The municipality of Gracanica is also among the municipalities which will be included in the DEMOS project. The memorandum, on behalf of the mayor Branimir Stojanovic, was signed by deputy mayor Nebojsa Milovanovic. The signing ceremony and presentation of the project was attended by Advisor to the Mayor Ivan Tomic, President of the Assembly of the Municipality of Gracanica Brankica Kostic, Director of Finance Slavisa Nicic and member of the Assembly of the Municipality of Gracanica Jelena Maksimovic.
Christine Marti, the Ambassador of Switzerland, said at a ceremony held at the Ministry of Administration and Local Self-Government in Pristina that Switzerland was one of the largest partners of Kosovo and that DEMOS project represented one of the largest undertakings towards the advancement of mutual cooperation.
Marti said: "Switzerland will remain one of the biggest allies of Kosovo in all issues. Our experiences in the process of decentralization will help you in improving of local self-government in Kosovo and its functionality."
Secretary General of the Ministry of Administration and Local Self-Government of Kosovo, Besnik Osmani said that MALS would have done anything to implement this project successfully in cooperation with the Embassy of Switzerland.
Osmani said: "DEMOS has a great importance for us but first of all for the local self-governments. Through this project we will modernize the municipalities. I would like to inform you that this is the first project of its kind in the region."
The Director of the Swiss Cooperation Office, Markus Baechler presented the goals of DEMOS project and said that this project could in large extent help mayors of the municipalities in a better assessment by the citizens.
The president of the Association of Kosovo Municipalities, Naim Ismaili was also speaking at the ceremony in Pristina. He noted that he strived for cooperation with everyone in order to reach the maximum results of the project’s vision.
After the presentation of the project, the representatives of 17 municipalities of Kosovo signed a memorandum of understanding.
The Deputy Mayor of the Municipality of Gracanica, Nebojsa Milovanovic said that the municipality was grateful to Swiss Embassy in Kosovo and would have done its best to justify the trust.
Milovanovic said: "The municipality of Gracanica continues its successful development, and it is certain that the funds received by signing this memorandum will be appropriately used. The municipality is doing on improving of all living conditions for the citizens of the municipality. First of all, there are works on infrastructural facilities and waste, on the things for which we have received these funds."
Grants which will be awarded to the municipalities depend on municipal performance. The overall objective of DEMOS is to support Kosovo in the process of transition. Special attention will be focused on several key issues, such as: waste management, regulation of municipal traffic primarily related to public transport, regulation of public space, especially squares, parks, playgrounds and sport fields. Also, the attention will be focused on financial management, which implies the assistance in the collection of own revenues as well as on the establishment of local democracy in which the Municipal Assemblies will have most of the work.
DEMOS ensures that there is always equal representation of women and men in program activities. Seventeen municipalities in Kosovo, including decentralized municipalities with Serbian majority, have been included in this project.
The representatives from 17 municipalities in Kosovo signed today in Pristina a memorandum of understanding on the allocation of grants for 2015 within the project "Decentralization and support to municipalities" (DEMOS), which supports the Swiss Embassy in Kosovo in cooperation with the Ministry of Administration and Local Self-Government of Kosovo.
