Danish support to improved water quality in Central and Eastern Europe 1991-2001
Chapter 6
Co-operation with Recipient Countries
| 6.1 | Basis for Co-operation |
| 6.2 | Co-operation with Stakeholders |
The cooperation with recipient countries has developed positively in the 10-year support period. The mutual understanding of technical, institutional and political issues on both sides has resulted in efficient implementation of projects and sustainable operations of investments. Both in Denmark and in the CEEC has the employment in the water sector increased. In the CEEC new industries have been developed and local democracy enhanced by involving all relevant stakeholders in project preparation.
6.1 Basis for Co-operation
Over the past 10 years DANCEE has increasingly implemented environmental projects in CEEC following a holistic approach. The socalled Project Cycle provides a good illustration of the context in which projects are implemented. Danish and Worldwide experience has shown the high value of focusing on appropriate project preparatory activities and postimplementation activities in order to achieve sound, sustainable and efficient solutions.
Proper project preparatory activities (identification, preparation and feasibility studies) are necessary to ensure that environmental efficient solutions are implemented, which are acceptable and affordable to the recipient communities. DANCEE has emphasised this to avoid projects with too large or too small capacities, inappropriate technologies or projects located in the wrong place.
Project sustainability also requires that the postimplementation activities are properly considered. DANCEE has therefore supported the developing organisations (or companies) that are capable of protecting the investments and ensuring its expected benefits by enhancing autonomous decision making, developing management skills and operation and maintenance procedures.
6.2 Co-operation with Stakeholders
National level
DANCEE has cooperated with stakeholders at national, regional, and local levels. Through its first tenyear period DANCEE has co-ordinated its works with its national counterparts in the Ministry responsible for the environment. The Ministry has ensured that projects selected for DANCEE support follows national policies and priorities within improvements to the water environment.
Over the years DANCEE has cooperated with a number of national line ministries in approximating local legislation to EU directives (see Chpt. 2.2), developing water sector strategies and management of international funding.
DANCEE Support for Capacity Building in the Russian Environmental Funds DANCEE has, in order to contribute to Russia's potential for financing of environmental projects, supported capacity building in the Russian Environmental Fund system. The project resulted in an action plan for strengthening the management and operation of the funds, manuals for use by fund employees, and the dissemination and approval of these results at a seminar with participation from the Russian ministry of environment and most of the regional and local environmental funds. |
A long range of local projects also involves cooperation with national ministries, institutions, and commissions, e.g. in setting of water tariffs, financing of projects and improvement of waterrelated public health.
Co-operation on national level has also taken place within the industrial sectors, where sector research institutes or environmental committees have assisted in identifying industries for demonstration projects and have been in charge of dissemination of the results.
Local project co-ordinators located in the recipient countries have facilitated the co-ordination between DANCEE and the local stakeholders, and have contributed to the sustainability of the projects.
Regional level
Co-operation with regional stakeholders has taken place on a number of DANCEE supported soil and groundwater protection projects. An example of a regional groundwater project is the project on training the Polish Railway Company in the Wroclaw region (see chapter 3.2).
Nature protection projects have been carried out in The Baltic States and Poland with both regional and national authorities. These projects also focussed on clarifying future responsibilities in managing natural treasures.
Other projects supported the cooperation between Danish counties (Fyn, Vejle and Sonderjylland) and local regional authorities on improving monitoring of the water environment.
On a broader level the feasibility of regional focusing is also taken into account in the countryprogramming process.
Local Level
The most extensive cooperation on DANCEE water environment projects has taken place with municipal owned water companies. In connection with project preparatory activities and actual project implementation, a wide range of skills and technical know-how has been transferred to the management level of a water company. DANCEE projects have included an institutional component in most feasibility studies, which focussed on financial and operational improvements of a water company and general management skills. The cooperation on projects has also introduced the advantage of new (and often Danish) water technology.
Modernisation of the Kiev Vodokanal DANCEE has supported the modernisation of Kiev Vodokanal serving approximately 2.6 million inhabitants in the capital of Ukraine. The project consisted of feasibility study and project preparation for:
The institutional development programme focused on a development of the water company into a more autonomous organisation, which requires development and formulation of the legal basis, a functional analysis, and development of the management information system. The financial and operational performance improvement programme focussed on the day-today business of the water company including:
An immediate investment programme for about EUR 200 million was identified comprising efficiency improving investments in water supply, wastewater collection and wastewater treatment. |
In Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus the local professional partners have been branches of
government institutes or design bureaus. In the remaining recipient countries a growing
number of local consulting companies are involved on DANCEE projects as local professional
partners.
With the large investment support from EU through the ISPA program, DANCEE has responded to the need for preparing projects for international financing and developing skills in international tender procedures and contracting (FIDIC).
The transfer of Danish know-how takes place during the day-to-day cooperation on projects, on workshops, and seminars, and finally through dissemination of project results and by demonstrating the effect of implemented projects.
A number of twining projects in the Baltic States between Danish (Copenhagen, Aarhus and Viborg) and local municipalities served the purpose of longterm cooperation to improve technicaladministrative skills in municipal departments.
DANCEE supports the implementation of the Aarhus convention by supporting public participation and awareness activities. This has been necessary in many aspects, among others to convince consumers of the necessity of water saving and increasing water tariffs. Within nature protection the management of natural park, the provision of facilities for visitors has improved the awareness of the necessity in protecting the nature and enjoying it in a sustainable manner. Increased awareness has also increased the public pressure on authorities in meeting the EU environmental requirements.