Ana Pastor defends new city model in Europe: sustainable, inclusive and environmentally-friendly

Earlier today, the Minister for Public Works, Ana Pastor, defended a new sustainable, inclusive and environmentally-friendly city model at the meeting of EU Urban Development Ministers held in Riga (Latvia).

"In Europe, we are committed to a different kind of urban development - more human, economically and environmentally sustainable and inclusive - as shown by the results of our efforts in Spain", said Ana Pastor to her colleagues from the European Union.

The EU Urban Development Ministers approved the Riga Declaration today, which represents a boost to the EU Urban Agenda.

The Minister for Public Works said that the Riga Declaration contains a number of priority actions, "starting with that which encompasses them all, i.e. how to achieve an urban development model that is sustainable in all three major aspects: economically, socially and environmentally".

Ana Pastor also highlighted other fundamental issues, such as recognising the role and importance of all towns and cities regardless of their size; energy efficiency and climate change; the regeneration of districts and redevelopment; all sorts of demographic challenges; mobility and the need to reduce distances; and urban poverty and affordable housing.

"I would like to highlight the importance of energy efficiency, which must be key to this urban transformation that we all need so much; the regeneration of districts in our cities; and redevelopment, mobility and affordable housing", she added.

The Spanish minister recalled that Spain's housing policy has been focused in recent years on urban regeneration and building redevelopment as fundamental issues in improving quality of life.

In this regard, she recalled that 70% of the population in Spain lives in major cities although small municipalities are also highly important as they account for 86.8% of all Spanish municipalities and almost 80% of the country's surface area, thereby highlighting their importance from a territorial perspective.

"The cities we have inherited and built are our own heritage, the result of our history and our culture, and they are there to be enjoyed by the people of Spain and visitors", said Ana Pastor.

ERDF funds for sustainable development

In Spain, the role played by European financing in the renovation and improvement of Spanish cities is being strengthened in the period 2014-2020 as development of the new European regulations has included the obligation to allocate at least 5% of ERDF resources (European Regional Development Fund) to actions related to sustainable urban development.

In this regard, Spain has already been allocated 1.5 billion euros of ERDF aid in said period to urban development actions. This amount will be distributed in two blocks: 507 million euros for actions by local authorities specifically aimed at fostering the low-carbon economy, such as the energy-related refurbishment of buildings, mobility and sustainable urban transport; and 997 million euros for integrated sustainable urban development actions that help tackle urban challenges and problems through actions that help build smarter, more sustainable and more inclusive cities in line with the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy.

Spain is already working with the European Union on the document that will define the urban actions that could be financed through these funds according to the partnership agreement approved in October 2014 that constitutes the general framework.

Once this document has been approved, a call for proposals from local authorities will be issued so they can present their integrated sustainable urban development strategies for the period. The call for proposals is expected to take place this year, through which local councils will be able to access the 997 million euros of ERDF aid.

A work session called by the European Commission was held in Brussels on 3 June, which was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Public Works and a number of Spanish cities that are currently drafting their strategies for presentation to the call for proposals, such as Barcelona, Malaga, Gijon, Cartagena and Palencia.