Preparations for capital investment projects for the collection and treatment of wastewater are underway in nine Montenegrin municipalities, the Union of Municipalities announced.
As they stated, the projects are being prepared by the municipalities of Bijelo Polje, Cetinje, Kolašin, Mojkovac, Nikšić, Plav-Gusinje, Pljevlja and Rožaje.
"When it comes to project planning, Cetinje and Plav-Gusinje are in the phase of developing a conceptual design, while Nikšić, Pljevlja and Rožaje are in the phase of developing tender documentation for selecting a contractor," said the Association of Municipalities.
They said that, when it comes to the implementation of investment projects, Bijelo Polje, Kolašin, and Mojkovac are in the phase of contracting contractors.
It is stated that Bijelo Polje, Kolašin, Mojkovac and Rožaje are in the phase of contracting for supervision of the execution of the works, or consultants, while Plav-Gusinje, Pljevlja and Rožaje are in the phase of preparing the main project.
"Six municipalities - Bijelo Polje, Kolašin, Mojkovac, Nikšić, Pljevlja and Rožaje, have fully secured financing for capital infrastructure investments, while Cetinje and Plav-Gusinje do not have secured financing," the statement said.
It is added that so far Pljevlja, Herceg Novi, Kolašin, Žabljak, Nikšić, Budva, Petnjica, Kotor-Tivat, Berane and Podgorica (for the inner city core) have built wastewater treatment plants.
"Montenegro committed itself in the pre-accession negotiations to build wastewater treatment plants for all communities with wastewater burdens equivalent to two thousand inhabitants by 2035," the Association of Municipalities reminded.
They explained that it is common practice, required by creditors/donors, to plan, along with the construction of the facility, the training of employees who will work on the facility.
"Regarding the constructed facilities, the municipalities of Tivat and Kotor (jointly) and the municipality of Budva have established a separate facility manager, while in other cases the facility is managed by the water and sewage company," the statement said.
The Union of Municipalities, as they pointed out, plans to organize training for local government employees who will be involved in the implementation of the project, to improve mutual communication between local government bodies, local government bodies and water service providers.
"In order to provide key stakeholders in this area with expert support for making decisions important for the management of water services and to raise the quality of these services to a higher level," the statement added.
The Union of Municipalities explained that they plan to do this within the framework of the Regional Capacity Development Network in the Field of Water Supply and Wastewater Treatment in Southeast Europe (RCDN) project, funded by Germany and Switzerland, and implemented by the German Society for International Cooperation with the Network of Associations of Local Governments of Southeast Europe.
As stated in the statement, the introductory meeting, as the first step in launching the RCDN training program, was held in Sarajevo, where discussions were held on the methodology for implementing the program, compliance with investment priorities, as well as the latest information on wastewater infrastructure projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro.
“Participants actively participated in group sessions to define roles, responsibilities and implementation plans, ensuring a collaborative and tailored approach to capacity development in the wastewater sector across the Western Balkans,” the statement said.
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