OSCE Mission to Skopje supports training course for municipal tax officers

SKOPJE, 15 September 2006 - A training course for municipal finance officers working in tax administration departments began in Struga today.

The three-day event, organized by the Association of Finance Officers and supported by the OSCE Spillover Monitor Mission to Skopje, is part of a series of workshops, designed to support fiscal decentralization by implementing legislation on local taxes and fees.

"Financial viability of municipalities is the cornerstone of successful decentralization, and this project complements our other activities in this area," said Dr. Philipp Stiel, Head of the Mission's Public Administration Reform Unit.

"The administration of local taxes and fees is one of the most problematic areas in the functioning of the units of local self-government. It is important to increase the capacity of the local government tax officers in the administration of taxes and fees in order to support the efficient functioning of tax departments in local self-government units."

Participants at the training course will also receive a brochure with principles and guidelines for municipal taxation, and practical examples of methods used to assess the value of real estate.

In May, the Mission supported a training course for municipal financial officers on using specially designed software for budget execution and financial reporting of the local self-government units.