Montenegro

Practical Experiences in the Implementation of the Law on Spatial Planning and Construction in Montenegro

Budva, 13-14 December 2010

The Ministry of Spatial Planning and Environment and the UNDP Montenegro organized a two-day seminar on the topic “Practical Experiences in the Implementation of the Law on Spatial Planning and Construction”, with an aim to improve the Law through recommendations for amendments, as well as to exchange experiences and to discuss the key issues related to the implementation of this Law. Amendments to the Law aim at improving procedures defined by the Law itself, including reducing time and procedures for obtaining a build permit, as well as other permits. This will result in eliminating business barriers and creating conditions for better results in domains of spatial planning and supervision.

Participants in this seminar were representatives of the Ministry for Spatial Planning and Environment, other ministries, UNDP, directorates and agencies, representatives of Montenegrin municipalities and Secretariats for spatial planning and environment protection in the local self-governments, Union of Municipalities, donor organizations, Chamber of Commerce, Union of Employers, Montenegro Business Alliance (planners, designers and contractors), Chamber of Engineers, Association of Foreign Investors, as well as representatives of other relevant institutions and interested organizations participating in the process of spatial planning and construction. 

Mr. Zoran Tomić, Secretary of the Ministry of Spatial Planning and Environment said: “Recommendations for amendments to the Law are related to the repeal of agreements necessary for obtaining build permits, and to the reduction of a number of objects for which these agreements are necessary. The approaching changes and amendments to the Law on Spatial Planning and Construction will set out a principle of “one-stop-shop” for obtaining build permits and for the issuance of urban and technical provisions. A body that issues urban and technical provisions will provide all conditions for development of architectural projects, if they are not defined in the plan.” He also said that the planning documentation that was adopted up to now on the local and national level, as well as the planning documentation that was in the process of adoption, created opportunities for construction of more than 100 hotels in Montenegro. “This creates opportunities for investments in the value of 20 billion euros, most of which in the sector of tourism – more than 10 billion euros. In addition to this, the spatial plan for Bjelasica and Komovi creates opportunities for investments up to 1.4 billion euros. It is also important to mention that the Government is planning to adopt a Strategy for Development of Golf in Montenegro by the end of this year and to start with its implementation next year,” Tomić concluded.   

Ms. Kristine Blokhus, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative to Montenegro said: She also said that the conclusions and recommendations from the seminar would be used as recommendations for amendments to the Law. “Changes to the law on spatial planning are underway, and the final goal should be reduction of the numbers of procedures needed for obtaining building permits, adopting municipal spatial plans and many other related documents – which will make the lives of the widest range of citizens easier after all,” Ms. Blokhus emphasized.

After the introductory speeches, representatives of the municipalities of Podgorica, Bar, Tivat and Kolašin, as well as representatives of the Morsko dobro and Architectural Faculty delivered their presentations. Several projects were also presented on the first day of the seminar, such as: Pilot project for development of a feasibility study for informal settlements Pobrđe-Rutke and Čanj in the municipality of Bar; Project “Promotion of the role of NGOs that deal with the protection of interests of vulnerable groups in the process of spatial planning and construction”; Project “Gender and space – Integrating principles of gender equality into spatial planning in Montenegro”, and Project “Pljevlja: men and women-friendly living space”.

 

 

On the second day of the seminar, four round tables were organized, with the following topics:

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UNDP has implemented the Spatial Planning Support Project (SPSP) since 2004, with the main goal to provide support in:
 

During almost seven years of Project implementation, concrete results and progress were achieved: