Transforming an “Informal Neighborhood” in Kosovo

The town of Peja, Kosovo has a number of “informal neighborhoods” – urban enclaves that have been left out of municipal planning processes and budgets.  The Zatra neighborhood was one such place until April 2007, when a local NGO, Eye of Vision (EoV), launched an urban planning process there.

“Until now, Peja never consulted with citizens about urban planning,” said Veton Mujaj, EoV’s director.  With support of a grant by IREX’s Kosovo Civil Society Project (KCSP), EoV has sought to reverse that record by explicitly involving residents in priority setting.  The process included organizing community meetings and distributing questionnaires to about 350 households.  The surveys –  which focused on the local economy, family circumstances, and infrastructure – provided critical input to the municipal plan that was developed.  The plan, in turn, has now been officially approved by the Municipal Assembly of Peja and will guide all future development in the area. Zatra is now a recognized part of Peja.

The Zatra initiative is only the latest in a series of activities promoted by EoV, whose mission is to increase citizen participation in decision-making and increase governmental accountability in the region.  Founded in 2001, the organization publishes an advocacy newsletter and serves as an information clearinghouse on business-sector development, transparency, and local governance. Now that the planning work in Zatra is complete, EoV will seek to repeat the process in Peja’s other informal neighborhoods.

KCSP, launched in May 2005 and funded by USAID, assists Kosovo’s NGO community in becoming a truly indigenous, viable sector that plays an important role in representing and serving Kosovo’s diverse citizenry and shaping public policy.