This Tuesday night, the Mayor of Concordia, Dr. Francisco Azcué, accompanied by the Vice Mayor, Lic. Magdalena Reta de Urquiza, inaugurated the Ordinary Sessions period of the Deliberative Council. Before council members, members of the Municipal Cabinet, provincial legislators, representatives of various institutions, and the general public, he reviewed the government actions carried out during 2025 and announced the public policies to be achieved in the current year.
“We could have chosen the wide, easy, comfortable path. As a government, we chose the narrow, demanding, uphill one, where one must walk with effort, conviction, and responsibility; the path of long-term planning, of shared effort, of responsible decisions, of thinking about the future of Concordia and not just about today. That path was one of putting the accounts in order, being austere, and taking care of every peso to be able to invest it strategically where it is needed most,” affirmed Azcué.
During last year, we had to govern in a complex economic context, “with inflation, conditioned resources, and a strong dependence on provincial and national transfers. When we analyze the Municipality's income, there were no margins or financial shortcuts, but that obsession with order, austerity, control, and efficiency in spending is what has allowed us to be the only municipality in Entre Ríos and one of the few in the country, despite having the lowest income in the last 40 years, including the 2020 pandemic year, that can today be executing and projecting for the future the most ambitious infrastructure and development plan in the city's history, with its own funds.”
Order, planning, control, and efficiency in spending “is what allows us today to deepen our growth proposal with this Infrastructure and Development Plan towards the Bicentennial.”
MODERNIZATION, TRANSPARENCY, AND EFFICIENCY
Regarding the objectives achieved during 2025, the Mayor stressed that “one of the profound and structural changes we initiated was to modernize, make transparent, and make public administration more efficient, achieving this through a government logic based on data, with planning and evaluation,” which allowed for improved resource allocation, optimized processes, detection of improvement opportunities, “and the substantiation of public policy decisions.”
Also, “we have obtained technical cooperation from CAF (Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean), through the Social Observatory, which allows us to strengthen and professionalize management through the methodology of program and results-based budgeting, generating the commitment to plan and design a preliminary project for the revitalization of the northwest area of Concordia to manage financing.”
During the previous year, the design and implementation process of the GESCOM Purchasing System was consolidated as a key tool for the modernization of municipal public procurement, and municipal personnel were recognized as the main asset, “which is why we promote a sustained policy of training and institutional strengthening, aimed at improving staff competencies and the quality of public service.”
TAX MEASURES
Among the main measures taken the previous year is the new municipal tax ordinance, which has been in force since January 2026, “with concrete measures to support businesses, local industries, and the entire production chain of Concordia, especially in sectors linked to food production and sales, public works, and the provision of construction materials,” maintained Azcué.
Regarding the simplification of procedures, the Mayor announced that in the coming days he will send a project to the Council for a new administrative procedure ordinance, since the previous one is from the 70s, incorporating the digital administrative case file and ensuring that all procedures are faster and simpler, in accordance with current times.
SECURITY AND MUNICIPAL TAXES
In terms of security and in joint work with the Entre Ríos Police, the Municipal Monitoring Center was created, which allows for the care of public spaces; license plate readers were installed at the city's entrances, and work was coordinated with residents on the installation of cameras and community alarms. To this, we must add the lighting improvement works on more than 100 streets in the city.
Furthermore, the usurpation of more than 200 municipal or public domain plots was dismantled, and the active policy of eradicating animal-drawn vehicles was continued, achieving the adoption of more than 100 horses. “And we are going to take one more step: we will send a draft ordinance to the Deliberative Council to eliminate animal-drawn vehicles throughout the city,” announced Azcué.
FREE STUDENT TICKET AND HEALTH
Regarding transport, “what was a milestone for the city is the implementation of the free student ticket for primary and secondary school students, as well as the Boleto Concordiense, with a 30% reduction for residents of the city,” specified the mayor.
Another objective achieved in 2025 was to extend care in the Health centers of Villa Adela, Los Pájaros, and Nebel, with night service and extended on-call shifts, to which must be added a great step in modernization with the implementation of the electronic medical record.
