Representatives from the European Union’s International Urban and Regional Cooperation Programme (IURC) convened partners from Prato, Italy, and Seberang Perai, Malaysia, to advance joint work on sustainable tourism initiatives as part of the programme’s Strategic Sectors Cluster on job creation and community livelihoods. Discussions underscored the EU’s continued support in fostering global urban innovation and subnational diplomacy.
During the meeting, participants explored cooperation opportunities between Prato’s Destination Management Organization (DMO) pilot projects and Seberang Perai’s Juru River Group Tourism Development initiative. The projects share common objectives such as natural habitat preservation, climate resilience, local business participation, and inclusive community benefits.
Paolo Guarnieri highlighted Prato’s actions to attract year-round visitors through sustainable cultural and industrial tourism, including a metaverse-based visitor experience integrating virtual reality and artificial intelligence. The initiative is being developed in collaboration with museums, research centers, and private tourism operators.
Seberang Perai’s partners, including the City Council and Autocity Group, presented their ecotourism strategy focused on revitalizing the 18-kilometer Juru River corridor. Their approach aims to generate employment and support local businesses, offering new opportunities for communities in fisherman villages and mainland areas less known to domestic and international visitors.
With support from IURC Asia & Australasia, both sides agreed to jointly shape three pilot project concepts that will be further developed during the IURC Global Networking Workshops at Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona on 4–5 November 2025. The workshop provides a platform to identify common priorities, hold one-to-one collaboration sessions, and advance proposals eligible for competitive funding scheduled to open in February 2026.
Next steps include hypothesis-driven pairing of project ideas across the cluster’s thematic focus on sustainable tourism as a lever for local economic development and climate adaptation. Project design will follow a quadruple-helix approach, engaging government, private sector, academia, and civil society.
IURC representatives noted that Barcelona will serve as a milestone to consolidate technical dialogue into an actionable cooperation plan. Prato and Seberang Perai will also have the opportunity to present their concepts to other global delegations, reinforcing the EU’s commitment to enabling impactful partnerships across five continents.