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In order to attend the 2nd France-Balkans Decentralised Co-Operation Roundtable, in October 2013 a delegation from Pas-de-Calais County Council travelled to Albania. On the trip representatives had the chance to meet with partners in the European Straits Initiative from Vlora Regional Council, on their home ground, and to explore potential opportunities for co-operation in the area of tourism, an important strategic issue which the ESI endeavours to further as part of the proposed EU Strategy for the Adriatic and the Ionian Region (EUSAIR).
The European Straits Initiative (ESI) has enabled important links to be forged between areas facing the same issues relating to straits. It was within the framework of a workshop on tourism and cultural heritage, which was held as part of the INTERREG IV C NOSTRA (Network Of STRAits) project – the ESI’s first big concrete result – that this co-operation project came into being, between Pas-de-Calais County Council and Vlora Regional Council in Albania.
On 24 and 25 October 2013, the French Association of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (abbreviated to AFCCRE in French) and the French Embassy in Tirana held the 2nd France-Balkans Decentralised Co-Operation Roundtable. The Roundtable presented the opportunity to hold meetings between politicians from both sides, in Vlora, the aim of which was to determine potential opportunities for co-operation between Vlora Regional Council and Pas-de-Calais County Council.
The Pas-de-Calais Regional Council delegation was made up of elected representatives (two Vice-Presidents of the County Council, those respectively in charge of international co-operation and European affairs, namely Mr Dagbert and Mr Lefait) and of specialists in relevant fields (the head of the county tourism reservation agency, Ms Diana Hounslow, and representatives from the County Council Europe and international Department). Vlora’s local elected representatives presented an overview of the respective institutions and of possibilities for joint development initiatives. The delegation toured various sites and this enabled members of it to discover the area’s treasures (the coast, in particular) and to grasp the region’s significant potential as a tourist destination.
Vlora is located in the south-west of Albania, across the sea from Italy, separated by the Strait of Otranto, a strait in the Mediterranean Sea which links the Adriatic Sea, to the north, to the Ionian Sea, in the south. The Vlora region is one of the 12 administrative counties into which Albania is divided. The fact that Vlora is a coastal resort, its ancient ruins, its religious heritage and its rolling countryside all go to make the area a very attractive up-and-coming tourist destination.
During the course of the Roundtable, unofficial networking with various players in institutions and with property-owners in the Balkans region enabled the delegation to identify potential financial partners and to verify that co-operation between Pas-de-Calais County Council and its Albanian opposite number would give rise to many benefits, in particular in respect of tourism.
The topic of tourism is also a major issue in relation to the marine sub-region of which the Strait of Otranto is a part. A strategy for the Adriatic and the Ionian region is in the course of being drawn up. The European Straits Initiative and the relevant members are in agreement that the strategy should cater to their interests – especially as regards the issue of tourism – and that it should acknowledge the specificities of the straits in the region (i.e. the Strait of Otranto and the Strait of Messina).
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