On December 3, 2025, at the premises of the Center for Social Enterprises in Skopje, a consultation meeting was held with representatives of key stakeholders, including representatives from the Central Financing and Contracting Department (CFCD), the Crisis Management Center (CMC), the Hydrometeorological Service (HMS), the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning (MESP), experts and members of the project team.
The meeting presented the progress of the ongoing project activities:
Activity 1: Completion of the legal framework for flood risk management in line with the requirements of the EU Floods Directive and development of DSIP for Flood Directive;
Activity 2: Strengthening administrative capacities, access to information and informing the public – Recommendations from the Institutional Development Plan; and
Activity 3: Preliminary Flood Risk Assessments for all (10) River Basins – Presentation of the requirements of the EU Floods Directive and presentation of preliminary flood risk assessments for the said Mid Vardar sub-basin.
Expert Toni Popovski provided a detailed overview of the recommendations of the Institutional Development Plan which clearly maps out institutional roles and establishes coordination mechanisms that will ensure alignment between ministries, other national institutions and agencies, municipalities and all other stakeholders. Recognizing the current gaps in organizational resources and capacities, the plan highlights targeted measures for building institutional competencies through training, recruitment and technical support. It also addresses the urgent need for a robust legal and regulatory environment that harmonizes national legislation with EU legislation, enabling consistent application of flood risk policies and their implementation at all levels of government.
Expert Jadranka Ivanova presented the findings of the Non – Concordance table, which clearly identifies the differences between current national practices and the requirements of the EU Floods Directive in areas that require legal or operational improvement. She also presented options for possible changes to the legislation.
Experts from Spain, José García Coba and María José Hernández Torrejón, presented in detail the steps required by the EU Floods Directive, as well as the steps for preparing preliminary flood risk assessments for the Mid Vardar River sub-basin.
The project “Improved Implementation of the EU Floods Directive through Harmonization of National Legislation and Preparation of Flood Risk Management Plans” is supported by the European Union and co-financed from the budget of the Republic of North Macedonia, for the final beneficiary Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning.
