This council represents the fulfilment of the active international policy implemented by the city since 1998. This international policy is being developed focusing on six key areas:
• Maintaining and strengthening partner networks: these are being built up through a genuine effort to identify all foreign counterparts, constantly update files relative to foreign political figures and their development.
• Taking part in the actions of networks that Marseille is part of: the International Association of Cities and Ports, the International Association of Mayors, the Council of Communes and Regions of Europe, the United Cities and Local Governments Network, the Eurocités Network, the MedCités Association, etc.
• Managing and tracking decentralised cooperation actions: numerous cooperation projects financed by the French Ministry of foreign affairs have been reactivated…
• Hosting foreign delegations and prominent figures: more than 2,000 foreign figures have been invited to and welcomed in Marseille in connection with the city's international relations.
• Consolidating ties with the 63 consulates set up in Marseille through regular information on actions and their involvement in the hosting and organisation of events…
• Accompanying the organisation and management of international meetings
In a globalised economy, the city’s initiative, based on its skills and assets, to open itself up to the world by becoming the key player in its own development, has made it possible to strengthen ties through an Alliance Charter signed with Lyon, Barcelona and Gênes. As of June 1998, the “summit of Mediterranean cities” organised in Marseille set the tone for the city's international ambitions: the success of this event has been followed by numerous meetings, including the “Mediterranean Conferences” in July 2000 at the “4th ministerial conference for the Barcelona Process”, the meeting of experts from the FEMIP at the “4th Euromed Audiovisual conference” in March 2004 to mention but a few. Marseille has now acquired its status as an international metropolis, a centre for the development and promotion of exchanges between Europe and the Mediterranean.
Furthermore, the arrival of national organisations with an international focus in Marseille, including the French Development Agency-CEFEB, the Mediterranean Institute, the World Water Institute, Ubifrance, etc. and international organisations such as the World Bank and the UNOID, taking advantage of Marseille's position at the heart of the Mediterranean network to develop their activities with countries from the Maghreb region and the Middle East, has consolidated the city's influence.
This firm belief and this faith in the vital cooperation between Europe and countries from the Mediterranean world naturally led the city council to set up the “City’s International Council”, a consultative body grouping together institutional, economic, cultural, scientific and academic players operating in the international arena.
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