Partner regions

Valencia

Country: Spain
Land area: 23.500 km²
Population: 4,5 million
Capital: Valencia
Official website: http://www.gva.es
Tourism: http://www.valencia-cityguide.com/
 

The Region Valencia has 500 km seashore and lies on the East side of Spain, bordered by Catalonia on the North, Aragon and Castilla La Mancha on the West, the Region Murcia on the South, and the Mediterranean Sea on East.

Valencia is one of the 17 independent regions of Spain, that have political and administrative function as well. The region consists of 3 provinces: Alicante, Castellón and Valencia - and also governs the Columbretes Islands and Nova Tabarca. It is located between the River Sénia and River Segura, and with its 23.300 km2 territory the region foots up the 4,6% of the total land area of Spain, whereas with its population of 4,5 million it gives the 10,5% of the Spanish population. Valencia - behind Madrid and Barcelona - is the third largest city of Spain, and the Region’s GDP/capita is the 94,27% of the avarage in Spain, and the 89,01% of the EU avarage.

Valencia was granted self-government and constituted itself as an autonomous community in 1982, with the promulgation of its first Statute of Autonomy - which also secures that the region’s official languages are the Spanish and the Valencian. The government of the Valencian Community (statutorily referred to only as Comunitat Valenciana, both in Spanish and Valencian) is represented by the Generalitat Valenciana (statutorily referred to simply as La Generalitat) constituted by three institutions:

* the Valencian Courts (Corts Valencianes), the legislature, which is to be integrated by a minimum of ninety-two representatives (diputats) elected through universal suffrage by proportional representation for a four-year period;
* the President of the Generalitat elected by the Courts from which s/he must obtain the vote of confidence;
* the Council of the Generalitat Valenciana (Consell), a collegiate institution with executive powers, integrated by the President him/herself and the cabinet members appointed by him/her.

The population of the autonom region was (in 2004. 01. 01.) 4.543.304 according to the Spanish National Statistical Institution.
The population divides within the Valencia Region the following way:

Valencia: 2.358.919
Alicante: 1.657.040
Castellón: 527.345

The main cities of the region are: Alicante, Castellón, Elx, Alcoi, Torrent, Elda, Sagunto and Gandía. Most of the population live close to the coast, therefore getting deeper in the peninsula the number of inhabitants is decreasing.

Valencia’s importance is relevant considering its economy, physical capability and its population. The region lies on the coast of the Mediterranean, which is one of the most dynamic axis of Europe thus Valencia became the the area’s best performing region in the last few decades – accordingly Valencia offers great opportunities for those who want to set up or fund a business here.

The region gives place to several national and international commercial fair, congress, seminar and business meeting during the year, that attract great number of visitors. Experts can combine business with pleasure, as the region provides them many opportunities for entertainment. The new centres of Valencia and Castellón, like Costa Azahar, Alicante and its future Palacio de Congresos on the Costa Blanca and the experience of Benidorm makes the region of Valencia a meeting point which allures thousands of experts.

It is also a great advantage of the region, that it has excellent land, marine and air transport, that connect the region to the rest of the country and the world as well. Valencia Region’s local and national road system interconnects the region’s settlements, and links the region to other towns and cities of the peninsula. The North-South mediterranean highway (AP-7) leads to Catalonia and France, while we can get to other regions of Spain by travelling via motorways A-3 or A-31 (to the direction of Madrid) and A-23 (to the direction of Zaragoza).

The railway of the region is called "RENFE", which is managed by the Government of the Valencia Region. Valencia is conjoined to Barcelona and Madrid by highspeed railways and the also highspeed AVE railway between Valencia and Madrid, Albacete and Cuenca is already under construction. The marine routes and the 3 marine passanger-terminal (Valencia, Dénia and Alicante) are famous for their important daily traffic of goods and passangers. These ports are also starting points for those who want to go to the Balear Islands. Valencia’s port, which transacts the 20% of the total Spanish export, considering its turnover is the biggest port of the country. The extensive renovations are already finished, now ambitious expansive projects are coming after. In the region two international aerports are located: Manises (Valencia) and L’Altet (Alicante).

