On 8 September a new EU-CoE joint project was launched in Athens at the presence of all stakeholders, including representatives of the Hellenic Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reconstruction, the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service, the Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform of the CoE as well as partner institutions, international and local experts.

The "Technical assistance for institutional enhancement of local government" in Greece will provide policy advice to decision-makers and capacity building assistance to local authorities as requested by the Ministry of Interior. The Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform will be in charge of the Project implementation from September 2016 to February 2018.

The Launching Conference served as an opportunity to present the objectives and priorities of the Project as well as to discuss the implementation work plan. Furthermore, on 9 September two workshops on Training Needs Analysis and Best Practice Programme were provided by CoE experts for the benefit of all experts involved in the Project.