EU expands Global Gateway partnerships with new local-level initiatives unveiled at 2025 Forum of Cities and Regions

The European Commission has unveiled a new set of Global Gateway partnerships during the 2025 Forum of Cities and Regions for International Partnerships. This year’s Forum placed local and regional authorities at the centre of development cooperation, highlighting how territorial governance and decentralised partnerships are becoming key drivers of the EU’s global investment strategy.

European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Síkela said the announcements illustrate how Global Gateway can deliver tangible benefits when shaped with local actors. He emphasised that cities and regions often hold the clearest understanding of development challenges and are essential to ensuring that large-scale investments translate into inclusive, long-term growth.

Supporting Mexico’s green transformation
The EU will provide €250,000 to support the State of Sonora in decarbonising and modernising the Port of Guaymas. The initiative aims to strengthen the port’s net-zero transition, improve logistics, create green jobs, and reinforce regional economic growth. Local authorities are leading the port’s Master Plan to ensure alignment with territorial priorities. The Port of Antwerp-Bruges will contribute technical expertise, marking the first time the EU works directly with local authorities through a Financing Not Linked to Cost grant model.

Backing Ecuador’s first public green bond
The Commission also confirmed its support for Ecuador’s first green bond to be issued by Banco de Desarrollo de Ecuador (BDE) in 2026. Valued at USD 50–100 million, the bond is expected to expand Ecuador’s sustainable finance market and enable subnational governments to invest in renewable energy, low-emission transport, resilient infrastructure, and other public-interest green projects. Developed with assistance from the EU and UNDP under the Global Green Bond Initiative, the bond demonstrates how EU support can help unlock climate finance at the local level.

A new €4 million pilot on decentralised cooperation
A third announcement introduced a €4 million pilot initiative to reinforce decentralised cooperation within the Global Gateway framework. Co-financed with the Generalitat de Catalunya and developed with PLATFORMA and partners from Sweden and the Netherlands, the pilot will examine how local and regional authorities can contribute more effectively to Global Gateway project design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.

The initiative will test practical models in different regions and produce recommendations on integrating local participation into EU-backed investments. It will also launch operational pilots to assess the concrete benefits of direct local engagement, particularly for local economic development and sustainability.

Forum conclusions: localising Global Gateway
The Forum underscored that cities and regions are crucial to delivering Global Gateway in practice, given their proximity to citizens and their role in shaping public services and investment pipelines. Participants highlighted the need for EU Delegations to engage more systematically with local authorities, and for local administrations in partner countries to strengthen coordination with national governments and financial institutions. European cities and regions were seen as important contributors of technical expertise and peer-to-peer learning.

The event concluded with the adoption of the Committee of the Regions’ Opinion on localising Global Gateway, reinforcing the role of decentralised cooperation – city-to-city and region-to-region partnerships – in building balanced and sustainable international cooperation.