Stakeholder involvement
Active engagement of stakeholders in the official process for the management of the Drin basin
The Shared Vision for the management of the Drin Basin, that was the objective of the Drin Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was the outcome of the Drin Dialogue, a multi-stakeholder process comprising a number of consultations. Provisions for stakeholders’ involvement were included in the Drin MoU.
The Drin Core Group ensured the active engagement of the stakeholders in the process for the management of the Drin Basin.
Drin Multi-stakeholder Conferences were organized annually (provided that there was financing available and there was no force majeure). The organization of the Conferences were in line with provisions of the Drin MoU and they complied with Article 5 Implementation and Monitoring, that indicated “(…) understanding the need for the implementation of the Strategic Shared Vision to reflect the views of the stakeholders the Parties call for an annual meeting of stakeholders from the Drin Riparians (…)”.
The Conferences provided the platform for:
- stakeholders to be informed about the developments regarding the implementation of the Drin MoU as well as the on-going and planned activities under the GEF Drin Project and provide input;
- raising awareness and gain input on issues that were important for the inhabitants and ecosystems in the Drin Basin. The issue of focus was different each year.
Participants in the events included representatives of Drin Riparians’ institutions as well as representatives of other stakeholders such as local authorities, important economic sectors, academia, civil society and NGOs, donor countries, regional and international organizations.
Eight multi-stakeholders consultation meetings were held:
- 1st Multi-Stakeholder Conference Meeting (Tirana, 25 November 2011)
- 2nd Multi-Stakeholder Conference (Tirana, 10 - 11 December 2013)
- 3rd Multi-Stakeholder Conference (Tirana, 16 December 2015)
- 4th Multi-Stakeholder Conference (Pristina, 14-15 December 2016)
- 5th Multi-Stakeholder Conference (Podgorica, 21-22 November 2017)
- 6th Multi-Stakeholder Conference (Ohrid, 14-15 November 2018)
- 7th Multi-Stakeholder Conference (Tirana, 28-30 January 2020)
Stakeholders’ engagement in the development of the TDA and SAP
Further to the above, stakeholders were engaged in the development of the Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) and the Strategic Action Plan (SAP).
Drin Day celebration
The Drin Day was celebrated each year from 2016-2021, in the period around 5 May (that is declared as the Drin Day by the Riparians) in all sub-basins of the Drin Basin under the auspices of the Drin CORDA and the Drin Core Group.
The overarching aim of the Drin Day events was to raise awareness among local communities and the wider public, on the importance of the Drin River basin’s sustainable management and the benefits of adopting an integrated multi-country approach.
