OSCE Mission to Montenegro supports development of Local Environmental Action Plan
The development of local-level strategy documents for the handling of environmental matters – so-called Local Environmental Action Plans (LEAPs) – was the focus of a two-day workshop organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro in Podgorica on 7 and 8 December. LEAPs have the objective of enabling municipal authorities to handle environmental matters for which they are responsible in a more effective, sustainable and transparent manner.
Representatives of 16 Montenegrin local governments, including heads of municipal secretariats in charge of the environment, shared their experiences related to the development, adoption and implementation of LEAPs in their respective municipalities. The Mission secured the participation of a regional and a local expert, who provided an overview of methodologies and procedures for the development of this type of strategic document based on best regional and national practices.
The main focus of the event was on public participation in the development of a LEAP to guarantee transparency and general acceptance of the document. Democratization Programme Manager of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro Lia Magnaguagno pointed out that a LEAP "shapes a local community's vision of its future in the environmental area" and encouraged the participants to engage in an active exchange with each other and the experts to ensure the highest possible effectiveness of the workshop.