Demanding climatic conditions, growing urbanisation and changing mobility patterns, have imposed a number of important challenges to road development and operation in the North Africa and Mediterranean region.

To address these, and to capitalise on the very real opportunities they present for the future, IRF and its local partners Autoroutes du Maroc and the Moroccan Road Association, will be bringing together leading road sector players and other key stakeholders and experts for a landmark event in 2013's professional and business calendar.

The IRF Regional Conference: North Africa - Mediterranean will offer a prominent and highly influential platform, enabling road professionals to enter into dialogue, to exchange views and opinions, experiences and good practices on the implementation of a new generation of safe, sustainable and economically sound road networks, that will set future standards throughout the region and beyond.

The Welsh National Procurement awards aim to find procurers that are innovative, drive public procurement progress, influence change, and implement procurement policy in a way that delivers real environmental, social and economic benefits for Wales.

Awards will be presented in 10 categories, with each peer-judged by a panel of five independent procurement professionals. Up to two winners may be selected per category. Each winner will receive an ICPS/Welsh Government glass trophy and a Welsh National Procurement Award certificate.

For more information, follow the link below.

The Welsh National Procurement week will explore five themes across five days.

The first day will look at procurement research, under the slogan "Changing Policy with Better Research". A tender review workshop will take place during the morning of the second day, with a seminar on practical tendering legal advice in the afternoon.

Day three will examine procuring goods and services across continents, "BRIC by BRIC". Innovation and the Changing Landscape of Procurement will be the theme of day four, while day five explores the emerging legal practice and changing pattern in public procurement law.

Procurement Week 2013 will culminate with the launch of the inaugural Welsh National Procurement Awards.

Breakfast at Sustainability's (B@S) are small, informal meetings which address a range of sustainable urban development issues of relevance to public authorities. Each session is comprised of breakfast, short input from an expert, and moderated interactive discussions. The 13th B@S in the series examined the opportunities and challenges of sustainable timber purchasing.

Topics included the EU policy framework and vision, an outline of the project Sustainable Timber Action in Europe, how best to implement sustainable timber purchasing at the local level and an interactive panel discussion.

The event was moderated by ICLEI's Simon Clement, and speakers included Kriton Arsenis, Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur EU Timber Regulation; Marieke Abcouwer, the Sustainable Trade Initiative; Jeroen Van der Waal, Sustainability Adviser, City of Amsterdam, among others.

For more information on this event, follow the link below, or download the event programme.

2013 European Green Capital Nantes (France) will host two days of meetings and exchanges aimed at providing information on purchasing products and services in a range of sectors, including food, building, communications, textiles, motor vehicles and more.

Buyers and purchasing officials will find support and guidance from international networks on sustainable procurement including ICLEI and ADEME.

The event will also give buyers and suppliers the chance to exchange at meetings dedicated to companies and local authorities. These meetings will take the form of forums, workshops and business appointments.

The event is organised by Réseau Grand Ouest. The language of the event will be French.

The Swedish Environmental Management Council is developing EU Green Public Procurement (GPP) criteria for electrical and electronic equipment used in the health care sector (Health Care EEE), in agreement with the Directorate General for the Environment (DG Environment) of the European Commission.

The criteria will be recommended for use by public authorities in the health sector in Sweden and in the EU.

A second ad hoc working group meeting will be held to discuss the draft criteria. All project-related documents can be found on the project website.

The event is aimed at technical experts in the private sector, procurers from the public sector, environmental experts, medical engineering experts and other interested parties.

To participate, send the name of your organisation/company, your name, area of expertise/title and contact details to ylva@msr.se by 6 March 2013.

Finance and governance will be at the forefront of the 7th European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns (ESCT), which takes place from 17 - 19 April 2013 in Geneva (Switzerland). The host city, a global leader in international finance and trade and international diplomacy and cooperation, will use its exemplary position to positively contribute to the conference.

Building upon the conclusions of the previous ESCT Dunkerque 2010 and the outcomes of the Rio+20 Conference, which focused on green economy, Geneva 2013 will seek to bridge the gaps between environmental, economic and social goals and connect governments, civil society and business through policy and action.

Over 1,000 European local government leaders, as well as representatives from institutions and NGOs will convene in Geneva to seek new and creative answers to the global financial crisis in the context of sustainable development and international and local governance.

Traditionally the largest European conference dedicated to local sustainable development, the event takes place in the International Conference Centre Geneva, located close to the UN “Place des nations” just minutes from international transport hubs and the city centre.

A webinar on procuring sustainable construction projects will be held on April 23 as part of the EU Helpdesk on GPP.

The Webinar will provide good practice examples of innovative and sustainable construction and give an update on the development process for EU green public procurement (GPP) criteria for office buildings.

Participation is open to all. Further information will be presented on the European Commission’s website nearer the time. Save the date and register now by writing to gpp-helpdesk@iclei.org.

The conference will share current practices in innovation-oriented procurement in the defence and security sectors in the EU and create awareness on the possibilities offered by Directives 2009/81/EC and 2009/43/EC to contracting authorities to procure innovative solutions and research and development. In addition, the conference focuses on the implications brought by the recent legislative and policy changes in the EU for suppliers within the defense and security industry.

Take part in an exclusive briefing by the Federal Ministry and the BMWFJ, outlining what measures have already been taken for fostering innovation through public procurement, how the current situation looks and the future plans.

At this meeting, participants are heavily encouraged to express their suggestions and ideas for future actions and projects to facilitate the uptake of public procurement of innovation in Europe.

For more information, follow the link below.