Today the Minister of Environment and Physical Planning Kaja Shukova and the director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for the Republic of North Macedonia Andi Aranitasi signed an agreement by which the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency(SIDA) through the EBRD donated non-refundable funds in the amount of seven hundred thousand euros.
The funds are intended exclusively for the purposes of financing consulting services, as technical assistance to the project unit of the MOEPP in the implementation procedure of the regional project for solid waste for which the state received a loan from the EBRD in the amount of 55 million euros.
The loan will be realized in two tranches, for the establishment and development of regional waste management systems in five administrative regions of the country. The state loan has been granted to the Ministry of Finance, while the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning is the entity responsible for the implementation of the project. This project is the first national undertaking in the solid waste management sector in North Macedonia and an important step towards a sustainable solution for solid waste management services. Its implementation means the introduction of municipal solid waste services in accordance with the relevant EU standards in the sector, which will cover a population of more than one million inhabitants in five administrative regions and 48 municipalities in the country. As such, the Project is of unique national, regional and environmental importance for North Macedonia and has been identified as a national priority in the context of EU accession.
For the direct use of the Swedish grant, an agreement was also signed today with the consulting house SUEZ Consulting (SAFEGE) from the Republic of France, acting as a consortium with EPEM from R. of Greece, for the provision of the consulting services selected according to the procurement rules of the EBRD.
The task of the consultant SUEZ Consulting (SAFEGE) is to provide assistance to the project unit in the MOEPP, responsible for the implementation of the loan, in the preparation of documentation for procurement, tenders and implementation of contracts, assistance with compliance and reporting obligations according to financial documents and support for implementation of documents related to the environment and the social aspect of the project.