EDUCATION, PRODUCTION, AND TOURISM
Through the implementation of different educational programs, more than 400 children received pedagogical support; more than 100 young people and adults were taught to read and write, and 250 municipal agents were able to complete their studies. In this sense, it should be noted that more than 300 people attended job training developed jointly with different institutions, among other actions.
Regarding production, last year the first edition of Concordia Produce was carried out, which will be repeated this 2026; the Business Roundtable; in addition to having signed agreements with producers, universities, business chambers, foundations, and neighboring municipalities, strengthening strategic sectors such as citrus farming, forest-industry, carpentry, beekeeping, fish farming, and urban agroecology.
The technical, environmental, regulatory, and economic feasibility study for the development of a Logistics Activities Zone, Industrial Park, and Barge River Port already has a positive preliminary report, “which will allow obtaining a loan from the IDB to finance the work this year.”
Another important achievement was the commissioning of the Airport, allowing the arrival of commercial, private, and medical flights, strengthening the region's connectivity with the rest of the country.
Tourism continued the Concorpass Program, the destination's presence was consolidated in major events such as the FIT, in addition to having advanced in the 2025–2030 Sustainable Tourism Strategic Plan, with citizen participation, academic support, and a long-term view based on innovation, accessibility, and sustainability. In 2025, Concordia registered 96 events, with a 31% growth compared to the previous year, and returned to being among the top ten cities in the country for meeting tourism.
CONCORDIA HOST OF THE 2026 IDERA CONFERENCE
For this 2026, Mayor Azcué confirmed that Concordia was chosen to organize the XX Spatial Data Infrastructure Conference of the Argentine Republic IDERA 2026. For the first time, this conference will be organized by a local government and not by a provincial capital. Between July 1 and 3, experts in the field from all over the country will come, with confirmed speakers from all over Latin America.
“It will be a huge opportunity to continue positioning ourselves and growing in knowledge to apply it to the strategic and structural projects we have for our city,” he maintained.
INVYTAM
Furthermore, Azcué announced that “we are going to send to the Deliberative Council the project for the dissolution of the Municipal Autonomous Housing and Land Institute, integrating its functions into the central structure under the orbit of the Secretariat of Public Works. We are going to centralize leadership, unify accounting and financial systems, and create a Transitional Liquidation and Transfer Commission to guarantee inventory, orderly closure, and reporting to control bodies, and we ensure that every resource allocated to habitat and property regularization is under the same administration and control system.”
INFRASTRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT PLAN TOWARDS THE BICENTENNIAL
During 2025, an important infrastructure plan began to be implemented, with works executed with own funds that allowed for the paving of Paula Albarracín street; Juventud Unida in Benito Legerén and Dr. Sauré.
“The Infrastructure and Development Plan towards the Bicentennial is designed beyond a single administration and with a structural and long-term view. Infrastructure for growth, which allows us to have more passable streets, better connectivity, which improves and reaches most neighborhoods, but also, hydraulic works designed so that the city is prepared for eventualities and water works to manage to bring drinking water and sewers to the neighborhoods that still do not have them today.”
The plan contemplates interventions that will change the city, improvements in squares and public spaces, and also proposes works for production, such as the Logistics Center and Barge Port project. “For this, we will allocate 20% of the budget this year to public works, prioritizing infrastructure, pavement, sanitation, and public spaces, with an investment of around 20 billion pesos planned.”
Furthermore, Azcué announced that “as part of this ambitious plan, we are going to take a structural step in terms of public works, incorporating a new municipal asphalt plant with adequate capacity to guarantee quality, efficiency, and environmental compliance, and we plan to launch the municipal paving stone manufacturing system, which will allow producing up to 5,000 units per day and executing approximately 48 blocks per year.”
This infrastructure plan also contemplates human development, “and for that, we are going to propose programs that allow strengthening people through training and education to move from a model centered on welfare to one that puts people as protagonists of their own life project,” generating public policies in Human Development and Education; Habitat, Infrastructure, and Environment; Labor Inclusion and Productivity; and Institutional Strengthening.
KEEPING OUR WORD
“From the first day, we said that we did not come to improvise. We came to bring order. To make politics a tool at the service of the people and not of private interests. We came to end the privileges of a few to think about the interests of all Concordians. As we begin our third year of administration, we can say with peace of mind: we are keeping that word, despite the worst historical context that local municipalities have had to go through.”
