedness and response capacities to natural disasters and health crisis.
Today, EPP local, regional and national representatives together with members of the European Parliament had an exchange of views about the natural disasters and cross-border crises experienced in Europe in the last few years and measures that need to be taken in order to ensure a rapid and resilient response.
Jelena Drenjanin, 1st Vice President of the EPP-CoR Group, outlined the strategically important work of the EPP-CoR members on these issues. She said "We need a system based on good practices and incentives to improve cross-border cooperation, in particular in times of acute cross-border health threats. Regions should be more widely engaged in preparation and planning through the direct participation of all crises response entities. For better coordination at EU level, regional and local entities need direct channels of communication with the European Commission and flexibility for the deployment of rescEU resources" while referring to the opinion of Olgierd Geblewicz, President of the EPP –CoR Group, on the 'Serious cross-border threats to health' as well as to the opinion of Alberto Cirio, President of Piemonte Region in Italy, on 'A reinforced Union Civil Protection Mechanism'.
Christos Triantopoulos, Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister for State Aid and Recovery from Natural Disasters, Hellenic Republic spoke about the natural disasters that hit Greece in the last 3 years and how the government reacted and created financial aid to tackle their impact. "We urgently need to start discussing the revision of the European support and recovery framework for areas affected by natural disasters. In this matter, the European Solidarity Fund is crucial, as it needs to be substantially increased in order to provide adequate support in the aftermath of any major natural disaster."
During the debate participants agreed that natural disasters and health crisis do not stop at borders. Therefore, cross-border cooperation is essential in enhancing prevention, preparedness and response capacities of regions and cities.
Furthermore, Jelena Drenjanin said that "Not a single region or even a single Member State can tackle large-scale crisis on its own. I strongly believe in the need for a coordinated European response in the spirit of true solidarity between Member States, all levels of government and across borders. To increase our preparedness and response capabilities, we need to have better cross-border communication and cooperation across the European Union." She concluded by stating: "Resilience starts at the local level. The European Union can only be resilient if its cities, municipalities and regions are resilient."