Dutch G-27 expands with five municipalities

ALMERE – The Netherlands has its own G-something. The G-27 recently expanded into G-32; the acronym refers to the number of Gs or Gemeenten (municipalities) with over 100,000 residents. Many of these towns face difficulties as a result of run down city districts that require extra attention from the more senior levels of government. The five newly added G-municipalities are fast-growing Almere (Flevoland), Apeldoorn, Ede (Gelderland), Haarlemmermeer (North Holland) and Zoetermeer (South Holland). Collectively, the 32 are also known as Ortega-municipalities, called after Antilles-born parliamentarian Cynthia Ortega-Martijn who has turned out to be a very effective advocate for these fast-growing places.