News collection

Drin Riparian stakeholders meet for the 6th year, to discuss water, energy and food security in the Drin River Basin. Photo credit: 2S Studio

Over 120 representatives of ministries, NGOs, academia and water users working to manage the Drin Basin or living in the Drin Basin gathered overlooking Lake Ohrid, UNESCO World Heritage site, to discuss the main problems in the Basin; how these can be addressed using innovative techniques looking into water, energy and food security; and the steps ahead towards solutions.

The conference marked 10 years of action for the management of the Drin and its sub-basins, Prespa, Ohrid, White and Black Drin and Skadar/Shkodra.

Ms. Petrovska, State Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning welcomed the work done under the process for the implementation of the Drin Memorandum of Understanding which aims to understand the transboundary problems. She indicated the main critical step for the immediate future was defining environmental objectives and the development of an Action plan with priority measures. She stressed the importance of sharing information and data among riparian countries to enable the decision making process.

Ms. Gerta Lubonja, Director of the Water Resources Management Agency in Albania indicated the importance of joint action among Drin riparians to protect water resources but also to protect from extreme phenomena linked with water such as droughts and floods.

Mr. Radosav Rasovic, representative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Montenegro, transmitted the satisfaction of the leadership of his Ministry as the Conference is one of the activities to address common concerns and put forward common wishes regarding the management of the Basin.

The implementation of this year’s Conference marks the continuation of a tradition in involving stakeholders in the work under the Drin Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that in its Article 5 “Implementation and Monitoring”, indicates “(…) 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 (…)”.

Each year the Conference is used as a forum to present progress in implementing the Drin MoU as well as a forum to discuss significant issues for the Basin. This year the Conference provided a forum for:

• Presenting the main issues (and impacts) in the river basin identified through scientific analysis done by 54 national experts, 2 international experts and 2 consultancy companies under the coordination of the GWP-Med.

• The stakeholders to discuss the Water-Food-Energy- Ecosystems Nexus interlinkages and identify those that are of importance. By doing so the Conference served as a Nexus Policy Dialogue in the Drin Basin. Through a series of workshops and discussions, participants were able to understand how to apply nexus thinking to enable a more holistic approach to managing the Drin River Basin.

Ms Sarangoo Radnaaragchaa, Regional Adviser for the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) - a key collaborating partner with GWP-Med on the Nexus project identified three main areas for further consideration by decision-makers:

• Hydro-electric power and floods;
• Biomass and forest management, and;
• Agriculture and trade.

The Conference was organized by the Global Water Partnership – Mediterranean (GWP-Med) as part of the process for the implementation of the Drin MoU.

Its organization was made possible through two projects:

• The GEF Drin Project.
• The Austrian Development Agency (ADA) supported Project “Promoting the sustainable management of Natural resources in Southeast Europe through the use of the Nexus approach”. This project serves the implementation of the SEE2020 Strategy. The Drin Basin is one of the two transboundary basins that the project focuses on, supporting the implementation of Nexus assessments and Dialogue. The second basin that the project focusses on is the Drina Basin.

Present at the event were Fatmir Matoshi, Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning; Ulrika Richardson, UN Development Coordinator/ UNDP Resident Representative; Smajl Latifi, Mayor of Rahovec/Orahovac municipality, Rizah Hajdari of GWP-Med, Jemin Thaçi representing Kramovik village, partners, municipal and village representatives and beneficiaries. Photo credit: 2S Studio

The Minister of Environement of Kosovo inaugurated the Wetland, based in Kramovik village, Rahovec Municipality, where 1100 residents are set to benefit.

The project aims to address the acute problem of wastewater pollution reaching the White Drin river and forms one of six pilot projects under the Global Environment Facility’s (GEF) ‘Drin Project’**.

Currently, all wastewaters from Kosovo households (i.e. from toilets, sinks and bathrooms) are discharged directly into rivers in the Drin Basin without proper treatment. This is a risk for water quality, wildlife and the overall sustainability of the river.

Many initiatives have been launched in the White Drin to reduce pollution, for example, Wastewater Treatment Plants in Prizren, Peja, and Gjakova. However, these can be expensive, rely heavily on infrastructure and are primarily designed for urban areas.

