The European Union, together with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), launched the new Mayors for Economic Growth Facility (M4EG) in Georgia. Over the next four years, the M4EG Facility will build on and integrate lessons learned from the first phase of the M4EG (2017-2021) that saw high interest in Georgia among local authorities.

The current stage of the M4EG Facility will focus on intermediate cities in the Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine), assisting them to emerge from the pandemic crisis and discover new opportunities for sustainable growth and economic prosperity. Working closely with local authorities and communities, it will explore innovative approaches to development and will seek new ways to expand its network. The Facility will serve as a platform to empower municipalities, cities, towns and rural settlements through learning, exchange and strategic innovation.

“The pandemic is challenging cities around the world with the cascading impacts of the economic and social crisis. This new context highlights a ‘radical uncertainty’ that affects local authorities and citizens,” said Evija Kotan, Deputy Head of Political Section at the EU Delegation to Georgia. “The EU is supporting the M4EG initiative to assist cities and urban settlements in the Eastern Partnership countries to better adapt to this fast-changing reality and find effective solutions to the emerging challenges.”

“In Georgia, municipal centres and settlements are facing multiple challenges associated with unemployment, underdevelopment and environmental threats,” UNDP Acting Head in Georgia Anna Chernyshova noted. “Our new initiative will help them better understand complex issues they are dealing with, set out development goals and take bold steps to achieve them. The EU and UNDP approach tackles complex issues from multiple angles and creates space for exploring innovative solutions to development challenges.”

Cities and settlements to join the M4EG network will benefit from learning and knowledge exchange activities focused on the development of innovative growth strategies adapted to the local context. The EU and UNDP will support them in developing a new generation of local economic development plans (LEDPs), promoting strategic thinking, and building urban resilience. Local authorities will benefit from access to new capabilities and funding, including the upcoming Annual Portfolio Call for Interests and Annual Innovation Call for Proposals.

Background:

The Mayors for Economic Growth (M4EG) Facility is part of the M4EG initiative, launched and funded by the European Union since 2017. The M4EG Facility is run by UNDP, starting from 2021, in close cooperation with the EU, local authorities and a range of other partners.

For media enquiries:

In Georgia:

• Sophie Tchitchinadze, UNDP, +995 599 196907, sophie.tchitchinadze@undp.org
• Magda Nowakowska, UNDP, +995 598 822544, magdalena.nowakowska@undp.org
• Tamar Mikadze, Delegation of the European Union to Georgia, tamriko.mikadze@eeas.europa.eu  

In UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub:

• Anton Sydorenko, M4EG Communications Lead, anton.sydorenko@undp.org

For M4EG Facility related enquiries:

In Georgia:

• Tinatin Tkeshelashvili, M4EG Project Manager in Georgia, tinatin.tkeshelashvili@undp.org

In UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub:

• eu.m4eg@undp.org