Project description

Title: Strengthening local self-government
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Country: Republic of Serbia
Lead executing agency: Ministry of Environment, Mining and Spatial Planning of the Republic of Serbia
Overall term: 2009 to 2011

Context

Serbian efforts to advance the country’s accession to the EU have enjoyed top priority ever since the new national government led by the Serbian Democratic Party came to power in summer 2008. At the municipal level, sustainable development of infrastructure is an issue of pre-eminent importance. Yet small communities often lack the planning and management skills needed to efficiently deliver key municipal services such as waste management, water supply, sewerage and electric power, to establish sustainable infrastructure, and to formulate development-project specifications ready for bidding and contracting. This lack of organisational structures and knowledge hampers municipal efforts to gain a share of state-financed subsidies and loans or even funding from international sources. So far, there has been little integration of local inhabitants in municipal decision-making processes.

Objective

Municipal planning and management skills needed to provide efficient municipal services and establish sustainable infrastructure have been strengthened.

Serbia’s Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities (SCTM) is a recognised intermediary between national- and municipal-level actors, and propagates sustainably financeable infrastructure solutions tailored to the needs of local inhabitants.

Approach

The project faces the dual challenge of promoting technology transfer while also empowering municipalities to implement and finance these technologies and processes in their planning, and to sustainably operate them on a long-term basis. It also supports inter-municipal cooperation aimed at achieving cost-efficient, sustainable solutions.

The project promotes innovative concepts in a wide range of areas:

• Recycling technologies used in waste management
• Water loss control methods for water management
• Municipal energy efficiency initiatives such as energy-saving measures for street lighting, training municipal energy managers, and investment counselling on renewable energy.

Small and medium-sized towns are participating in the complex cooperation between government ministries, SCTM, municipalities, financial institutions, universities, non-governmental organisations, the media, and relevant professional, trade and environmental policy networks. The project offers pertinent advisory services and training measures. Particular attention is given to the role of informal waste collectors among the Roma population.

Results achieved so far

In 2009, after completion of project activities in a pilot model region where almost one tenth of Serbia’s population lives, all participating municipalities began to collaborate in policy-making and operatively establishing organised systems of waste management and water loss management.

By pooling and utilising know-how acquired through practical training offered by the project, the municipalities learned to prepare development plans together. In this way, they succeeded in tapping into additional resources for further infrastructural planning projects and investments. Numerous municipalities in Serbia now want to learn more about this cooperative model supported by the project.

The project has networked local knowledge with research institutions and universities, rendering this know-how available to all. What is more, channels have been established for cooperation and exchange between technical universities and universities of applied sciences in Serbia and their German counterparts in Berlin, Stuttgart and Trier. A private-sector enterprise in Germany has founded a joint-venture undertaking with Serbian companies. The partners are also cooperating in a public-private partnership (PPP) pursuing development efforts in the recycling sector.

The Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities in Serbia (SCTM) plays an important role in disseminating promising recommendations for action. By establishing a network of contact persons, these recommendations are reaching every single Serbian municipality, and SCTM is enjoying growing recognition as representative and lobbyist for municipality interests.

Further information

• Ministry of Environment, Mining and Spatial Planning of the Republic of Serbia
  http://www.ekoplan.gov.rs/...
• Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities in Serbia (SCTM)
  http://www.skgo.org