The Constructed Wetland aims to provide a cost-effective, efficient and easy to maintain solution to wastewater treatment in rural areas.

The design is expected to drastically improve water quality in the White Drin, reducing pollution from Kramovik by 90%.

By taking the site conditions into account, the Constructed Wetland uses natural energy – such as gravity - and is designed for extreme weather events.

Mr Jemin Thaci, Head of Kramovik village said that local communities are supportive of the project and hoped it will encourage more investment in the future protection of the Drin.

He explained:

The river-bed of Drini is degraded a lot, mostly from sand and gravel extraction activities. In addition to the water pollution from the direct wastewater discharge, the situation is becoming worse and worse. Fortunately, this Constructed Wetland, will help both for reducing the pollution, but also will improve the landscape.

The truly collaborative nature of the project is set to make it a success.

This includes the Municipality of Rahovec’s decision to allocate land for the project, combined with local community engagement led by Kosovo’s Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning. Meanwhile, KRU Gjakova SH.A. the regional water company, have committed to maintaining the treatment plant to ensure its sustainability.

In the future, treating wastewater through the Constructed Wetland approach can be scaled up, so that if a site falls outside the coverage of conventional Wastewater Treatment Plants– for geographical, technical or financial reasons – wastewater can still be treated, protecting the water quality of the White Drin for future generations.

Notes:

*All references to Kosovo are made in the context of UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999)

**Full project title: ‘Promoting Constructed wetland for wastewater treatment in small rural settlement – Kramovik Village, Rahovec Municipality’ (implemented by the UNDP).

This is part of the Medium Size Project ‘Enabling transboundary cooperation and integrated water resources management in the White Drin and the Extended Drin River Basin’ (funded by GEF).

This is alongside the GEF UNDP Full Size Project ‘Enabling Transboundary Cooperation and Integrated Water Resources Management in the extended Drin River Basin’.

This is one of six pilot projects taking place under the Full Size Project.

Image 1: From left to right: Zoran Spirkoski (Hydrobiological Institute); Jovan Stojanoski, Mayor of Ohrid; Dejan Panovski, National coordinator GEF Drin Project (GWP-Med); Danco Uzunov (RINA/PointPro Consulting).

The Mayor of Pogradec and Mayor of Ohrid, agreed earlier this month, to support the re-establishment of the Lake Ohrid Bilateral Committee. The purpose of the Committee is to strengthen the bilateral cooperation between the two littoral[i] countries, to ensure the protection and sustainable development of the Lake Ohrid watershed[ii].

Established through an international agreement (signed 17 June 2004) and ratified by Albania and the FYR of Macedonia in 2005, the Lake Ohrid Committee has been inactive for a long time. The two Mayors’ agreement to support this, builds on an earlier meeting among representatives of the two countries under the Drin CORDA process (May 2018), who agreed to re-initiate the operation of the Committee.

The meeting was facilitated by Global Water Partnership-Mediterranean (GWP-Med) representatives, who are supporting the development of a Lake Ohrid Watershed Management Plan (LOWMP) - a demonstration activity funded by the GEF/ UNDP ‘Drin Project’[iii].

The LOWMP will support coordination between the two countries and identify management measures required to meet EU Water Framework Directive standards. It will also address regional environmental and development related needs.

The LOWMP, expected to be ready by mid-2019, will be developed in a highly participatory way, based initially on an Inception Report, which was validated by the Deputy Minister of Environment of the FYR of Macedonia in May 2018 at an Inception report meeting and presentation in Ohrid.

The Report identifies a way forward for the LOWMP, highlighting the needs of stakeholders in the region, and data gaps such as the waters’ environmental status.  

Image 2: Participants discuss the next steps for establishing a Lake Ohrid Watershed Management Plan (LOWMP) and Lake Ohrid Bilateral Committee in presence of Mayor of Pogradec, Mr.Eduard Kapri and his Team.

Both Mayor’s welcomed the meeting and agreed that the LOWMP is an essential document for the future management of the region and both expressed willingness to support its preparation.

On the topic of re-establishing the Lake Ohrid Bilateral Committee (according to the 2004 Agreement), the Mayors were strongly supportive, acknowledging it as a forum to give their input and contribute to the sustainable development of the region, by protecting and managing the Lake Ohrid watershed.

