The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) Commission for Social Policy, Education, Employment, Research and Culture (SEDEC) unanimously adopted an opinion on the European Commission proposal establishing the AgoraEU programme for the period 2028–2034, stressing the programme’s potential to reinforce European democracy, strengthen civil society, and foster a shared European identity — with local and regional authorities at the heart of delivery.
The opinion underlines that encouraging citizens to play a more active role in democracy at Union level is essential for resilient European societies. It therefore calls for AgoraEU to be implemented in close partnership with Member States and, crucially, with the local and regional level, fully respecting partnership, multilevel governance and subsidiarity throughout the programme cycle.
Csaba Borboly (EPP/RO), Vice-president of Harghita County Council said "The agora used to be the heart of the community — and AgoraEU must be present in every community, not only in big cities. That means territorial indicators to ensure fair geographical access, simplified small grants with local support, and strong protection for minority languages and cultures. Local authorities must be partners, not just beneficiaries."
In the adopted opinion, the Rapporteur sets out a number of key recommendations aimed at ensuring that AgoraEU delivers impact in all territories and communities, including:
• Multilevel governance at the core of the programme: the opinion calls for the principles of partnership, multilevel governance and subsidiarity to be fully respected, ensuring meaningful participation of local and regional authorities from programming to implementation and evaluation.
• Stronger role for local and regional authorities (LRAs): the CoR recommends amending the draft Regulation to better align with active subsidiarity by:
- recognising the role of LRAs in the programme’s governance;
- introducing territorial participation indicators; and
- linking evaluation criteria to territorial cohesion and citizen engagement.
• Support to European identity and belonging through territorial cooperation: the opinion highlights the need to promote the exchange of experience and collaboration among local and regional authorities across the EU to support culture and strengthen a sense of belonging to the European Union.
• Democratic participation and rule of law, with a focus on local democracy: the programme should contribute to enhancing democratic participation and upholding the rule of law, with particular attention to strengthening local democracy.
• Fair access and geographical balance: eligibility and award procedures should ensure a fair geographical balance and facilitate access for LRAs and smaller operators, including through capacity-building measures.
• Targeted consultations to address territorial inequalities: taking into account inequalities observed in previous programmes, the CoR calls on the European Commission to engage in targeted consultations with regional and local authorities, warning that territories left outside public policy focus are more vulnerable to the spread of extremist views and to political instability.
The rapporteur was crictical to the fact that the proposed AgoraEU does not advance envisaged funding actions for initiatives in the sphere of town-twinning and networks of towns, which have historically been key tools for citizen engagement and European exchange. Furthermore Borboly underlined the need for clarity and transparency on actions since the Commission proposal does not include an indicative list of measures/actions, underlining that such a list is essential for clarity, transparency and effective implementation.
The CoR is expected to adopted the opinion during the CoR plenary session of 5–6 May 2026.
AgoraEU
AgoraEU is a proposed EU programme for 2028–2034 aimed at supporting citizen engagement, democratic participation, and the rule of law across the Union. The CoR opinion stresses that the programme’s success depends on strong territorial ownership, meaningful local and regional involvement, and adequate resources to ensure impact in all regions and communities.
