Assen (The Netherlands)

Agreement signed: 22 October 1992

Range of cooperation: Business (Economic Mission), sharing experience on municipal activities, training of civil servants, education and culture (exchange of collections between the National Museum in Poznan and the Drents museum in Assen), sport.

Information about the city:

With its 67,000 inhabitants Assen is the capital of the province Drenthe. It is the fastest growing city in the northern Netherlands and is a popular tourist and leisure spot. The city has plenty of room for businesses and a pleasant living environment. It has lush green areas and an attractive city centre with 9 million visitors a year.
The origin of Assen goes back 750 years. In 1259 Cistercian nuns moved from the moors of Coevorden to higher ground in the deserted area of Assen to rebuild their monastery. Around the building a small village took root with farmers and traditional industries.
Assen's greatest fame is the TT Circuit Assen. It is one of the most famous motorcycle racing tracks in the world and is the only one that has been in the MotoGP calendar since its beginnings.
In November of each year Assen becomes the centre of international attention when the city hosts the Assen Dance Festival which attracts Ballroom and Latin American dancers from all countries.
Assen, the capital of Drenthe, the "Cycling Province" of the Netherlands, has an extensive network of off-road cycle paths, the city centre is closed to motor vehicles and nearly half of all journeys in Assen are by bicycle.
The village of Assen was founded around 1600, in 1809 Ludwik Napoleon gave it the rights of a city and it continued to grow in the 19th century. With the exception of the old buildings in the centre most of the city is quite modern. Near Assen you can see Celtic and Roman tombs and in the city itself there is a museum of ancient monuments. Assen is the administrative centre of the Drenthe province and an important transport centre for trains and canals. It's main industries are clothing, paper, printing and food - processing.


Effects of cooperation:

  • Participation in "Tackling Drugs - Reducing Crime" project, co - financed by the European Commission programme AGIS 2006. The project is a partnership between the Nottinghamshire Police Authority, Poznań City Hall and Assen Municipality (www.agis-tdrc.eu). The project has been operating from June 2006 and will be completed in May 2008.
  • Participation in "Daphne" project
  • From June 2008 the municipality of Assen is cooperating with Poznan (Poland, www.poznan.pl), Kaliningrad (Russia, www.klgd.ru; and Groningen (The Netherlands, www.groningen.nl/ondernemen) on the international project "Improved municipal services for entrepreneurs".
    The project is part of the <<LOGO EAST II  Programm>>  and is financed by the Dutch Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
    The goal of this project is to improve the providing of municipal services to small and medium enterprises.
    One of the results of the project  is establishing a One Stop Desk for entrepreneurs in the city of Kaliningrad. Each businessman can receive here the necessary information and materials. 
    The new One Stop Desk will be opened roundabout the 22th of October 2009.
    At this moment we are investigating together the possibilities of a trademission to Kaliningrad in October 2009 to open and to test the service of the One Stop Desk and to look for tradepossibilities.