The overall objective of the project was to facilitate the flow of goods and people in the region while improving the level of inspection and border/boundary control, through strengthening the institutional capacity and co-ordination between border/boundary management agencies in Kosovo, in line with the Guidelines for Integrated Border Management in the Western Balkans and EU standards.
More specifically, the objectives of this project were:
• Developing co-operation mechanisms;
• Training;
• Expert advice.
The project followed 3 Phases:
• The first phase called for assistance to the three beneficiary administrations to build an administrative platform of agreed inter-agency Memorandum of Understandings (MoU’s);
• The second phase - Development and provision of theoretical and practical training for the beneficiary administrations;
• The third phase – Enumeration of any gaps in border management legislation and recommend solutions.
The establishment of the National IBM Coordination Mechanism was provided for in section 5 of the IBM Guidelines for the Western Balkans, which clearly required the establishment of the National IBM Coordination Mechanism along with the draft and the adoption of the IBM National Strategy.
The architecture of the National IBM Coordination Mechanism, being a milestone in the IBM implementation process in Kosovo, was in place. A further milestone marked the adoption of the draft National IBM Strategy by the Government of Kosovo. These activities were considered necessary to provide beneficiaries with a full-comprehensive approach to the issues addressed in the course of the project implementation.
Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs) – operational instructions - and the design and delivery of training modules were developed along with a review of border layout, to ensure that procedures proposed for BCPs were supported by adequate infrastructure and, vice versa, that the new infrastructures were built according to standards consistent with the EU recommended procedures.