Saxony-Anhalt

Country: Federal Republic of Germany
Land area: 20,477 km²
Population: 2.54 million
Capital: Magdeburg
 

The German state of Saxony-Anhalt was formed in 1990 from the amalgamation of the former districts of Halle and Magdeburg. It covers a total surface area of 20.445 square kilometres and has 2.7 million inhabitants. It borders "Niedersachsen" in the west," Brandenburg" in the east, and "Sachsen" and "Thueringen" in the south.

The state is divided into a total of 21 districts and three self governing cities, which in turn comprise 1000 municipalities. The largest of the self governing Cities is Halle with 274000 inhabitants, followed by the state capital Magdeburg with around 250000 and the city of Dessau with 90000 inhabitants.

The Saxony-Anhalt administration has a three-tier structure. It consists of the State Government (State Chancellery and State Ministries), the middle level (1 regional administration office and other State agencies) and the municipal level, (3 self-governing towns, 21 district administration offices and lower State government agencies). In an attempt to ensure efficient administration, a reform is ongoing which will lead to a reduction of the number of administrative districts and the self-governing towns.

Saxony-Anhalt is a young Federal State with a long industrial tradition. Technical innovations as well as the favourable situation in the heart of Europe led to the development of a centre for industrial production in the region at the beginning of the 20th century. In the region the first complete metal commercial aircraft, the first colour film and synthetic rubber were produced. The Second World War and the wrong political and economic framework conditions after the war terminated the economic prosperity.
After German unification the country could reconnect to its traditions. The most important business sectors are today the chemical industry and the agro industry, which employs more than 20,000 people and therefore is most important industry in the region. Large growth potential lies in innovative areas like the supply industry for the automotive industry and biotechnology. The attractive business conditions attracted numerous domestic and foreign investors in recent years. For example international enterprises such as, Dow Chemical, TOTAL or BAYER invested billions in new production plants.

Région Centre

Country: Republic of France
Land area: 23,500 km²
Population: 2.44 million
Capital: Orléans
Website: http://www.regioncentre.fr/
 

With its 39,151 km2 the region Centre is the fourth-largest French region and with a population of 2,440,000 people, it represents 4% of the French population.
The location of the region is ideal in France and in Europe as well. The Région Centre lies 100 kilometres south of Paris, on the North it is bordered by Lower- and Upper-Normandie and the Île-de-France, on the East we can find Bourgogne, on the South the bordering regions are Auvergne and Limousin, while on the West the regions Poitou-Charentes and Pays-de-la-Loire.

Orléans forms thereby the regional capital. The region is subdivided in 6 departments, which likewise represent the most important cities:

* Indre-et-Loire: Tours (297,700 inhabitants)
* Loiret: Orléans (263,200 inhabitants)
* Cher: Bourges (91,500 inhabitants)
* Eure-et-Loir: Chartres (87,800 inhabitants)
* Indre: Châteauroux (66,100 inhabitants)
* Loir-et-Cher: Blois (66,000 inhabitants)

The 6 departments consist on 185 commune and 1842 settlement.

The region Centre has a rich natural, historical, cultural and industrial heritage. It has one of the closest traffic and railway networks of France. Thanks to its location, the region Centre is also at more than 3 hours from the major European cities.

The industrial structure of the region Centre is extremely diversified. :
The region Centre is the european leader for cereal growing, it’s the 2nd region in France for the production of goat cheese (5 of the 9 AOC French label for goat cheeses come from the region Centre).

The region Centre has many key positions in numerous sectors as cosmetics, graphic arts, logistics, electronics, automotive, health and medical devices, packaging, call centres, agri-food, horticulture and nursery garden, forestry and timber work.

