The towns of Vila Real de Santo António and Ayamonte (Spain) are working on a project to create a euro-city, and the deal between both cities may be signed next January. The purpose of the project is to allow citizens from both towns to enjoy services and equipment located on each side of the border, such as health and education services. It could also result in a common tourism zone.
Luís Gomes, mayor of VRSA, has explained that the work to create the euro-city VRSA-Ayamonte is being undertaken within the cooperative axis supported by the Euroregion Algarve-Andaluzia-Alentejo and the idea was proposed by the Algarve’s Commission for Coordination and Regional Development (CCDR), currently in charge of the presidency of the Euroregion.
Gomes has claimed: “The purpose is to establish a series of inter-municipal policies, which will allow complementary public service facilities resulting in improvement in the quality of life, by sharing, for example, some facilities or joint strategies for several business sectors”. Luís Gomes considers that “it makes sense” sharing facilities and services, because it means “sharing existent networks in both places, resulting in everyone being better served”.
He added: “Young people from Ayamonte can, for example, attend classes at the tourism school of Vila Real de Santo António, while citizens from Vila Real de Santo António could, if it proved to be a better solution, frequent health services on the other side of the border”.
The mayor said that these are the kind of initiatives that both towns are trying to implement, working together with CCDR Algarve technicians, so that “a pact to constitute the euro-city can be signed next January”.
