Cross-border projects |
Southeast European success
Key lessons can be learnt from the success of a project to foster transboundary cooperation in the Drin River Basin
Above: Lake Ohrid straddles the mountainous border between the southwestern part of north Macedonia and eastern Albania
Below: Bojana river and Ada Island in Ulcinj, Montenegro
DETERIORATING RIVER BASIN HEALTH was the catalyst for transboundary cooperation in Southeastern Europe. In 2011, Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Greece signed an agreement to help solve problems that were threatening the health of the Drin River Basin - impacting both the environment and livelihoods. The Drin Basin comprises the White Drin, Black Drin and Buna/Bojana Rivers and the Prespa, Ohrid and Skadar/Shkoder Lakes. The Drin River connects lakes, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and the receiving Adriatic Sea into a single, yet diverse, ecosystem of major importance for nature and economic development. This complex and extensive water resource system provides a wealth of services and benefits to more than
1.6 million people living throughout the five countries. However, deterioration of water quality, variability of hydrological regime, biodiversity degradation and disturbance of the natural sediment transport regime were becoming major issues which prompted the riparian countries to come together and take action. The GEF Drin Project was established through the Drin 2011 memorandum of understanding. Its aim was to promote joint management of shared water resources in the extended transboundary Drin River Basin. The project was financed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented by the United Nations Development Programme and executed by the Global Water Partnership - Mediterranean in cooperation with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. In April 2020, the Drin Strategic Action Programme was endorsed by ministers and high-level representatives of the Drin riparians during an online ceremony. This negotiated policy document establishes clear priorities for action to resolve the key transboundary problems that have been identified. Several lessons can be learnt from the success of the GEF Drin Project and how it managed to catalyse action towards transboundary cooperation in order to save a common natural resource.
Joint political body Established in 2008, the Drin Core Group (DCG),
is comprised of representatives of the Drin riparian countries with the mandate to: ● Promote joint action for the coordinated integrated management of the shared water resources in the Drin Basin.
14 | March 2022 |
www.waterpowermagazine.com
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