Finally, Azcué stressed: “In a few years, Concordia will turn 200 years old, and I want that day to be one where we can look back and say: we did it together.”
“We could have chosen the wide, easy, comfortable path. As a government, we chose the narrow, demanding, uphill one, where one must walk with effort, conviction, and responsibility; the path of long-term planning, of shared effort, of responsible decisions, of thinking about the future of Concordia and not just about today. That path was one of putting the accounts in order, being austere, and taking care of every peso to be able to invest it strategically where it is needed most,” affirmed Azcué.
During last year, we had to govern in a complex economic context, “with inflation, conditioned resources, and a strong dependence on provincial and national transfers. When we analyze the Municipality's income, there were no margins or financial shortcuts, but that obsession with order, austerity, control, and efficiency in spending is what has allowed us to be the only municipality in Entre Ríos and one of the few in the country, despite having the lowest income in the last 40 years, including the 2020 pandemic year, that can today be executing and projecting for the future the most ambitious infrastructure and development plan in the city's history, with its own funds.”
Order, planning, control, and efficiency in spending “is what allows us today to deepen our growth proposal with this Infrastructure and Development Plan towards the Bicentennial.”
MODERNIZATION, TRANSPARENCY, AND EFFICIENCY
Regarding the objectives achieved during 2025, the Mayor stressed that “one of the profound and structural changes we initiated was to modernize, make transparent, and make public administration more efficient, achieving this through a government logic based on data, with planning and evaluation,” which allowed for improved resource allocation, optimized processes, detection of improvement opportunities, “and the substantiation of public policy decisions.”
Also, “we have obtained technical cooperation from CAF (Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean), through the Social Observatory, which allows us to strengthen and professionalize management through the methodology of program and results-based budgeting, generating the commitment to plan and design a preliminary project for the revitalization of the northwest area of Concordia to manage financing.”
During the previous year, the design and implementation process of the GESCOM Purchasing System was consolidated as a key tool for the modernization of municipal public procurement, and municipal personnel were recognized as the main asset, “which is why we promote a sustained policy of training and institutional strengthening, aimed at improving staff competencies and the quality of public service.”
TAX MEASURES
Among the main measures taken the previous year is the new municipal tax ordinance, which has been in force since January 2026, “with concrete measures to support businesses, local industries, and the entire production chain of Concordia, especially in sectors linked to food production and sales, public works, and the provision of construction materials,” maintained Azcué.
Regarding the simplification of procedures, the Mayor announced that in the coming days he will send a project to the Council for a new administrative procedure ordinance, since the previous one is from the 70s, incorporating the digital administrative case file and ensuring that all procedures are faster and simpler, in accordance with current times.
SECURITY AND MUNICIPAL TAXES
In terms of security and in joint work with the Entre Ríos Police, the Municipal Monitoring Center was created, which allows for the care of public spaces; license plate readers were installed at the city's entrances, and work was coordinated with residents on the installation of cameras and community alarms. To this, we must add the lighting improvement works on more than 100 streets in the city.
Furthermore, the usurpation of more than 200 municipal or public domain plots was dismantled, and the active policy of eradicating animal-drawn vehicles was continued, achieving the adoption of more than 100 horses. “And we are going to take one more step: we will send a draft ordinance to the Deliberative Council to eliminate animal-drawn vehicles throughout the city,” announced Azcué.
FREE STUDENT TICKET AND HEALTH
Regarding transport, “what was a milestone for the city is the implementation of the free student ticket for primary and secondary school students, as well as the Boleto Concordiense, with a 30% reduction for residents of the city,” specified the mayor.
Another objective achieved in 2025 was to extend care in the Health centers of Villa Adela, Los Pájaros, and Nebel, with night service and extended on-call shifts, to which must be added a great step in modernization with the implementation of the electronic medical record.
EDUCATION, PRODUCTION, AND TOURISM
Through the implementation of different educational programs, more than 400 children received pedagogical support; more than 100 young people and adults were taught to read and write, and 250 municipal agents were able to complete their studies. In this sense, it should be noted that more than 300 people attended job training developed jointly with different institutions, among other actions.