The automotive sector is the leading employer of the region with 41,324 employees in 334 establishments. The region Centre is the 3rd region in France in terms of subcontracting.
One of the first industrial regions in France, the region Centre has also developed an important environmental sector with many actors working for recycling, recovery of waste and fighting against pollution.

Key facts :

* 376 establishments
* 7,227 employees
* Highly-developed training and research facilities : 20 public research laboratories with 1,260 researchers. More than 30 high-level environment-related training courses attracting 900 students
* On-site presence of the French Environmental Institute (IFEN)

Moreover, region Centre has 4 national competitiveness poles on :

* Sciences and systems of electric energy
* Cosmetics- Beauty and well-being Sciences
* Mechanics innovation and industrial solutions
* Ceramic

Over 4 million visitors visit the region every year and discover among other things:

* the Loire-Valley, which was included finally in the list of world cultural heritage of the UNESCO
* the cathedrals of Bourges and Chartres
* the castles of Chenonceau and Chambord, which belong to the most visited buildings of France
* 28 protected areas and 3 regional nature parks

Beside its leading role in many industrial sectors (e.g. in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry) the region CENTRE also ranks among the cultural rich regions of France (Loire-castles, Sologne, sea landscapes of the Brenne).
On the basis of its Loire-castles, with over 800 registered buildings among which are 110 castles and over 100 museums, the region occupies the second place to Paris regarding the wealth and the diversity of their cultural possessions in the country.

Région Champagne-Ardenne

Country: Republic of France
Land area: 25.606 km²
Population: 1.337 million
Capital: Châlons-en-Champagne
Website: http://www.cr-champagne-ardenne.fr/
 

Champagne-Ardenne is in the northeast of France, bordering Belgium, Lotharingia, Bourgogne, Île-de-France and Picardie regions.

The capital of Champagne-Ardenne is Châlons-en-Champagne. It consists of four departments:

* Aube (293.100 inhabitatnts) – Troyes
* Ardennes (290.130 inhabitants) – Charleville-Mézières
* Haute-Marne (194.873 inhabitants) – Chaumont
* Marne (565.229 inhabitants) – Châlons-en-Champagne

The transport system is well established with its 460 km motorway, and the rail network includig the Paris–Strasbourg line as well.
62,4% of the region’s land is dedicated to agriculture, it occupes the 1st place in France for the production of barley and alfalfa and the 2nd for the production of beets, onions, and peas.
282.37 km² vineyards can be found in Champagne-Ardenne, in 2001 263 million bottles of champagne had been sold out – 37,6% of this was exported.
Champagne-Ardenne is the third metallurgic region of France, above this its textil industry is important too – the 25% of the country’s hosiery come from this region.
Tourists mainly come here for the region’s famous champagne and history, but as they arrive realize how rich is the cultural heritage and gastronomy in Champagne-Ardenne.
Some of them travels to Troyes for visiting ancient houses, others go to the Old Town of Langres, or to Épernay, Reims or Colombey-les-deux-Églises. If we feel like doing some jogging or water sports, in the region we can find many beautiful places, forests and lakes to visit.

Flevoland

Country: Royal Netherlands
Land area: 1.419 km²
Population: 370.656
Capital: Lelystad
Website: http://www.flevoland.nl/
 

Flevoland province lies in the center of the Netherlands, on the North it is bordered by Friesland, on the East we find Overijssel and Gelderland, while on the South the bordering provinces are Utrecht and North Holland and on the West the Lake Ijssel and the Lake Marker.

The province was established on January 1, 1986; the twelfth province of the country, with Lelystad as its capital, and its biggest city Almere.
The whole land area of Flevoland is under sea level – in several places with 14 meters. Between East and South Flevoland peripheral lakes can be found, so this part of the province is considered to be the world’s biggest artificial island.
Flevoland consists on the following 6 municipalites:

* Almere
* Dronten
* Lelystad
* Noordoostpolder
* Urk
* Zeewolde

Flevoland is a very flat part of the Netherlands where the main economic sector is the agriculture. It mainly is a living- working- and leisure-area, with the aim of disencumbering the South areas and Utrecht. Thus the available land dissolves between the agriculture, leisure and living and working zones.

