A roundtable dedicated to inter-municipal exchange of experiences and knowledge in the field of sustainable development, with a special focus on environmental protection and Goal 6 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development – Clean Water and Sanitation, was held in the hall of the Apatin Municipality Assembly.

The event was organized by the BFPE Foundation for Responsible Society, in partnership with the Belgrade Open School (BOS), and was opened with a greeting by the president of the Apatin Municipality, Dubravka Korać.

The first panel focused on achievements and challenges in wastewater treatment, the experiences of municipalities in this field, as well as opportunities for future cooperation and joint work in this domain.

The following speakers addressed this topic: Jasmina Radonjić Dimitrijević, water management engineer, EPUS Leskovac; Petar Pižurica, Wastewater Treatment Plant, Subotica; Dragana Stambolija, environmental protection inspector, Apatin; Nebojša Smiljanić, director of JKP Naš Dom, Apatin; and Nada Lazić, former member of parliament.

The second panel was dedicated to local planning and the exchange of views on how the national level of government can support local self-governments in developing local development plans and other planning documents, as well as planning budgets for their implementation, taking into account local priorities and specificities.

The speakers on this topic were: Darinka Radojević, Republic Secretariat for Public Policies; Lazar Ivanović, associate researcher, CEVES; Snežana Radmanović Pejić, LER Apatin; Srđan Vlaskalić, Sombor Educational Center; and Damir Dizdarević from the BFPE Foundation.

In the discussion that followed the panels, the need was emphasized to budget environmental protection measures in wastewater treatment in development plans, in order to respond to the needs of the population and the local economy.