Regarding production, last year the first edition of Concordia Produce was carried out, which will be repeated this 2026; the Business Roundtable; in addition to having signed agreements with producers, universities, business chambers, foundations, and neighboring municipalities, strengthening strategic sectors such as citrus farming, forest-industry, carpentry, beekeeping, fish farming, and urban agroecology.
The technical, environmental, regulatory, and economic feasibility study for the development of a Logistics Activities Zone, Industrial Park, and Barge River Port already has a positive preliminary report, “which will allow obtaining a loan from the IDB to finance the work this year.”
Another important achievement was the commissioning of the Airport, allowing the arrival of commercial, private, and medical flights, strengthening the region's connectivity with the rest of the country.
Tourism continued the Concorpass Program, the destination's presence was consolidated in major events such as the FIT, in addition to having advanced in the 2025–2030 Sustainable Tourism Strategic Plan, with citizen participation, academic support, and a long-term view based on innovation, accessibility, and sustainability. In 2025, Concordia registered 96 events, with a 31% growth compared to the previous year, and returned to being among the top ten cities in the country for meeting tourism.
CONCORDIA HOST OF THE 2026 IDERA CONFERENCE
For this 2026, Mayor Azcué confirmed that Concordia was chosen to organize the XX Spatial Data Infrastructure Conference of the Argentine Republic IDERA 2026. For the first time, this conference will be organized by a local government and not by a provincial capital. Between July 1 and 3, experts in the field from all over the country will come, with confirmed speakers from all over Latin America.
“It will be a huge opportunity to continue positioning ourselves and growing in knowledge to apply it to the strategic and structural projects we have for our city,” he maintained.
INVYTAM
Furthermore, Azcué announced that “we are going to send to the Deliberative Council the project for the dissolution of the Municipal Autonomous Housing and Land Institute, integrating its functions into the central structure under the orbit of the Secretariat of Public Works. We are going to centralize leadership, unify accounting and financial systems, and create a Transitional Liquidation and Transfer Commission to guarantee inventory, orderly closure, and reporting to control bodies, and we ensure that every resource allocated to habitat and property regularization is under the same administration and control system.”
INFRASTRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT PLAN TOWARDS THE BICENTENNIAL
During 2025, an important infrastructure plan began to be implemented, with works executed with own funds that allowed for the paving of Paula Albarracín street; Juventud Unida in Benito Legerén and Dr. Sauré.
“The Infrastructure and Development Plan towards the Bicentennial is designed beyond a single administration and with a structural and long-term view. Infrastructure for growth, which allows us to have more passable streets, better connectivity, which improves and reaches most neighborhoods, but also, hydraulic works designed so that the city is prepared for eventualities and water works to manage to bring drinking water and sewers to the neighborhoods that still do not have them today.”
The plan contemplates interventions that will change the city, improvements in squares and public spaces, and also proposes works for production, such as the Logistics Center and Barge Port project. “For this, we will allocate 20% of the budget this year to public works, prioritizing infrastructure, pavement, sanitation, and public spaces, with an investment of around 20 billion pesos planned.”
Furthermore, Azcué announced that “as part of this ambitious plan, we are going to take a structural step in terms of public works, incorporating a new municipal asphalt plant with adequate capacity to guarantee quality, efficiency, and environmental compliance, and we plan to launch the municipal paving stone manufacturing system, which will allow producing up to 5,000 units per day and executing approximately 48 blocks per year.”
This infrastructure plan also contemplates human development, “and for that, we are going to propose programs that allow strengthening people through training and education to move from a model centered on welfare to one that puts people as protagonists of their own life project,” generating public policies in Human Development and Education; Habitat, Infrastructure, and Environment; Labor Inclusion and Productivity; and Institutional Strengthening.
KEEPING OUR WORD
“From the first day, we said that we did not come to improvise. We came to bring order. To make politics a tool at the service of the people and not of private interests. We came to end the privileges of a few to think about the interests of all Concordians. As we begin our third year of administration, we can say with peace of mind: we are keeping that word, despite the worst historical context that local municipalities have had to go through.”
Finally, Azcué stressed: “In a few years, Concordia will turn 200 years old, and I want that day to be one where we can look back and say: we did it together.”