ARCHIMEDES project involves three EU cities (Venice - project leader, Genoa and Bordeaux) and four MEDA cities (Istanbul - project co-leader, Beirut, Oran, El Mina). The project started on 1st January 2007, and will last until 31st December 2008.
 
It aims to define institutional settings, instruments, and tools based on the best practices of EU cities partners in order to promote public-private partnerships, mobilize civil society, plan urban regeneration, promote sustainable tourism and the valorisation of under-utilized cultural heritage in the MEDA cities partners.

In fact, all MEDA cities involved in the project are meeting the challenge to regenerate some important districts of the city, mainly in the historical centre, and need intervention for historical buildings rehabilitation, economic animation, tourism potential exploitation.