Skopje, 20 November 2024 (MIA) - First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Environment and Physical Planning Izet Mexhiti and the EBRD Regional Director for the Western Balkans, Matteo Colangeli, signed Wednesday a EUR 3 million grant from the Swiss Government meant to accelerate the country's waste collection process.

Minister Mexhiti said that the agreement, which signifies institutional support and corporate governance, is expected to facilitate the waste collection process and growth towards the next phase, that is, waste recycling.

“The signing of the agreement means assistance for institutional support and corporate governance, and is expected to accelerate and facilitate the country's waste collection process and progress to the next phase of recycling and solving long-standing problems for citizens," Mexhiti noted.

Colangeli pointed out that the environment in the Western Balkans is EBRD's main focus and that this is the first investment of its kind.

"This is the first investment of its kind, where 45 municipalities from various regions in the country will be provided support for managing municipal solid waste, while over a million people will benefit directly. We are truly proud of what we achieved with our partners and remain focused on implementing this investment efficiently and quickly. As you know, our focus is the environment of the Western Balkans, including this country, so we will be doing a lot of work in the coming period on this topic, all with the aim of strengthening the country's capacities and as part of our strategy that will be prepared in 5 years and adopted by your Government," Colangeli stressed.

Swiss Ambassador Véronique Hulmann also attended the event and said that with this grant citizens will be able to directly see the benefits in five regions of the country, stressing that any advancements made will be completely safe and in accordance with the regulations and legislation of the European Union.

"The grant covers five regions, where citizens will be able to see the benefits and that we are really doing something about this. In addition, we also want to include other stakeholders, such as Pakomak, in order to improve recycling and reduce packaging, thus increasing awareness among citizens to reduce and recycle waste they produce. This technical assistance will also help the Rusino landfill, and the other five regions as well, in order to create a new environment. Any advancement made will be completely safe and in alignment with EU regulations and legislation," Hulmann added.ssh/ad/

Photo: MIA