A good exit strategy is fundamental and has to be prepared thoroughly and on time. City representatives and experts connected to the DEALS programme agreed on this and started elaborating an exit strategy per city on the 10th of June.

DEALS ends in 2022, so it is time to think about the rounding off of the programme and about what comes next. Will the local government or another organisation take over (parts of) the programme? Can the execution of the DEALS goals be funded in the future? How to ensure the continuation of the participatory element?

Programme manager Irene Oostveen had prepared a canvas - this time without the help of her children - to design an exit strategy per city. The participants were asked to come up with all kinds of interventions that could meet the financial, capacity and governance challenges ahead. The idea was to make a one-pager per city describing the role and contribution of stakeholders and partners at all levels (local, regional and national). After Irene’s introduction the city teams started working on their city specific strategy in breakout rooms.

You can read the report here.