European Union

On 1 December 2011 a Twinning Project between the Italian, French and Kosovan public institutions operating in the environmental sector formally started. The Kick-off Conference of the Twinning Project is held today at the Swiss Diamond Hotel in Prishtina, with the presence of Mr. Christof Sock – Acting Head of the European Commission Liaison Office to Kosovo, Mr. Bujar Bukoshi - the Deputy Prime Minister of Environment, Ms. Vlora Çitaku - Minister of European Integration, the Italian and French Ambassadors and the partner institutions from Italy, France and Kosovo.

The main purpose of the conference is to inform the media, the Kosovan stakeholders and a wider public about this initiative aiming to improve the state of environment, including water, waste and management of urban settlements in line with the EU environmental acquis and in accordance with the EU best practices to provide for better health and living conditions of Kosovan citizens. The focus is to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning (MESP) of Kosovo and the relevant stakeholders to complete and enforce the implementation of secondary legislation on water and river basin management, management of water infrastructure, including dams, waste management, spatial and urban planning management, nature protection and biodiversity.

This EU funded Twinning Project, with a budget of EUR 2 million, will be implemented by a wide Italian, French and Kosovan institutional partnership. The EU Member State Institutions will be the Italian Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Protection of Veneto-ARPAV (Project Leader), the French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable development, Transport and Housing (Junior Project Leader), the Health Superior Institute of the Italian National Health Service, the Turin Metropolitan Area Water Utility-SMAT, the French International Office for Water-IOW, the French Water Agency Rhin-Meuse, the French Geological and Mining Research Bureau-BRGM, the French Atelier Technique des Espaces Naturales-ATEN. The project will be administered with the support of the Italian Agency for Development and International Economic Cooperation-INFORMEST and the French Agency-ADETEF.

The project will be completed in November 2013 and will consist of four components:

• Review of Environmental and Spatial Planning Legislative Framework
• Assistance in Monitoring the Water Quality and Water Resource Management
• Strengthening of Waste Management Legal and Institutional Framework
• Spatial Planning and prevention of illegal construction