The meeting ended with joint agreement on the need to exchange existing and prepared documents and support data collection by the two Municipalities or public enterprises under municipal jurisdiction.

Next steps for the re-establishment of the Lake Ohrid Bilateral Committee depend on the decision of both Governments to appoint its members and schedule a joint meeting.

The organization of the conference was in line with the Drin MoU that in its Article 5 Implementation and Monitoring, indicates “(…) 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 (…)”.

One year after the 4th Drin Stakeholders Conference  took place in Pristina, more than 120 stakeholders participated at the 5^th Drin Stakeholders Conference in Podgorica, Montenegro, representing Drin Riparians’ institutions, local authorities, important economic sectors, academia, civil society and NGOs, donor countries as well as regional and international organizations.  

The GEF Drin Project PCU provided an overview of important findings from the Thematic Reports of the Project Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) receiving participants' input.

The Secretariat of the Drin Core Group presented the developments regarding the implementation of the Drin MoU as well as the on-going and planned activities under the Drin Project.

This year, the special focus was laid on floods with the aim of raising awareness and offering a platform for cross-fertilization. Flood risk management planning, prevention and preparedness in the Drin Basin were the overarching topics of discussions. Stakeholders voiced their concerns and provided input on the following topics:

• historical floods, including causes;
• governance for floods and flood risks in each of the Drin Riparians as well as at the transboundary level;
• technology and tools -available or in the making- assisting in the management of flood risks and floods including early warning system development, risk management plans, flood managements plans.

The  Agenda with presentations of the Stakeholders Conference , the Drin CORDA - GEF Drin Project brochure disseminated at the Conference as well as photos, are available here!

The activity will assess potential for utilization of different biomass in the wider Lake area (possibly obtained as result of vegetation control measures) for the biofuel production and it will design test use program (e.g.to heat one of the facility within National park borders).

Staff of the Energy Institute Hrvoje Požar -EIHP, Zagreb, Croatia, along with the Global Water Partnership – Mediterranean (GWP-Med) Officer stationed in Montenegro participated. During the three days of their first visit in Montenegro the experts had the chance to discuss the pilot activity implementation with key stakeholders, collect information and comprehend the specificities and complexity of the natural and anthropogenic system on which they will work.

The team of Experts provided details about the Pilot among others to the National Park authorities, the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism and the Environmental Protection Agency. The management practices, issues related to biological monitoring, spatial planning as well as the legal framework within the boundaries of which the activities will be implemented were explained by the national authorities.

During January 26, a field visit to the National park Skadar Lake allowed the experts to obtain valuable insight to important aspects of the ecosystem. Potential biomass types and availability along with other relevant to the activities technical aspects, such as the heating system of the National park facilities, access roads condition etc. have been screened.

Particular data collection needs for the pilot implementation has been discussed and agreed. The experts used the opportunity of the Consultative meeting of national stakeholders: Management of the Skadar Lake in accordance with the provisions of the European Union Water Framework Directive (January 27) to collect additional information related to their work. Outputs of GIZ activities implemented in the Skadar Lake area were presented in this workshop.

The Pilot (and the field visit) is implemented as one of the activities under the Output 11 (Program of on the ground pilot demonstrations will deliver tangible results using quantifiable Indicators) of the GEF Full Size Project: “Enabling transboundary cooperation and integrated water resources management in the extended Drin River Basin”, by GWP-Med.

You can find here the Agenda of the EIHP Field Visit to Montenegro.

Five years from the signing of the Drin MoU (25 November 2011) and one year from the launch of the GEF Drin Project, more than 120 Drin stakeholders gathered in Pristina, in an indication of the great momentum the Drin MoU process and the Drin CORDA have gained over the last years. Their operationalisation via the GEF Drin Project - with an implementation horizon of four years and a budget of $5.5 million for the beneficiary Drin Riparians[1] - allows for a critical progress towards enhanced transboundary cooperation for the Drin Basin’s management.

