The National Contact Point for the EU’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme used 27 May 2026 to brief Czech municipalities on a fresh ‘Partnership of Cities’ call that explicitly finances short-term exchanges of citizens, municipal staff and local businesses across the Union. Held online via MS Teams, the 90-minute webinar walked officials through eligibility rules, budget ceilings and reporting obligations for projects that promote free movement, civic participation and intercultural dialogue. Under the 2026 call, towns can secure up to €200,000 for twin-city visits, job-shadowing schemes and themed conferences—provided at least two EU countries are involved and 60 percent of participants are first-time mobility beneficiaries. The Czech Ministry of Regional Development urged border districts to link the grants with existing Interreg programmes so that exchanges translate into tangible economic partnerships rather than one-off festivities. Speakers stressed practical mobility facilitation: grant budgets may cover group travel, visa fees for non-EU invitees, accessibility adjustments for participants with disabilities and interpretation into Czech Sign Language. In the last CERV round, Czech–Polish partnerships accounted for just four percent of applications; officials want to double that share by tackling administrative bottlenecks and language barriers. For corporate mobility teams the message is two-fold. First, city-to-city projects often include local employers, making them a route to EU-subsidised staff exchanges or CSR volunteering. Second, the expanding CERV envelope complements traditional Horizon and Erasmus+ funding, creating a multi-layered incentive landscape for companies looking to embed employees in pan-European networks while containing travel costs.
