The City of Bijeljina participated in the B40 Summit of Balkan cities, which was held in Zagreb from 25 to 27 January. The host of this year’s summit was Zagreb’s Mayor, Tomislav Tomašević, who on this occasion took over the leadership of the B40 network from the city of Sofia.
 
The B40 network of Balkan cities was founded by then-Mayor of Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu and then-Mayor of Athens Kostas Bakoyannis, with the aim of strengthening cooperation among cities in the region, exchanging experiences, and improving various areas of local governance and development.
 
This year’s summit was divided into two thematic panels. The first panel focused on green and energy transition, smart city development, digital innovations, and sustainable solutions for the future of urban environments. The second panel covered topics related to culture, the creative industry, and tourism as key drivers of urban development, integration, and intercity cooperation.
 
Mayor of Bijeljina, Ljubiša Petrović, took part in the first panel, where he presented projects and activities that the City of Bijeljina has implemented in the past period, as well as plans and projects expected to be implemented in the future.
 
“This is yet another excellent opportunity to present Bijeljina and our Semberija region in the best possible way, alongside major and significant cities in the region. We showcased projects aimed at improving energy efficiency, reducing pollution, and developing environmentally friendly solutions. We particularly highlighted our new major project, ‘Let’s Clean Semberia’, through which we aim to raise ecological awareness not only in our city but throughout the wider region,” Petrović emphasised.
 
On the final day of the summit, a roundtable discussion was held dedicated to the development of democracy in cities, alongside a series of bilateral meetings between participants, aimed at strengthening mutual cooperation and the exchange of best practices.
 
In addition to the Mayor of Bijeljina, the summit was attended by numerous mayors from Balkan cities, including the Mayor of Athens, Haris Doukas; the Mayor of Lefkada, Xenophon Verginis; the Mayor of Sarajevo, Samir Avdić; as well as the Mayors of Istanbul and Izmir – Nuri Aslan and Cemil Tugay.
 
In the coming period, additional activities within the B40 network are planned, with the aim of designing new joint projects and improving local government services through the exchange of experiences and examples of good practice.