On 25 October 2022, at the 43rd session of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg (France), Mathieu Mori was appointed Secretary General of the Congress. Prior to that, he held the position of Programme Director of the European Regional Development Fund, a transnational organisation.

Addressing the members of the Congress, Mr Mori highlighted the current unprecedented context in Europe, marked by the aggression against Ukraine by the Russian Federation.

“The emergence of a new imperialism in Europe poses an existential threat to Ukraine and to each of our democracies,” he said, pledging to continue the dialogue for a peaceful Europe.

The mandate of the new General Secretary of the Congress will come into effect in January 2023.

Read more about Mathieu Mori’s plans for the post of General Secretary HERE.

In August of this year, Viacheslav Nehoda, Deputy Minister for Communities and Territorial Development, met with Mathieu Mori, then-candidate for the position of Secretary General of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.

During the meeting, Mr Mori noted that he was inspired and impressed by what he saw in Ukraine.

“I am amazed by what I saw here. Being in a state of war, you already have specific projects for the reconstruction of communities and the country. You believe in your victory and therefore your partners believe in it. I am positive that after the war, Ukraine will reach an even higher level of democracy, in part thanks to decentralisation. We have seen how courageously capable Ukrainian communities face challenges, and therefore they have a great desire and potential for the development and protection of democratic values. That is why we are committed to helping and supporting you. I believe that Ukraine will become an example of how it is possible to develop local democracy and implement decentralisation even amidst extreme adversity,” said Mathieu Mori at the time.

The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe is a consultative body of the Council of Europe, which has been acting since 1994 in the interests of more than 130,000 local and regional authorities of 46 member states of the Council of Europe, including Ukraine.

The priorities of the Congress include strengthening and protecting the interests of local and regional authorities, ensuring their participation in European integration processes, monitoring compliance by the member states of the Council of Europe with the European Charter of Local Self-Government and observing local and regional elections in these countries.

The functioning of the Congress is ensured by the Secretariat headed by the General Secretary, who is elected by the Congress for a term of 5 years. The Secretariat is headquartered in the Palace of Europe in Strasbourg, France.

Until October 2022, the post of General Secretary of the Congress was held by Andreas Kiefer.