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There is no universally accepted definition of decentralized cooperation. Jangu Le Carpentier, former president delegate of united cities organizations emphasized in 1994 that: “What is important today is the realization that decentralized cooperation is a concept with a significant impact. … It is a concept, which is still a bit vague. (…) If we try to define it more precisely, we take a risk: either it is defined so generally that it becomes a maze of contradictions, or it is defined so restrictively that everyone is completely lost.”

However, many forms of it have as a common feature the involvement of non-state actors in the development and provision of services. In January 2000, Philip Lowe of the European Commission prepared an operational guide to decentralized cooperation, describing the concept primarily as a different way of working that places all types of actors at the center of the cooperation process and involves them throughout the cycle of activities, defining the roles and responsibilities of each party, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity. A 2001 UNDP study defined decentralized cooperation as “a long-term partnership between communities in different cities or towns and as a mechanism for establishing a new mode of partnership, focusing on direct relations between regional areas, as opposed to the model that promotes bilateral cooperation at the national level.” A committee on decentralized cooperation of the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), which met in Washington on February 10, 2006, defined decentralized cooperation as “a solid partnership between foreign local communities” [with the aim of] “promoting mutual prosperity and consolidating local development and governance.” UN-Habitat considers decentralized cooperation to be a process “whereby cities (as well as other institutions) work together to define their problems and develop appropriate solutions based on shared experience among similar groups.” Decentralized cooperation is known by several names, such as twinning, city-to-city cooperation, town twinning and twinning. More recently, a new concept, municipal international cooperation (WIC), has joined the literature on decentralized cooperation, opening the possibility of providing long-term technical and financial assistance to municipal governments in a spirit of partnership and global common interest.

The underlying principle is that closer cooperation and exchanges between municipalities in Romania and Belgium can lead to creative and effective solutions for local development issues. MIC also encompasses networking and cooperation between associations of local and regional authorities in Romania and Belgium. As stated before, there are many definitions of decentralized cooperation, sometimes rather conflicting among each other, and none of the said definitions can be said to be prevailing. For the purpose of this assessment document, keeping in mind the overall goal fora on decentralized cooperation between Belgium and Romania, decentralized cooperation is defined as any project, initiative, or partnership among at least one Belgian and one Romanian sub-national authority.