It is in this spirit that Mr. Stevo Temelkovski, Deputy Minister of Environment and Physical Planning, highlighted in his opening remarks: “We are committed to raise the level of water and natural resources management in the Drin Basin to benefit future generations. This project is a significant political, scientific and managerial driving force with the potential to deliver significant results towards this objective. The present event is a reflection of the strengthened capacities in all Drin Riparians with regards to the coordinated management of the Basin. We have to take advantage of this key milestone to build the ground for improvements. The exchange of views today will facilitate a deeper understanding of the stakeholders’ perceptions, priorities and aspirations related to that.”

Representing the Drin Riparians’ institutions, stakeholders, as well as intergovernmental, international and regional organizations supporting activities in the Drin River Basin, the participants to the Conference reviewed developments over the last year, as well as planned actions, with regards to the management priorities in the Drin Basin. Moreover, they discussed ongoing and planned activities for the preparation of management plans in the Drin Basin, as well as possibilities for coordinated action for the management of protected areas at the Drin sub-basin level.

The 4^th Stakeholders Conference was organized back-to-back with the 12^th Meeting of the Drin Core Group[2] (DCG) / 3^rd Meeting of the Steering Committee of the GEF Drin Project[3] on 15 December and the 3^rd Meeting of the Expert Working Groups (EWGs) of the Drin Core Group on 13 December. Stakeholders have been central in the establishment of coordinated action in the Drin Basin[4]. In this context, the 4^th Stakeholders Conference follows up to three similar multi-stakeholder events at regional level in 2011, 2013 and 2015^[5], while further stakeholder conferences are to be held once per year throughout the GEF Drin Project implementation period.

The ultimate goal of the work under the Drin CORDA and the GEF Drin Project is to see the management surpassing the sub-basin level of single water bodies towards the hydrological interconnected system of the Drin Basin. This will eventually lead from the sharing of waters among Riparians and conflicting uses, to the sharing of benefits among stakeholders in an area physically, culturally and historically interconnected. Unlocking the potential for coordinated management could lead to minimizing risks in basin and flood management, and have a profound positive effect on ecosystems and a number of economic sectors[6].

The agenda of the Stakeholders Conference, the Drin CORDA - GEF Drin Project brochure disseminated at the Conference, as well as the presentations held by the speakers are available here!

The group of the 25 participants included Drin Core Group / Expert Working Groups^[1] members, as well as Drin Riparians’^[2] officials with competency in fields related to integrated basin management. The workshop aimed to build trainees’ capacities in the fields of international water law and transboundary environmental impact assessment.

The workshop, whose curriculum has been developed by the United Nations Economic Committee for Europe (UNECE), provided knowledge and enabled in-depth discussion among the participants on key legal obligations under international water law, and their application to specific areas of water cooperation, such as flood management and water quality protection. Moreover, it clarified the role of relevant UNECE and other Conventions, and explained their provisions in relation to cooperation mechanisms. Exercises were used to familiarise the participants with the application of international law in the planning of national activities in transboundary basins.

The team of trainers included:

• Dr. Stephen Stec, Adjunct Professor at the Central European University, that was the facilitator of the workshop and made presentations on international water law and relevant conventions: the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (UNECE Water Convention) and the UN Convention on the Law of the Non-navigational Uses of International Watercourses (New-York Convention);
• Dr. Dejan Komatina, Secretary of the International Sava River Basin Commission, that spoke about the challenges met during the establishment and later on during the operation of the Commission, as well as about the practical benefits for the Sava countries through the implementation of the Framework Agreement on the Sava River Basin;
• Mr. Nicholas Bonvoisin, Secretary to the Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (UNECE Industrial Accidents Convention), made a presentation on the said Convention and on the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (UNECE Espoo Convention). He introduced also the participants to the recent experiences within the work programme of the UNECE Water Convention.

The group work that followed was related to the UNECE Espoo Convention. It included exercises on the establishment of new activities in a basin focusing on environmental impact assessment in a transboundary perspective. Finally, participants discussed future legal and institutional steps to take in the Drin basin in order to proceed from the Drin MoU and the Drin Core Group to achieving a basin agreement and the establishment of a Commission.

The empowerment of the institutions for the management of the Drin Basin is a key objective of the GEF Drin Project^[3] that aims to facilitate the Drin MoU^[4] implementation and operationalize structured cooperation among the countries.

