Pledge 1 – Madrid

On 27 September 2018, Madrid was the first city joining EUROCITIES campaign on social rights. The city has signed a pledge to principle 4 ‘active support to employment’ and principle 11 ‘childcare and support to children’ committing to:

• Reduce long-term unemployment in Madrid, by further investing €20 million to reach another 3,000 beneficiaries with particular focus on senior talent and experienced workers
• Build 13 more nursery schools next year and further increase the nursery school placements by 10% by 2020, improving access to those from low-income or diverse backgrounds.

Marta Higueras, first deputy mayor of Madrid said “we have to invest more in people, but to do so, cities need to have more competences at local level. We must reflect on what would be the next step towards delivering more for our citizens’.  The siging moment was market by a symbolic exchange of the pledge and the Pillar of Social Rights, between the first deputy mayor and the member of European Parliament, Maria Joao Rodrigues. Maria Joao Rodrigues, MEP said “cities are the places that face the reality, where citizen live, where they have jobs and where they interact. The European investment plans have to reflect the needs of the cities.”