Candidate cities interested in VEB 2023 ECoC programme year!

The first was Tom Hillewaere from Kortrijk in Flanders, the project leader of the 2030 bid team. First on his agenda was a meeting with Mayor Gyula Porga at the town hall, where he was given an insight into the process of preparing the ECoC application documents. He then held a meeting with colleagues from the House of Arts to discuss the importance of local partnerships. He also had discussions with our Director of Programme Development, Friderika Mike, and finally visited the Pannon and Jutasi Community Hubs to learn about our community-building activities and the cultural/social programming offered in public spaces. 

The French city of Bourges aims to join the growing family of European Capitals of Culture by 2028. For this reason, Mayor Yann Galut and his team visited Veszprém to take a look behind the scenes of a European Capital of Culture in its programme year, ahead of the evaluation of its application. The delegation was able to share their experiences with the Mayor and their ECoC colleagues, as well as receiving useful advice. The third stop on their itinerary was a visit to the Foton Audiovisual Centre, where they heard about the newly completed art cinema and exhibition space from Szabolcs Zugswert, Project Coordination Manager. Our French colleagues were given a full briefing on our Street Management programme by Zoltán Mészáros, Senior Advisor, and Rita Wahab, Chief Executive Officer. 

The last guest city in recent weeks was Budva-Boka and its region, which is also bidding for the 2028 ECOC title. Vinko Mihajlovics, a member of the Budva 2028 ECoC organising committee and director of the Petrovac Jazz Fest, and Szilvia Kabacs, a winemaker and entrepreneur from Temerin, were curious to see how a regional cultural project of this scale could be realised. During their visit, they were given a comprehensive presentation of the results of the Street Management Programme and a tour of the ActiCity Dance and Movement Centre. In the afternoon, our guests also visited the Balaton Wine and Gourmet Festival, which was opening that day, where they were able to sample the wines and flavours of the region. 

We are very honoured that the future candidate cities have shown such interest in the Veszprém-Balaton 2023 ECoC programme year. We hope that our good example and guidance will make their applications successful and that they will soon join the ranks of European Capitals of Culture!