Fruitful visit of dldp and local governance teams in Switzerland

Dldp, in the course of preparing work plans and intervention methodology in two strategic lines, namely territorial planning and urban waste management, organized in Switzerland in cooperation with international experts from CSD, UrbaPlan and the University of Lucerne, during August 29th – September 2nd, a week packed with methodological seminars and strategic workshops.

The visit was set up with two parallel expert groups in the line of urban waste management, with the presence of Shkodra Municipality experts, headed by its chairman Mrs. Voltana Ademi, as well as local experts and representatives of partner organizations and programs. The other group in the line of territorial planning was composed by technical experts of regional and national level.

Being on the eve of the process of setting up the integrated waste management plan in Shkodra Municipality, this study visit was of a special importance. Challenges involved in the waste management not only in Shkodra Municipality, especially in the conditions when the quality of data is much questionable, dictate the need of preparing a new methodology on how to proceed ahead. This was the aim of the three-day workshop in the CSD offices in Lausanne. The development of a methodology for field gathering of missing data, application of GIS for processing and presenting results, exchange of knowledge also to other partners and organizations, and the preparation of an activities plan for all the process of integrated management of waste management in Shkodra Municipality, were some of the first results of this workshop. On the other hand, the field trips in some local units in the vicinity of Lausanne, and discussions and exchanges with local and international experts, helped increase the knowledge of Shkodra Municipality experts for the urban waste management system in Switzerland, the planning instruments set up from dldp or other alternative systems for waste processing.

The other group of experts participating in this visit was mainly concentrated in discussing best Swiss practices for territorial planning, finding methodological solutions for transferring the SDPeMTBP into GLPeMTBP as well as developing the next generation of the curricula on GLPeMTBP. Developing recommendations for preparing general local plan in poor and marginalized areas as well as preparation of action plans in support of the planning processes in the municipalities where dldp is supporting the preparation of general local plans, were some of the results of the joint work with experts of UrbanPlan and the University of Lucerne.