In fact, capacity building at national level with regards to crucial issues affecting transboundary water resources management is one of the key pillars of the project. In this sense, it assists in the sustainability of the wider project outcomes and results in strengthening the overall basin management architecture. A series of similar workshops for a number of target groups will follow throughout the project duration focusing on some or a combination of the following priority themes: land use management, integrated water resources management and Water Framework Directive implementation, environmental permits and management at local level, floods and droughts management, nature and ecosystems protection, pollution control, economic valuation of issues and solutions for basin management.

The material from the workshop - presentations held by speakers and supporting documents - is available!

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Mr. Dimitris Faloutsos, in his capacity as Coordinator of the GEF project “Enabling transboundary cooperation and integrated water resources management in the extended Drin River Basin”, presented the project explaining that it provides the means for the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding for the management of the Drin Basin (Drin MoU).

The National Council was kindly requested to provide guidance for the implementation of both the Drin MoU and the project acting as the Inter-ministerial Committee[1] for Montenegro. The National Council welcomed the request deciding to “support inter-ministerial consultations in Montenegro (…) for the implementation of the Drin MoU on the management in the extended Drin River Basin and the realization of the project (…), through the capacities of its permanent working groups, as well as through discussions of the project results, including the pilot project activities which will be implemented in Montenegro, at the National Council sessions”.

H.E. the President of Montenegro acknowledged the value of transboundary cooperation towards sustainable development in the area.

Serving the Project’s approach to foster synergies with other initiatives in the Drin, Mr. Faloutsos, in his capacity as Senior Programme Officer leading the Southeastern Europe Section at GWP-Med, presented also the Integrated Resources Management Plan (IRMP) for the Buna/Bojana Area. Buna/Bojana is a sub-basin of Drin and is shared by Montenegro and Albania. The Plan was prepared by GWP-Med, the Regional Activity Centre for the Priority Actions Programme (PAP/RAC) in cooperation with UNESCO ‐ International Hydrological Programme (UNESCO-IHP), under the GEF/ UNEP-MAP MedPartenrship Project (ended in 2015).

Mr. Faloutsos presented the novel planning approach followed towards the preparation of the Plan -the Integrative Methodological Framework- as well as the Plan’s management objectives and measures. The importance of establishing a transboundary institutional arrangement was stressed: a Montenegrin-Albanian Commission with the responsibility of managing the sub-basins of the Skadar/Shkoder lake and the Buna/Bojana river as well as the adjacent coastal area. A draft international agreement text containing all necessary provisions to regulate transboundary management was prepared by GWP-Med as part of the Management Plan.

The National Council “accentuated the importance of establishing joint cross-border commission for the promotion of cooperation between Montenegro and Albania”.

Following its successful organization in 2014 and 2015, the 3rd Drin Day was celebrated on 5 May 2016 to sensitize a wide range of local stakeholders on the critical value of the Drin River Basin and its ecosystem services in the local communities’ everyday quality of life and economic activity. About 1.5 million people rely on the basin’s freshwater resources for drinking water. They also rely on economic activities that use Drin’s water such as agriculture, fisheries, industry, hydropower generation and tourism. The Drin Day aims also to mobilize decision makers and users towards action that will secure that water will be available for all uses in adequate quality and quantity.

Wide-ranging celebrations dedicated to the Drin Basin were held in all Drin riparian countries, in cooperation with partner NGOs in numerous locations, from Great Lake Prespa and Lake Ohrid in the South up to Lake Skadar/Shkoder and Ulcinj close to the outlet of the Buna/Bojana River to the Adriatic Sea in the North: in Shkodra by “EDEN”; in Fierza Lake in Kukes by "Protection of the Environment“; in Great Prespa Lake by “Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment”; in the National Park of Galichica by “Grashnica”; in Bitola and the Ohrid Lake by “BIOSFERA”; in Peja by “Environmentally Responsible Action Group”; in Ulcinj by “GREENHOME”. Apart from the main events of 5 May, complementary activities ran throughout the week of 1-7 May 2016.

