Etterbeek: very good transparency, European quarter

The European quarter municipality

Etterbeek has approximately 50,000 inhabitants on a compact territory of 3.15 km². Located in the heart of the European quarter, it hosts numerous institutions and an international population. Vincent De Wolf (MR) left his parliamentary mandate to focus on the mayoralty.

Transparency: 5 out of 6 criteria

Etterbeek achieves an excellent transparency score. The budget and council minutes are published online, the council is broadcast via livestream, the mandate registry is accessible, and the municipality has a citizen participation platform via Fluicity with neighbourhood budgets (EUR 60,000). Only the Open Data portal is missing.

Citizen participation: Fluicity and neighbourhood councils

Etterbeek uses the relaunched Fluicity platform for citizen participation, with active neighbourhood councils since 2020 and participatory budgets of EUR 60,000.

Budget and recent developments

The 2026 budget is under strain with a 17% increase in property tax. A public consultation process is underway regarding the proposed new United States embassy in the European quarter. Conflicts related to European quarter development works persist.