Green Cities Action Plan for Craiova

It is the first city in Romania with an environmental protection policy

Craiova was the first city in Romania to join the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) - Green Cities Programme. The “GCAP” Green Cities Action Plan is part of the Green Cities project implemented by the EBRD and covers a wide range of urban environmental challenges.

Prioritize challenges and set goals

It is designed to guide cities through 4 main phases - from establishing a Green Cities Reference Level and developing a Green Cities Action Plan to implementing and reporting on progress and results. The methodology underlying this action plan was developed by the EBRD together with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI).

Craiova is part of a select club with 43 cities from 21 European, Asian and African countries that have benefited from this program. The Green Cities Action Plan made especially and exclusively for Craiova will establish what are the challenges to go through in the next period in order to really become a green city.

Last month, the first draft of the Green Cities Action Plan was developed. And already the conclusions of the EBRD specialists regarding the green future of the city are out.

The decisions were presented today, 26 October 2020, at an online meeting in which the Mayor of Craiova Mihail Genoiu participated, together with officials from the City Hall, representatives from the World Bank for Reconstruction and Development and a team of international consultants. The final steps that will materialize in a clear vision for the future of the city were established so that the quality of life and safety of citizens will continuously increase in close correlation with the protection of the environment.

Next steps of the project:

• Implementation and monitoring - the implementation partners in the city will be identified, and City Hall will coordinate the realization of the plan and monitor the impact of the implemented options and actions. This will happen continuously over the next 3-5 years;
• Development of the next investment cycle - based on the experience and conclusions from the first cycle, the City Hall will initiate a new analysis cycle to determine future priorities and investments. This will happen approximately 3 years after the initial implementation of the first plan.