In specific, in the Great Prespa Lake, the activity “Celebrating the biodiversity of Prespa Lake through a boat trip” was organized, in collaboration with the Regional Agency for Protected Areas of Korça. It included a field expedition in the Park and by the lake organized for a group of 20 students from the Biochemistry Faculty of the University of Korça. The Prespa lake is among the oldest in Europe and one of the most outstanding endemic biodiversity hotspots on the continent, with a great variety of flora and fauna species. A booklet was produced on the lake’s natural wealth and it was distributed to the students, who had the opportunity, led by experts, to practice bird watching and have a close look to the species described in the booklet.

 In Kukes, the Drin Day activity was held under the motto “Together we can protect Drin River". A meeting was organized for local civil society at the Kukes Tourist Center, entitled "Drin River valleys, a natural corridor of cooperation between local communities in the Drin River Basin". Mr. Zamir Dedej, Director of the National Agency of Protected Areas, greeted the event. Moreover, an awareness meeting focused on hydro-biological corridors in the Drin Basin, as well as economic cooperation among communities living near the Drin River valleys. Moreover, an exhibition was organized with photographs and drawings prepared by school students on the Drin River, its natural wealth and the everyday life of local population. A boat trip brought participants to the Black Drin River and the swampland "Straw" to visit the Local Center of Life in the River.

In the National Park of Galichica, the activity “In the heart of Drin – river of living water” was held for the Drin Day, on the location of the Drin River’s springs at St. Naum. It started with a cleaning action on the lake shore with over 30 volunteers taking part. The collected waste was put on a special place to be transported by the authorities. Moreover, there was a working meeting with the participation of various stakeholders, citizens and local administration representatives. Experts from the hydro-biological Institute elaborated on the status of the monitoring of water resources and biodiversity around the Lake Ohrid and the entire Drin Basin. The participants highlighted the importance of transboundary cooperation for the protection of the Drin Basin. A boat trip followed with local guides around the Drin River springs, including bird watching, accompanied by presentation of the local water flora and fauna.

In Peja, the activity “Our Drin (Drini ynë) – Youth led environmental education towards shared stewardship of the Drin River Basin” was held for the Drin Day. More than 100 primary school students photographed biodiversity and pollution spots along the Drin River and created their piece of a puzzle. They also created artworks made from trash collected in the neighborhood of their schools. During an event at the center of the city, with the participation of representatives from national (Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning, Kosovo Environment Protection Agency) and local administration (Peja, Gjakova, and Klina Municipalities), local NGO stakeholders, as well as experts from the Hydro-Meteorological Institute, the students put together their pieces to create a macro-puzzle map and displayed their artworks made from trash. “Today, the Drin River is polluted, but there is a hope, that you the young students, can do better than we are doing”, stated Mr. Gazmend Muhaxheri, the Mayor of Peja, while addressing the participants. A walking excursion to Drini i Bardhe was organized for environmental education purposes, including a visit to Radavc Cave.

This year, the activities were jointly supported by (i) the Global Environment Facility (GEF) project 'Enabling transboundary cooperation and integrated water resources management in the extended Drin River Basin' (Drin Project) implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and executed by the Global Water Partnership - Mediterranean and (ii) the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) Act4Drin Project executed by the Mediterranean Information Office for Environment Culture and Sustainable Development.

The activities are implemented under the auspices of the Drin Coordinated Action, the process established for the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding for the Management of the Drin Basin (Drin MoU; signed in Tirana, 25 November 2011), to enhance transboundary cooperation aimed at the protection and sustainable management of the Drin Basin’s shared water resources. There is a interconnection between Prespa, Ohrid and Skadar/Shkoder Lakes, and the Drin and Buna/Bojana Rivers, while the environmental challenges faced throughout the Basin are of clearly transboundary nature. Therefore, there is a strong interdependence between all local and regional stakeholders involved, which makes cross-sectoral understanding among actors with very different backgrounds, crucial.

The Drin Project was officially launched in December 2015 in Tirana, Albania. Aligned in content, aims and objectives with the Drin MoU, comes at a critical point, as the vehicle to financially support and facilitate the implementation of the latter, in line with the existing agreements at national and transboundary level. With a budget of $5.5 million for activities to be implemented in Albania, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo  and Montenegro, over the next four years, it has already become the pivotal action in the Drin River Basin, with the aim to “promote joint management of the shared water resources of the transboundary Drin River Basin, including coordination mechanisms among the various sub-basin joint commissions and committees ”.

