Braga's accession into the Portuguese Network of Intercultural Cities in 2016 stems from the vision of the City Council that advocates diversity as one of the positive features that the city owns and intends to promote.
Braga values its heterogeneous and multicultural population, encouraging the interaction of various groups in the public space.
The accession into the Portuguese Network of Intercultural Cities (RPCI) – a project connected to the European Network of Intercultural Cities (RECI), of which the Council of Europe is responsible for - takes several commitments, such as:
- Respecting the fundamental values of the Council of Europe, in particular respect for human rights;
- Recognizing the potential value of immigration and diversity as an asset for the city;
- Adopting an intercultural perspective on the relevant aspects of municipal policy;
- Publicly announcing the decision to join the RPCI, highlighting the commitment as intercultural model and promoting diversity as a benefit.
This institutional cooperation provides an intensive exchange of experience and good practices between Cities with distinct intercultural realities, integrated in a dynamic and innovative network that makes the integration of immigrants, the promotion of interculturalism and the appreciation for diversity its main goals.
In this sense, the City Council developed the C4I project – Communication for integration, which involves eleven European cities (including Amadora and Loures); Under this project, Braga aims to promote cohesion and social inclusion by promoting awareness of positive diversity, deconstructing/fighting prejudice and discrimination, mediating and resolving conflicts through Communication.
This Network has enabled the deepening of the knowledge of the intrinsic value of interculturalism, through the activities carried out together with the participating Cities, in particular through benchmarking, exchange of experiences and good practices, workshops, thematic meetings and exchanges; that allow to properly promote the various municipal policies underway in the City Council of Braga.
