Barcelona is once again launching one of its most symbolic international solidarity projects. Mayor Jaume Collboni has announced the reactivation of District 11, a tool already promoted by Pasqual Maragall in 1995 to support the reconstruction of Sarajevo after the Balkan war. This time, District 11 will be dedicated to Gaza and Palestinian cities.
The announcement was made during Collboni’s visit to a UN refugee camp in Amman (Jordan), where he stressed the importance of strengthening and stabilizing technical cooperation with Palestine. “District 11 Sarajevo was a successful and memorable precedent in the history of our city. Now we want technicians from the Barcelona City Council to work on a stable basis in urban planning, health, education or accessibility projects together with Palestinian cities,” said the mayor.
The aim is to have the district up and running before the end of 2025, with an initial budget of one million euros, and that it can be used to prepare for reconstruction when peace arrives.
The second deputy mayor and head of the Human Rights Area, Maria Eugènia Gay, will be the new councilor of the district, which will begin to operate with an initial budget of 1.5 million euros. E
District 11 has an executive management structure and an advisory committee chaired by Manel Vila, an expert in international cooperation and head of District 11 Sarajevo between 1992 and 1996. The committee is initially made up of 40 entities and groups, and includes the Palestinian community in Catalonia, Lafede, UNRWA and the University of Barcelona.
Which cities of Palestine form the district 11 of Barcelona.
The new district 11 will directly involve cities such as Gaza, Ramallah or Bethlehem, and also with the Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan, where tens of thousands of people live in emergency conditions.
In addition, the City Council has confirmed that it will double the financial aid to UNRWA, the United Nations agency that supports the refugee population, from 200,000 to 400,000 euros per year.
What does it mean for Gaza to become a district of Barcelona
District 11 will be developed along three main lines:
- Collaboration with multilateral organizations such as the UN, to act quickly in emergency situations.
- City-to-city technical cooperation, with support from the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation, for urban reconstruction projects.
- Work with NGOs and social entities, which have been operating in the area for years and will be key in the deployment of projects.
The initiative is reminiscent of the Sarajevo district, created in 1995, which made it possible to channel Barcelona’s wave of solidarity with the Bosnian capital. Through it, entire neighborhoods were rehabilitated, Olympic facilities were rebuilt and a cooperation program was launched that culminated in the twinning of Barcelona and Sarajevo in 2000.
Thirty years later, the city is once again opening a symbolic district, this time with an eye on Gaza and Palestine.
