Welcoming remarks were made by Gábor Csach, the Mayor of Balassagyarmat, who highlighted their strategic collaboration with “Šahyand the importance of overcoming remaining barriers after the EU and Schengen accession of the two countries. Ferenc Márkus, a chief policy advisor of the Ministry of Public Administration and Territorial Development, stressed the new territorial development policy’s aim to make urban functions more accessible and to bridge the gap between urban and rural areas.

The mutual dependency between Balassagyarmat and Šahy is undeniable. However, it was acknowledged that complementary functions between the two cities do not necessarily align towards each other but rather they develop parallelly, suggesting a focus on concurrent development of their functional areas while considering each other’s interests.

One significant outcome of the workshop was the proposal to organise focus group discussions involving citizens directly affected by cross-border challenges, such as parents of children attending schools across the border, commuting workers, and Slovak citizens who have moved to the Hungarian side. These discussions are expected to provide primary information on existing barriers to cross-border cooperation.