OSCE Mission to Skopje supports inter-municipal cooperation

SKOPJE, 15 July 2008 - The OSCE Mission to Skopje awarded grants to four consortia of municipalities today as part of an initiative to support the units of local self-government during the decentralization process and encourage partnerships.

"Inter-municipal cooperation is a viable tool, particularly for small municipalities with limited resources, and the grants will enable 10 municipalities to jointly implement projects for the benefit of citizens," said Alessandro Tedesco, Acting Head of the OSCE Mission's Public Administration Reform Department.

Thirty six out of 85 municipalities applied for the four grants totalling more than 60,000 euros. The central authorities supported the initiative and took an active role in assessing the proposed projects.

"The Ministry of Local Self-Government supports initiatives of this kind as we think that the inter-municipal cooperation practices will increase municipal capacities to provide better services to the citizens," said Rahim Musliu, State Inspector at the Ministry of Local Self-Government.

A panel including Musliu and representatives from the OSCE Mission and the United Nations Development Programme in the country selected the winning consortia. The projects chosen include two local economic development initiatives and two projects for improving services, namely for joint tax administration and increasing urban planning capacity.

The initiative was designed based on data collected from several assessments, including surveys conducted by the OSCE Mission for 2006 and 2007, which found that inter-municipal co-operation was a useful decentralization tool.

For more information, visit the IMC grant webpage:
Intermunicipal co-operation grant scheme