• The position drew interest from subnational governments in Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia.
• The role of the Executive Bureau is to manage the activities of the organisation with the support of the Secretary General.
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Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru has been elected as a member of the Executive Bureau at the world’s largest forum of regional governments, ORU Fogar.
The United Regions Organisation/Forum of Regional Governments and Global Associations of Regions is headquartered in Barcelona, Spain.
It brings together regional governments from all over the world and represents them before other international organisations.
Waiguru, who also chairs the Council of Governors, was elected to the body during the organisation’s Annual General Assembly.
The position drew interest from subnational governments in Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia.
The role of the Executive Bureau is to manage the activities of the organisation with the support of the Secretary General.
It seeks to boost a global policy of balanced development and territorial cohesion.
The Council of Governors has been a member of ORU Fogar since 2014.
During the elections, Rachid El Abdi, President of the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra Regional Council (Morocco), was elected as ORU Fogar's President.
Other members elected to the bureau are Ahmed Youssouph Bengelloune from Kaolack, Senegal; Karl-Heinz Lamberts, President of European Committee of Regions; Juan Luis Mansur, Governor of the province of San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina; and Marcelo Carrasco the president of the National Association of Regional Councilors of Chile (ANCORE) were elected as Vice Presidents.
In his remarks, Abdi noted the rising strength of the network and the rising presence of ORU Fogar in the global agenda.
He emphasised that ORU Fogar must be the voice of regions and therefore must represent the interest of devolved governments.
Abdi stressed the need for the regions to remain in solidarity in the wake of the rising geopolitics, climate change and disasters such as the recent Covid-19 pandemic.
Waiguru lauded the various programmes implemented by the organisation and called for enhanced partnership between regions particularly in the areas of food security, climate change and community empowerment.
"I encouraged regional and subnational governments to create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive by developing and implementing policies that encourage entrepreneurship, investment, and job creation," she said.
Waiguru further noted that, as stewards of the local environment, regional and sub-national governments need to develop policies that protect natural resources, promote clean energy initiatives, build community resilience and mitigate the impact of climate change.