Design of the Preparatory Actions of the Urban Network for Competitiveness and Innovation (UNCI) Barcelos-Braga-Famalicão-Guimarães POLIS XXI

The new POLIS XXI Cities Policy represented at the beginning a novelty and a rupture with the past urban policy models in Portugal. Considering that the UNCI was a very relevant challenge to the capacity of coordinating local authorities and other institutions, the Spatial Planning and Urban Development Direction General (which the public authority leading this public domain) launched a financial support programme to the preparatory works targeted at implementing City networks in national mainland. Quaternaire Portugal has technically supported the UNCI Quadrilátero (cities of Barcelos, Braga, Guimarães and Vila Nova de Famalicão) operating under a methodology that involved in a short period of time the technical and political staff of the four municipalities and other institutions like the University of Minho, the CITEVE (technological centre) and MInho Industrial Association. The result has been a work programme to be developed along the year of 2008 and a background document to the bid submitted by this network to the Regional Operational Programme. It has been a successful tender, being approved with other 4 bids in a set of 24 that have been submitted at national level.