The most important touristical attraction of the province is – beyond the polder itself – the replica of a West Indian Company ship. The original ship, called „De Zeven Provinciën” was used in the 17th century, and supervised by its shipmaster, Admiral De Ruyter.

North West Romania

Country: Romania
Land area: 34.159km²
Population: 2.738.461
Capital: Cluj-Napoca
Website: http://www.nord-vest.ro/
 

The region that lies on the North West side of Romania is bordered by Ukraine on the North, by the Region Central and North East on the East, by the Region West on the South, and by Hungary on the West. The North West Region occupies 14% of Romania’s total land area.

The Nord-Vest Region is made up of the following counties:

* Bihor
* Beszterce-Naszód (Bistriţa-Năsăud)
* Kolozs (Cluj)
* Máramaros (Maramureş)
* Szatmár (Satu Mare)
* Szilágy (Sălaj)

The region is one of the most ethnically-diverse in Romania, with 25% of the population coming from a minority group. After Romanians, which make up 75% of the population, the largest minority group are Hungarians, who comprise slightly less than 20% of the population. Hungarians are mainly concentrated in urban centres, especially those near the Hungarian border, such as Oradea and Satu Mare. The third largest minority are Roma people, which make up 3.5%, slightly above the national average. Roma people are spread relatively evenly throughout the region, even though the highest proportions are in Bihor county, where approximately 5% of the population is Roma.

The region's GDP per capita is slightly below the Romanian average (approximately 90% of the Romanian average).

The economy of Nord-Vest is based on agriculture (46% of its population having agriculture as their main occupation), even though there is some heavy and light industry in the major regional industrial centres of Cluj-Napoca, Oradea, Baia Mare and Satu Mare.

There are also several mining centres in Maramureş county and in the Apuseni Mountains. Many of these mining areas have been partly shut down, resulting in significant local unemployment, even though unemployment in the Nord-Vest region is at approximately 4%, below the Romanian national average of 5.5%. Many mining areas have been classified by the government as defavourised zones, with incentives given to investors who plan to create jobs in these areas and diversify the economy.

12% of the Romanian GDP is produced here, and the most part of it comes from the service sector (46%). The importance of this sector is increasing, while it still gives job only to the 36% of the inhabitants. The most important industries of the region are: IT&C, agriculture, tourism, food-, textile- and furniture-industry, and manufacturing fittings.

There can be found 16 universities in the Region, with more then 97.000 students – which also enhance the R&D sector of the country. Two chemical research center, two technological transfer center, an innovation transmitter center, a business incubator, 30 business advisory center and two industrial parks are already set up and working in North West Romania – and two other are under construction.

The region is crossed by five European roads – E60, E81, E79, E671 and E58. Additionally, the A3 freeway is currently in construction and will cross Cluj, Sălaj and Bihor counties in the region. Nord-Vest also it has an extensive railway infrastructure connecting most of the important towns.

It has four airports – Cluj-Napoca, Oradea, Satu Mare and Baia Mare. Currently, Cluj-Napoca, Oradea and Baia Mare airports have international flights, while Satu Mare airport only handles domestic flights.

The region is worth visiting for its natural and cultural values and traditions, and also for its thermal spas. Historical cities (Cluj-Napoca, Oradea, Baia Mare), castles (Egresi kastély, Erdődi vár, Boncidai kastély, Nagykárolyi kastély, Kolozsvári palota, Koltói Kastély, Keresdi várkastély, Gorbói kastély, stb.), monasteries, other religious places, and countless small villages can serve as destinations for visitors with any kind of interest.