Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 13 /Trend, E.Ostapenko/
A Service Procurement Notice for the €2.15 million project Supporting participation of Eastern Partnership and Central Asian cities in the Covenant of Mayors has been announced by EuropeAid, under the publication reference EuropeAid, ENPI information center said in a statement. The deadline for receipt of applications is Friday, 14 January 2011.
The overall objective of the project is to encourage and support local authorities in Eastern Partnership countries and Central Asia (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Republic of Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan) to achieve and implement a more sustainable local energy policy.
The foreseen contract will replicate and contribute to part of the tasks assigned to the Covenant of Mayors Office, namely: promotion of the Covenant, helpdesk function, monitoring the implementation of the Covenant, liaison with coordination structures, supporting structures, networks of cities and regions in the EU or in the region and beyond, liaison and coordination with other EU and donors' initiatives and proposition of a specific media communication strategy, capacity building and training in support of the implementation of the Covenant of Mayors in the region.
The contract is expected to establish an office in the region, which will function as a branch of the Covenant of Mayors Office, covering the countries targeted by this project.
The Covenant of Mayors initiative was launched in 2008, as a priority for action at local and regional level within the EU Energy Efficiency Action Plan. It consists of the formal commitment by City Councils to go beyond the EU objective of 20% reduction of CO2 emissions through energy efficiency and renewable energy actions.
The indicative maximum budget, funded under the ENPI South programme, is €2.15 million.
More than 2,000 cities and towns in all 27 EU Member States and 10 third countries have signed the Covenant. This represents a population in excess of 127 million people, and a potential for curbing CO2 emissions by over 132 million tonnes per year.