The Minister of State for Local Government, Ervin Demo, presented on Thursday the new program “Rilindja 2.0”, a package of 11 strategic objectives aimed at territorial interventions and sustainable regional development.

In a press conference after the government meeting, Demo said that “this program will create a new model of local development, combining cultural identity, innovation, and modern technology with the needs of communities”.

Demo also focused on improving the functionality and accessibility of urban areas. Minister Demo stated that “the third objective is the regeneration of former industrial spaces into assets for the community. They are former factories that have been privatized or are partially privatized, or are fully owned by the state,” Demo said.

The fourth objective, Demo continued, is to increase public infrastructure standards by harmonizing local architecture, what cities offer, and above all by creating a new development potential for certain areas.

Promoting innovation is the fifth objective. “Promoting startups at the local level to create economic development and to give opportunities, especially to young people, to be involved in local economic development,” Demo said.

The sixth objective is to improve the urban environment through full coverage of the territory for waste management, but not only that. “In this context, we are working closely with many municipalities in terms of 100% coverage of the territory, but at the same time, fulfilling those standards that will now be mandatory as a result of integration into the European Union, starting with recycling, and not only,” Demo emphasized.

While the seventh objective is urban public transport. “We are addressing a conservative number of municipalities that will be a model of this initiative. Transport will be based on electric buses,” Demo pointed out.

The eighth objective is to promote healthy living through new recreational and sports spaces at the local level. “140 spots have already been identified by his municipality at the national level to create these new poles, which will be supported not only with central government programs, but definitely also in cooperation with other partners, such as the Albanian Football Federation and others”, Demo underlined.

Demo then focused on objectives 9 and 10, which aim to strengthen the capacity of municipalities in terms of maintaining assets within their territory.

Minister Demo announced that the 11th objective is the development of intelligent cities through the smart city program. “This will require, in itself, a combination of the different systems that municipalities currently have in use. It is understood that it will also be combined with the national program in terms of smart cities. If these systems are combined, they will create an important tool in terms of managing cities at the local level,” said Demo.