Bağcılar Municipality Embraced EU4 Energy Transition Project

A key meeting was held at the Bağcılar Municipality headquarters to introduce the “EU4 Energy Transition: Covenant of Mayors in the Western Balkans and Turkey” project. The gathering marked a significant step toward the green transition goals shared by Türkiye and the European Union, focusing on the Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan (SECAP) preparation and the signing of a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

The meeting was attended by senior officials from the Bağcılar Municipality, including Mayor Lokman Çağırıcı, Vice Mayors Mr. Mehmet Şirin and Mr. Emre Urlu, and key project experts. They were joined by representatives from the Central Project Management Agency (CPMA) and the Embassy of the Lithuanian Republic, including Project Team Leader Ms. Daiva Matonienė and Chargé d’Affaires Ms. Vaida Stankevičienė.

In her opening remarks, Ms. Stankevičienė highlighted the importance of the project, expressing her satisfaction with Lithuania’s role in coordinating the initiative. She emphasized the shared objectives between Lithuania and Türkiye regarding the green transition and reiterated Lithuania’s commitment to supporting Bağcılar Municipality in achieving these goals.

Following welcoming speeches by Mr. Şirin and Mr. Urlu, Ms. Matonienė informed attendees that Bağcılar Municipality had been selected as a beneficiary of the project. She presented an overview of the project, covering objectives, expected outcomes, and next steps. The €3 million project, with an anticipated duration of 48 months (March 2021 – March 2025), aims to build capacity through training and site visits, monitor SECAP actions, and establish networks for exchanging knowledge and experiences within Turkey and across the EU.

The meeting concluded with a mutual exchange of gifts and strong support from all participants for the project as presented by CPMA. Mayor Çağırıcı, who joined the closing segment of the meeting, expressed his confidence that the project would be successfully implemented.

This meeting reinforced Bağcılar Municipality’s commitment to climate action and its role in Turkey’s energy transition, set the stage for significant progress in the coming months.