On March 11–12, 2025, the city of Alcoy, Spain, hosted the GenProcure network meeting, a transnational event dedicated to strengthening gender-sensitive public procurement. Representatives of partner cities, experts, and local authorities gathered to explore concrete ways to integrate gender equality into the public procurement process. The Satu Mare County Intercommunity Development Association was represented by Ms. Mihaela Bura – Public Procurement Director at the Satu Mare County Council, Ms. Laszlo Silvia – Specialist Inspector at the Satu Mare County Museum, and Ms. Nicoleta Lașan – Executive Director of the Association and local coordinator of the project.
The meeting began with a guided tour of the city, followed by working sessions at the Parc Tecnològic Urbà de Rodes. The first day included debates and presentations on gender-sensitive budgeting, the development of a catalog of recommendations and best practices for including gender clauses in public procurement, and an overview of Alcoy’s good practices in gender-sensitive public procurement.
The second day focused on deepening the gender aspects that can be integrated into all stages of the public procurement process. After lunch, the cities of Satu Mare, Famalicão, and Zagreb participated in a World Café session, where they presented the results of activities implemented as part of the project within their own administrations. Discussions continued with a dedicated session on Integrated Action Plans and a meeting of the project management team.
The event in Alcoy marked another step toward strengthening a European network committed to promoting gender equality through public policies and smart procurement. The collaborative atmosphere and exchange of experiences once again demonstrated that real transformations begin with dialogue and mutual learning.
The main objective of the GenProcure project is to explore ways in which public procurement can contribute to reducing gender inequalities The project has a 30-month implementation period and will conclude with the development of a Local Action Plan in the field of public procurement. The Satu Mare County Intercommunity Development Association is one of the 9 project partners, alongside the following public authorities: Vila Nova de Famalicão – Portugal, acting as the lead partner with a coordination role, Zagreb – Croatia, Koszalin – Poland, Messina – Italy, Ibrány – Hungary, Alcoy – Spain, Umeå – Sweden, and the Department for Development and International Projects of Zenica-Doboj Canton – Bosnia and Herzegovina. The project is funded through the URBACT IV Program and has a total value of 847,160 Euros, of which 599,611.75 Euros is financed by the European Union.