The Inception Meeting of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) supported project “Enabling Transboundary Cooperation and Integrated Water Resources Management in the extended Drin River Basin” took place in Tirana, on 16 December 2015.

The meeting took place at the presence of Mr. Edmond Panariti, Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Water Administration, Mr. Ferid Agani, Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning, as well as Mr. Stevo Temelkovski, Deputy Minister of Environment and Physical Planning.

More than 100 representatives of Drin Riparians’ government institutions, national and local stakeholders as well as of intergovernmental, international and regional organizations supporting activities in the Drin River Basin exchanged views on management priorities and the Drin institutional process the Project will support. The ultimate goal is a shift of mentality from a potentially conflicting sharing of waters among Riparians to a sharing of benefits among stakeholders.

With a budget of $5.5 million for the beneficiary Drin Riparians - Albania, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo [1] and Montenegro, over the next four years, the Project becomes the pivotal action in the Drin River Basin, with the aim to “promote joint management of the shared water resources of the transboundary Drin River Basin, including coordination mechanisms among the various sub-basin joint commissions and committees [2]”.

The GEF Drin Project comes at a critical point, as the vehicle to financially support and facilitate the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding for the management of the Drin Basin [3] (Drin MoU) that was agreed in Tirana in November 2011, in line with the existing agreements at national and transboundary level. Aligned in content, aims and objectives with the Drin MoU, the Project will consistently contribute to the operationalization of the institutional structure established and enhance scientific knowledge in the Basin towards informed decision-making for transboundary management, based on a set of commonly agreed measures and a systematic involvement of users, civil society and other stakeholders.

“The serious issues faced in the Drin River Basin cannot be addressed by a single country. There is an imperative need that all countries sharing the watershed cooperate to provide transboundary solutions”, stressed Mr. Edmond Panariti, Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Water Administration, who congratulated all actors involved in the Project for their engaged work, and raised his Ministry’s commitment to actively participate in this Project, to make it succeed.“This Project assists Riparians in joining forces to increase capacity in the region, taking steps to guarantee the continuity and sustainability of its results”, he concluded.

Mr. Ferid Agani, Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning, expressed his satisfaction that the launch of this Project, as a major step towards meeting the Drin MoU objective on “Promoting joint action for the coordinated integrated management of the shared water resources in the Drin basin”, comes at a moment of significant developments in the Kosovo water sector.“Despite modest progress in legislative and institutional terms, we are aware that the main challenge remains the financing of water projects, with a cost of about 1.25 billion Euros, including projects on water supply, wastewater treatment and protection of water resources”, he mentioned, while stressing also the need to improve coordination among various organizations, bringing together all relevant stakeholders in water sector.

Mr. Stevo Temelkovski, Deputy Minister of Environment and Physical Planning, highlighted the strong involvement of his Ministry in all stages of the development of the cooperation process for the Drin River Basin management, culminating with the GEF Drin Project implementation phase. “I would like to express our clear political will towards basin mutual understanding in water management as a precondition for cooperation towards sustainable development”, he stressed, while expressing his belief that Drin Basin can become an example of  transboundary cooperation, and his hope that different demonstration projects will support national management plans at basin level towards a strengthened Integrated River Basin Management.

The GEF Drin Project is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and executed by the Global Water Partnership (GWP)through GWP Mediterranean (GWP-Med), in cooperation with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE).

1. References to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999).
2. Prespa Park Coordination Committee, Lake Ohrid Watershed Committee, Skadar/Shkoder Lake Management Commission.
3. The Drin MoU itself, as the product of the Drin Dialogue Process (2009-2011) to tackle the absence until then of coordinated action at the Drin Basin level, provides the political framework for, and defines the context of cooperation among the Drin Riparians. It aims at the attainment of its Strategic Shared Vision to “promote joint action for the coordinated, integrated management of the shared water resources in the Drin Basin, as a means to safeguard and restore, to the extent possible, the ecosystems and the services they provide, and promote sustainable development across the Drin Basin”.