Europe’s global ambition cannot be delivered from Brussels alone.
With the adoption of the opinion “The localisation of the EU’s Global Gateway”, the European Committee of the Regions sends a clear political message: EU external action will only succeed if it is rooted in territories, cities and regions - where democracy is lived every day.
Drafted by Jaume Duch Guillot (ES/PES), Minister for the European Union and Foreign Action of the Government of Catalonia, the opinion reaffirms a core progressive conviction: development partnerships must be democratic, inclusive and anchored in local realities.
From investment strategy to democratic partnership
Global Gateway is the EU’s flagship international investment strategy. But investment alone is not enough.
For the PES Group, Global Gateway must be more than a toolbox for infrastructure projects. It must become a geopolitical project based on democratic governance, social inclusion and mutual trust.
Local and regional authorities are not mere implementers.
They are political institutions, directly accountable to citizens, responsible for essential public services and key actors in social cohesion.
By working directly with territories, the EU can ensure that Global Gateway investments:
- respond to real social needs,
- strengthen democratic institutions,
- empower communities,
- and deliver long-term, sustainable impact.
Cohesion beyond borders
Strengthening the role of cities and regions in Global Gateway is also a matter of cohesion.
A place-based approach - the backbone of EU cohesion policy - must guide Europe’s external action as well. Development cannot be imposed from the top. It must be built with territories, respecting local contexts and institutional capacities.
That is why the opinion calls for:
- direct region-to-region and city-to-city partnerships,
- targeted support, training and peer-to-peer cooperation for local authorities,
- stronger multilevel governance frameworks in EU partnerships.
This is how Europe ensures that its global engagement is inclusive, balanced and resilient.
Putting people first: why housing matters
The PES Group also successfully pushed for a key political signal:
housing must be recognised as a Global Gateway priority.
Housing is a fundamental social right. It is central to human dignity, social stability and economic development in Europe and beyond.
Adding housing to Global Gateway priorities means acknowledging that quality of life, access to public services and social justice are integral parts of sustainable development.
A progressive vision for Europe’s role in the world
As Jaume Duch Guillot underlined during the plenary debate:
“Local and regional governments do not want to be merely service providers; we are political institutions.”
For the PES Group, this opinion embodies a progressive vision of Europe’s role in the world:
- partnerships based on solidarity, not dependency;
- democracy, not transactional politics;
- people’s needs, not abstract indicators.
A Europe that acts globally must remain faithful to what makes it strong locally.
