Syria Today | French-Syrian conference focuses on Aleppo’s urban development

French-Syrian conference focuses on Aleppo’s urban development

A three-day conference focusing on Aleppo’s urban development and the preservation of its cultural heritage was held last month by the Aleppo City Council in cooperation with the French Institute of the Near East (IFPO), Syria’s state-run news agency SANA reported on March 15.

The conference, titled ‘The Major Syrian Cities, City Center Prospects and New Centralization’, saw French and Syrian city council representatives and experts in urban planning and cultural heritage discuss a range of issues including Aleppo’s transport system, traffic and the development of its city centre.

Referring to the twinning of Aleppo with the French city Lyon, Aleppo Governor Ali Mansoura told the conference that he hoped his governorate would be able to “benefit from Lyon’s experiences and the scientific research centres in it”.

Lyon Deputy Mayor Jean-Francois Arrue stressed that the two cities would “bolster cooperation to confront the challenge of protecting the cities’ cultural heritage in the face of growing transport services and increasing pollution”.

IFPO Aleppo Director Thierry Boissière added that the conference will “help create new ideas for developing city centres in a manner that suits Syrian cities”.