NEWS SNIPPETS FROM VALENCIA - POPULATION = 5.0 MILLION

Francisco Camps, President of the Valencian Region, accompanied by members of the Valencian Government, by Rita Barbera, Mayoress of Valencia, by Sonia Castedo, Mayoress of Alicante, by Alfonso Rus, chairman of the Valencian County Council, and by Carlos Fabra, chairman of the County Council of Alicante, presented the Special Plan to Support Productive Investment in Municipalities in the Valencian Region with a budget of 1020 million Euro and that will maintain 30,000 jobs, and announced that in the next few days, 100% of the projects of the Municipality Plan will be approved.

Francisco Camps, President of the Valencian Region, received in Government Palace, Eduardo Acuña, military commander general of Valencia and Castellon.

Valencian Government Railways (FGV) - Alicante Metropolitan TRAM, is collaborating with the Town Hall of Alicante, through the Council of Social Welfare, to reduce the use of alcohol this summer through a publicity campaign on the Alicante TRAM with the slogans "This summer, zero degrees" and "This summer consume less alcohol".

The campaign was presented by Asuncion Sanchez, Counsellor of Social Welfare, and Jose Pascual, delegate of FGV in Alicante.

On the other hand, the Night TRAM, or Tramnochador, runs all night every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, from now till the 12th September.

Angelica Such, Valencian Government Councillor of Tourism, presided a ceremony in the Tourism Centre for Professional Training - CdT, in Valencia, in which 40 municipalities received 90 "Q" Quality Certificates and 132 flags for their beaches during the IV edition of this event.

Councillor Such declared that 70% of the beaches of coastal municipalities in the Valencian Region already possess quality or environment certificates.

Also attending the ceremony were Gema Amor, general directress of the Tourism Patronage of the Costa Blanca, Manuel Martin, Tourism Deputy of Castellon, and Isidro Prieto, Tourism Deputy of Valencia.

Belen Juste, Valencian Government Councillor of Industry, Trade, and Innovation, opened the Trade Sectorial Conference in Valencia, that united for the first time all agents involved in the trade process to elaborate a regulation for the sector that is an innovative model, pioneer on a national level, based on working together and the unity of the sector, with the slogan "United Trade, Valencian Region Trade".

Vicente Rambla Vice-president of the Valencian Government, accompanied by Sonia Castedo, Mayoress of Alicante, and Angelica Such, Valencian Government Councillor of Tourism, announced in Saint Petersburg, Russia, that the countdown has started for the Volvo Ocean Race 2011 that will start out from Alicante, in the Valencia Region.

Mr. Rambla was speaking at the gala dinner in which Valentina Matviyenko, Mayoress of Saint Petersburg, handed over the banner of the Volvo Ocean Race to Sonia Castedo, Mayoress of Alicante.

The start of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008 - 2009 from Alicante Port meant an economic impact of over 70 million Euro, the creation of 1,500 jobs both direct and indirect, and 1 million visitors to the Regattas Village, with zero cost for the Valencian Government thanks to the many sponsors of the event.

Other members of the Valencian contingent in Saint Petersburg were Miguel Campoy, chairman of the Port Authority of Alicante, Javier Luri, chairman of the Association of Hoteliers in Alicante, Francisco Izquierdo, chairman of the Association of Hotel Entrepreneurs of Alicante, and Marisa Sempere, chairperson of the Association of Travel Agents.

Trini Miro, Valencian Government Councillor of Culture and Sports, participated in a seminar organised by the Foundation "A Sea without Barriers" on board the Tirant I Schooner, property of the Council of Culture and Sports. 30 handicapped people were also on the schooner.

Since last year, over 1,600 people have participated in the "Nautical Classroom" (Aula Nautica) - an initiative to favour the elimination of physical and social barriers. The Nautical Classroom is a programme of the Tirant I Schooner that represents the Valencian Government as well as being a school ship and compete in different regattas.

The Valencian Government also has 9 Sea Schools scattered throughout the three provinces of the Valencian Region, that between the 22nd of June and the 4th September, offers 6,648 places for families and groups to practice nautical sports during the summer months.

Marisa Gracia, general manageress of Valencian Government Railways (FGV)-Valencian Underground (Metro) and extreme left in the above photo, Pilar Collado, general manageress of Co-operation and Development, and Juan Bou, chairman of the non-profit organisation "Education without Frontiers", presented the agreement they signed to boost solidarity and awareness by installing information panels explaining Human Rights, on 14 Underground Stations during the months of July and August.

In the Underground Customer Service Office, clients may request a notebook in which they should write down information phrases viewed on different stations, and once the notebook is complete, it should be returned to the Customer Service Office where it will be exchanged for a free tee shirt.