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Selection Panel awarded Best Practices Status for 2012

29 November 2012 – Selection Panel, composed of Mr. Igor Golubović (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), Mrs. Snežana Mugoša, MA (Ministry of Finance), Mr. Radomir Ivanović (Ministry of the Interior), Mr. Branko Banović, PhD (ethnologist – anthropologist) and Mrs. Vanja Starovlah (Union of Municipalities of Montenegro), within procedures of the selection of best practices in the framework of the Program “Best Practices in Local Government”, at the session held on 27 November 2012 in Podgorica, made DECISION on the selection of best practices in local government in Montenegro for 2012:

 

1.      Best Practice in the thematic sector “Cultural heritage as an incentive for development of tourism and local community” shall be granted to the practice of the Municipality of KOLAŠIN for „Traditional dance and songs as part of cultural artistic offer in tourism“.

 2.      Best Practice in the thematic sector “Rural development as an incentive for local community’s development“ shall be granted to the practice of the Municipality of BIJELO POLJE for „Good countryside – better city“.

 3.      Best Practices in the thematic sector “Public-private partnership“ shall be granted to the practices of the Capital City of PODGORICA for „Green market and Shopping Moll in Block V in Podgorica“ and of the Municipality of MOJKOVAC for “PPP –  Arrangement of City Square”.

 4.      Best Practices in the thematic sector “Collection of local public revenues” shall be granted to the practices of the Municipality of BAR for „Collection of local public revenues – property tax – arranging of the tax base through the project of fiscal cadastre and unification of tax inspection“ and of the Municipality of KOTOR for “Collection of the property tax”.

 

J U S T I F I C A T I O N

 

The implementation of the Program “Best Practices in a Local Government” is determined by the Action Plan for Local Self-Government Reform for 2012 and it has been supported by the OSCE.

According to the criteria for practices’ assessment, the Selection Panel defined following criteria: performance; transparency and public involvement; relevance – adequacy of the practice’s objectives; applicability by other local self-government units and sustainability in respect to long-term effects and financial sustainability.

The Brochure containing all relevant information related to thematic sectors, criteria and procedures for proposing and for selection of best practices in local self-government in Montenegro was delivered to all municipalities (Mayors, Chief Administrators and Heads of Municipal Secretariats) along with the invitation to propose their best practices.

13 local self-government units (the Capital City of Podgorica, the Royal Capital of Cetinje, and Municipalities of Bar, Berane, Bijelo Polje, Budva, Danilovgrad, Kolašin, Kotor, Mojkovac, Pljevlja, Tivat and Herceg Novi) was applied 13 practices for the Best Practice Award.

A meeting of the Selection Panel was held on 19 November 2012 in Podgorica when municipal representatives presented their practices. They also gave clarifications on posted questions by the Selection Panel’s members. The Selection Panel had additional meeting on 27 November 2012, when the Decision on Selection of Best Practices in each thematic sector was made.

The Selection Panel made the Decision according to above mentioned criteria for assessment of practices. Due to the specificity of certain practices and their applicability in local self-government units of different size, the Selection Panel made the decision to granted awards to 2 municipal practices in the thematic sectors: the Public-Private Partnership and the Collection of Local Public Revenues.

 

Reasons:

 

  • The practice of the Municipality of KOLAŠIN „Traditional dance and songs as part of cultural artistic offer in tourism“

The Best Practices in this thematic sector need to show positive outputs for a local community through investment possibilities, promotion, and design of offer for cultural tourism and cultural-touristic ways at both local and national level.

The cultural heritage of local communities is not enough expressed. Mostly, its importance is not recognized in cultural offers. The practice of the Municipality of Kolašin „Traditional dance and songs as part of cultural artistic offer in tourism“ includes the collection and processing folklore’s elements and their application in theatrical plays; prevention of devastation of the cultural heritage of the Kolašin’s region; promotion of original Montenegrin musical tradition, scientifically processed, and its presentation to a wider range of people; and motivation of youth to dedicate themselves to keep their legacy.

The practice of the Municipality of Kolašin may have a huge applicability in the research and touristic presentations of an immaterial cultural heritage of other local communities in Montenegro. Besides that, a very positive aspect of the practice is shown in the use of minimum resources highlighting the voluntarism in the implementation of the project „Traditional dance and songs as part of cultural artistic offer in tourism“, which may be an incentive for others to launch similar projects in their local communities.

 

  • The practice of the Municipality of BIJELO POLJE „Good countryside – better city“

As the layer of authority the closest to the citizens in rural areas, municipal authorities have an opportunity to improve production, effectiveness and innovations of agricultural production. In recent years, the rural tourism is recognized as an important factor for sustainable development of rural areas, and it contributes to the preservation of local identity, customs, and both traditional and ecological ways of  production.

