The Ukrainian city of Bar agreed on the cooperation with Bar, Montenegro. The two municipalities joined the New Wave of Cooperation project implemented by the Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South-Eastern Europe (NALAS) with the support of U-LEAD with Europe.

On Thursday, July 10, representatives of the city of Bar and the Bar municipality, the NALAS Secretariat and the U-LEAD with Europe Programme, met to discuss the details of the project and exchanged expectations for future cooperation.

“Ukraine and Montenegro are on the path to joining the EU, and a new partnership between municipalities is extremely important and relevant, since European integration is not limited to centralised cooperation, and sharing experiences at the municipal level is essential as well. This cooperation opens up unique opportunities for the exchange of experience and best practices, which will contribute to the development of municipalities,” said Mykola Siusko, Deputy Head of the Regional Operations Unit at U-LEAD.

NALAS project coordinator, Mr. Joachim Roth, outlined the main goals, tasks and key stages of the project. He reaffirmed that the partnerships created so far would continue even after the completion of the project. The initiative is therefore an effective mechanism for sharing and transferring knowledge between municipalities based on coaching, mentoring and on-the-job training. This approach enables applying the experience of both the host side and the beneficiary side to strengthen the capacities of Ukrainian local authorities.

As Dušan Raičević, Mayor of Bar, Montenegro, explained, his city is located on the coast of the Adriatic Sea and near Lake Skadar. Among the priority areas of economic development are olive growing and tourism. For example, the population of Bar almost doubles in the summer, from 60,000 to 120. This creates certain challenges for the municipality in terms of providing services in all areas of life.

“We would like to share our experience with our Ukrainian partners, as well as learn from their experience in reconstruction and development. We are ready to develop our cooperation,” said Mr Raičević.

In turn, Volodymyr Savoliuk, Mayor of Bar, Ukraine, spoke about the municipality in his charge. According to him, the Bar urban municipality was created in 2020. 69 settlements of the Vinnytsia region were united around the city of Bar. Since the outset of the full-scale war, 5,300 internally displaced persons moved there, seeking safety. The mayor presented the municipality’s economic and investment potential and emphasised that they are open to international cooperation.

“The war makes terrible adjustments to our lives. Today we are directing all our efforts to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Russia’s invasion is destroying our infrastructure, economy and environment. Ahead of us is not only a difficult struggle for victory, but also a thorny path of rebuilding. Recovery efforts are more urgent than ever, and this is where we need international support. Our municipality greatly appreciates the willingness of Montenegro’s Bar to establish a ‘bridge of cooperation’ and implement joint initiatives and projects,” said Volodymyr Savoliuk.

He also stated the following:

“I’m very grateful to the U-LEAD with Europe Programme, which helps the municipalities of Ukraine to develop.”

As part of their participation in the New Wave of Cooperation, officials of the Bar municipality will intern in Bar, Montenegro, attend project writing and fundraising workshops and study the experience of the EU countries in implementing a project approach to municipal development.