The Deputy Mayor for Economy, Housing, Finance, and Tourism, Jordi Valls, and the Commissioner for European Affairs, Mar Jiménez, represented Barcelona —city driving force behind the Mayors for Housing alliance— at a meeting organized by the European Investment Bank (EIB) on July 2 in Luxembourg, where the institution presented its action plan for affordable and sustainable housing. One of the main objectives of the plan is to promote EIB financial support and advisory services for cities in this area. Representatives from Rome, Paris, Milan, Florence, Budapest and Zagreb also participated in the meeting.

The Barcelona representatives used the visit to hold a meeting with EIB officials, to whom they conveyed their ideas and proposals regarding the financing of housing policies. Valls and Jiménez asked the bank to take into account the particularities and different circumstances that cities face when creating their financing lines, and thanked their counterparts for recognizing the key role of cities in addressing the housing crisis.

Among the ideas the EIB shared with the Mayors for Housing alliance representatives was its intention to increase available funding to expand the supply of affordable housing for both low- and middle-income citizens, who are increasingly affected by the housing crisis. The EIB is committed to promoting both the renovation of existing housing and new construction, following sustainability and innovation criteria.

Mayors for Housing, an initiative led by Barcelona

Driven by Barcelona, the Mayors for Housing alliance of European mayors seeks to strengthen the role of cities in designing European housing policies, increase housing funds, and achieve the direct allocation of EU funds to cities. On February 20, the alliance publicly released its joint declaration “Key requests – Mayors for Housing” in Brussels, and on May 15 presented the European Housing Action Plan to the European Commission, aiming to influence the first European Affordable Housing Plan, which the Commission plans to present in 2026.

The alliance includes the mayors of Barcelona, Amsterdam, Athens, Bologna, Budapest, Florence, Ghent, Leipzig, Lyon Metropolitan Region, Lisbon, Milan, Paris, Rome, Warsaw, Zagreb, and Dublin.