Analyzing current socio-economic situation in the municipality, the local government in Bijelo Polje recognized its rural area as an environment, and rural development as chance to create conditions for sustainable employment of their citizens by opening small and medium-sized businesses and for creating the environment for tourism development. The Municipality of Bijelo Polje started with the practice of the design of the Local Agro-Budget. By using previously determined measures, local government systematically, effectively and efficiently  institutionalized the incentives for countryside development. The measures for rural development include: support to the construction and maintenance of rural infrastructure; subsidies for registered agricultural producers for paying the social insurance; reimbursement for vegetable production; support for growing perennial plantations and for buying livestock; support for construction and equipment of protected areas; subsidies for production of agricultural products; subsidies for buying solar photovoltaic panels; as well as technical support for preparation of documentation needed for granting national agricultural subsidies. Implemented measures form the Local Agro-Budged made a huge impact in respect to the provision of incomes from own agricultural production; to the preservation and improvement of the natural resources; to the creation of production change of agricultural products; to the improvement of rural road and water supply infrastructure. All these measures resulted with the decreased number of the unemployed and the increase of the incomes of rural population. Tangible outputs of this good practices are as following; 170 greenhouses constructed; 605 ha land planted; 60 raspberry gardens planted; 1012 ha land planted with crops; raised number of agricultural households from 4542 to 7407 in the Municipality of Bijelo Polje.

 

  • The practice of the Capital City of PODGORICA „Green market and Shopping Moll in Block V“

Nowadays, local communities rather choose strategic partnerships, that enable them to improve their service delivery and better use of limited resources. Cooperation with the private sector enables local authorities to provide services more effectively, appropriate and sustainably in order to meet citizens’ needs.  

The Best Practices in this thematic sector need to show how these strategic partnerships may contribute to the improvement of service delivery by upgraded the level of citizens’ satisfaction with provided services and cost effectiveness.  

The local administration of the Capital City recognized the private-public partnership (PPP) as a productive way of the implementation of their projects, especially during the economic crises.

The implementation of the project „Green market and Shopping Moll in Block V“ brought to Podgorica an architecturally attractive and modern commercial building with the direct benefits for customers, individual agricultural producers, craftsmen and handicraftsmen, and national and city institutions. This project also solved the issue of the earlier non-standardized market selling in the urban and regulated part of the City.

After the successful implementation of the project, the Capital City plans to continue with the similar practice for at least 3 new buildings on its territory, what surely indicates to the sustainability of this practice.

The recommendation for the successful implementation of such kind of projects is to prepare well the planning documents and tendering documentation, and to choose partners carefully.

 

  • The practice of the Municipality of MOJKOVAC “Arrangement of City Square”.

The issue of the arrangement of City Square in the Municipality of Mojkovac has been present for several last years. The project cannot be implemented with the budget resources, so the initiative was launched to resolve the problem with the involvement of all stakeholders.

By signing and implementing the contract between private businessmen (owners of gardens at the City Square) and the Municipality of Mojkovac, the issue of arrangement of the City Square was solved, level of awareness of private businessmen related to ways of cooperation with the local self-government was raised and the public interest of citizens of Mojkovac and all visitors of the City Square was satisfied.

One of the most important project outputs is the design of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Local Self-Government and private businessmen, having on mind that this document can serve as an model that can be used not only the sector of the spatial arrangement but on the other sectors as well.

 

  • The practice of the Municipality of BAR „Collection of local public revenues – property tax – arranging of the tax base through the project of fiscal cadastre and unification of tax inspection“

The Best Practices in the sector of the Collection of Local Public Revenues need to show positive effects of the revenues on budgets of local self-governments and budgets’ functioning, as well as what they do to increase the percentage of collected local public revenues, range of coverage of taxpayers, tax incentives, etc.

By implementing the practice „Collection of local public revenues – property tax – arranging of the tax base through the project of fiscal cadastre and unification of tax inspection“, the Municipality of Bar undertook a series of activities such as: up-dating database, delivery tax decisions to non-residents, measures of the enforced collection; communication and meetings with taxpayers in order to made an agreements on time schedule and methods of tax debt paying, unification of the tax inspections, etc.

According to the above mentioned, the Municipality of Bar, or its Secretariat for the Economy and Finance undertook important measures in all phases of the collection of the property tax in order to increase the level of collection of this tax. It is how a new model of the collection of the property tax has been designed.

Results of the good practice of the Municipality of Bar are the improvement of the taxpayers’ database, a record collection of the property tax income, transparency of the process itself and positive response from citizens.

 

  • The practice of the Municipality of KOTOR “Collection of the property tax”

In order to provide up-dated database of taxpayers, improve the property tax collection and promote transparent performance of tax authorities, the Municipality of Kotor organized fieldwork of prentices.

The practice contributed to the significant corrections and elimination of irregularities related to the tax payers; database and zoning of the municipal territory, direct delivery of the tax decisions and better information of citizens.

Percentage of the property tax collection has been remarkably raised in respect to the previous years.

This practice of the Municipality of Kotor shows that cooperation with citizens can create more productive tax collection and corrections of the level of tax and zoning of the territory made in the direct communication with citizens can stimulate taxpayers.