Muratpaşa Municipality has been awarded with the "Partner of the European Local Democracy Week" by the European Council.

The Annual Coordination Meeting of the European Local Democracy Week (ELDW) was held online on 26 February 2021. It brought together some 85 representatives from member States of the Council of Europe, Morocco and Tunisia.
Participants evaluated the 2020 ELDW edition under the theme “Local Democracy – Building trust” and shared their best practices. They also discussed proposals for the 2021-2022 ELDW which will be on the theme focusing “Protecting the environment and building resilience in territorial communities”.  

At the meeting the title of “Partner of the European Local Democracy Week 2020” was awarded to 20 municipalities and associations of Turkey, Portugal, Serbia, Ukraine and Romania in recognition of their commitment to the ELDW and promoting local democracy. The awarded municipalities have implemented a number of initiatives, most of them online, such as participatory budgets, youth meetings to facilitate inclusion in the city, training courses, debates on citizen participation and social and cultural workshops.

Muratpaşa Municipality was deemed worthy of the title and award of "European Local Democracy Week Partner" with its projects named Digital Neighbor Council, Participatory Budget Experiment, Citrus Table, Muhtarlar Assembly, Foreigners Assembly, Healthy Muratpaşa Movement.

About ELDW:

The European Local Democracy Week (ELDW), launched in 2007 as an initiative of the Council of Europe and its Congress, is held annually around October 15th by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, with the purpose of commemorating the European Charter of Local Self-Government signed on October 15th, 1985 and raising citizens' awareness of and participation in local democracy in Europe.

During the week, local elected representatives and citizens across the member states of the Council of Europe are brought together at public events and discussions to meet and engage with their citizens on issues of current interest and are fostered to develop targeted programs and activities according to their own priorities. The local governments attending the event are awarded with the tittle of ‘Partner of the European Local Democracy Week’ by the Council of Europe. The organization also aims to promote and support democratic participation on local level.