Knowledge exchange and cooperation between municipalities are key to accelerating more inclusive urban development across the Mediterranean. With this objective, MedCities organised a series of peer-to-peer exchanges under the MELUP project funded by the Catalan Agency for Development Cooperation (ACCD).

Held online between June and July 2026, the programme brought together the municipalities of Barcelona, the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB), Al-Hoceima and Tripoli. The programme followed a structured city-to-city peer learning methodology, pairing a «giver» city with a «taker» city to address specific urban challenges through practical recommendations and knowledge exchange.

Barcelona supported Tripoli by presenting its gender mainstreaming strategy, highlighting how gender equality can be progressively integrated into municipal policies, budgeting and decision-making. The exchange also showcased practical tools such as Gender Impact Reports, simple monitoring mechanisms and collaboration with civil society and academia to strengthen policy design and implementation.

At the same time, the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) worked with Al-Hoceima on strategies to prevent gender-based violence through awareness-raising campaigns. Drawing on its international experience, AMB emphasised the importance of understanding local realities, engaging community organisations and tailoring communication to different audiences in order to maximise impact.

These recommendations are particularly relevant for Al-Hoceima, where the diagnosis carried out under the MELUP project identified public harassment affecting young women and girls in several areas of the city. Building on these findings, the municipality will launch one of the project’s pilot actions: an awareness-raising campaign on preventing gender-based violence in the city’s four municipal high schools, to be implemented between September and December 2026.

By connecting municipalities facing similar challenges, the initiative reinforces local capacities, promotes collaborative learning across the MedCities network and contributes to advancing SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities).