We Did It Again: The 11^th Balkans Joint Conference and Exhibition, “Accelerating Change: Towards Safe, Reliable and Sustainable Services”, a Great Success

Our 11^th Balkans Joint Conference and Exhibition, “Accelerating Change: Towards Safe, Reliable and Sustainable Services”, organized jointly by SHUKALB and SHUKOS on 7-9 November 2023, in Golem, Albania, gathered over 450 water professionals representing water utilities, donor’s community, private companies, academic institutions as well as other central and local government institutions from 18 different countries. The conference provided a platform to discuss vital issues, exchange information, and share experiences, all aimed at furthering the development of the water supply and wastewater sector in the region. In this article we provide a summary of this event.

Prior to the start of the Opening Ceremony, on 7 November, several Pre-Conference events were organized to include the Workshop on “Balkan-German Experiences in the Field of Wastewater Purification and Sewage Sludge Utilization. Legal Requirements, Technologies, and Energy Efficiency”; the Young Water Professionals Forum from Kosovo and Albania; the Regional Workshop of the Benchmarking Program for the Kosova and Albania HUB, and the Joint Meeting with Stakeholders on Capacity Development in the Water and Sanitation Services Sector in Albania and Kosovo.

The pre-conference highlight was the launching of the Utility of the Future Center of Excellence (UoF-CoE), a transformative initiative of the World Bank and Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). This regional initiative with a global outreach, will serve as a dedicated hub for knowledge, innovation, and collaboration in the sector. The UoF-CoE is designed to bring together young professionals, utility providers, government bodies, and experts from diverse fields.

During the launching event Mr. Winston Yu, Water Practice Manager for Europe and Central Asia Region, World Bank, Austria, said in his speech: “If countries in the Western Balkans continue at the same pace, access to a sustainable water and sanitation service for all citizens will not be achieved in this generation. We need a much bolder commitment to enhancing the performance of service providers, particularly as we face the threat of climate change.  With innovation, knowledge, and collaboration, the Utility of the Future – Center of Excellence will support and empower utilities across the region to help make the achievement of SDG6 a reality for the people in the Western Balkans”.

The Conference Opening Ceremony in the evening of 7 November started with the welcome addresses by the President of SHUKALB, Petrit Tare and the President of SHUKOS, Jeton Shabani, who greeted the participants and invited them to follow the program of the conference during the next two days and to visit the technical exhibit of the private sector that is organized in parallel with the conference.

The opening ceremony continued with greeting remarks of H.E. Ruth Huber, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Swiss Embassy, Albania, H.E. Iven Schad, First Secretary, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, Albania and H.E. Skender Durmishi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Embassy of the F Republic of Kosova, Albania.

In her speech Ambassador Huber said: “Access to water and sanitation services is a human right and a fundamental enabler of economic prosperity. But throughout the world there are still segments of the population that lack access to these services. Therefore, support in the water sector has been a significant part of Switzerland’s international cooperation efforts. The Swiss cooperation program in Albania and also in Kosovo has a dedicated component for supporting the water sector”.

The Opening Ceremony continued with the traditional awards ceremony to recognize the efforts of individuals who have had an impact with their work and efforts for bettering the water sector. The SHUKALB “A Life in the Water Sector” awards were granted to The SHUKOS Board of Directors was awarded to Burbuqe Nushi Latifi, National Institute for Public Health, Kosovo, while “A Life in the Water Sector” awards were granted to Agim Demaj, Regional Water Company Prishtina and Avni Caka, Regional Water Company Gjakova.

The Opening Ceremony was concluded with the official opening of the Technical Exhibition.

The Technical Program of the Conference consisted of 14 thematically diverse sessions organized into 10 different Parallel Sessions and 4 Plenary Sessions, which addressed over 41 presentations, covering a broad range of multifaceted topics.

The Technical Conference Program started in the morning of 8 November, with a welcome by Elisabeta Poçi, Executive Director of SHUKALB, who provided an overview of the pre-conference activities that took place the previous day and the Program for the 1^st day of the Conference. She also acknowledged the contribution of the sponsors who supported the organization of the event.

The Conference continued with the first keynote address by Gustavo Saltiel, Global Lead for Water Supply and Sanitation, World Bank, USA, who delivered a pre-recorded presentation titled “Policy, Institutional and Regulatory Reforms for Accelerating Change in Water Supply and Sanitation Services Delivery”. 

The first plenary session of the program titled “Water Utilities as the Driving Force to Accelerate Universal Access towards SDG-6” was in line with the overall theme of the conference. The session was moderated by Camilo Lombana Cordoba, Senior Water Supply and Sanitation Specialist, World Bank Group, USA and co-moderated by Megi Marku, Young Water Professional, Center of Excellence – Utility of the Future, Albania.  The panelists who joined the discussions were Klevis Jahaj, General Director, National Agency for Water Supply, Sewerage and Waste Infrastructure, Albania; Baton Begolli, Water Policy Advisor, Inter-Ministerial Water Council, Office of the Prime Minister, Kosovo, and Marko Krneta, Head of Water Protection Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry, Republika Srpska, BiH.

The second plenary session “Pragmatic Approach to Dynamic and Action-Oriented Regulation” was moderated by Dr. Julián D. López-Murcia, Director, Nalanda Analytica, Colombia and co-moderated by Erdonita Humolli, Project Manager and Young Water Professional, SHUKOS.  The panelists who joined the discussions were Christian Minelli, European Relations, ARERA; Head of WAREG Secretariat, Association of European Water Regulators, Italy; Ndriçim Shani, Chair of National Regulatory Commission, Water Regulatory Authority, Albania; Hajrie Morina, Director, Water Services Regulatory Authority, Kosovo and Shamil Rexhepi, Head of Unit for Economic Affairs, Energy and Water services Regulatory Commission, The Republic of North Macedonia.

The third plenary session “Workforce Challenges: Attracting, Retaining and Developing Top Staff and Young Water Professionals” was moderated by Karin Gallandat, Programme Manager, Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, Switzerland and co-moderated by Elsa Belba, Engineer and Young Water Professional, AKUM, Albania. The panelists who joined the discussions were Elisabeta Poçi, Executive Director, SHUKALB; Josh Newton, Independent Consultant on Global Water Political Processes; Founder, Josh’s Water Jobs, USA; Pavle Donev, Head of the Project Regional Capacity Development Network for Water and Sanitation Services, GIZ, North Macedonia; Walter Kling, President, International Association of Water Service Companies in the Danube River Catchment Area, Austria; Albert Salltakaj, Chairman, Young Water Professionals, Regional Water Company Hidroregjioni Jugor, Prizren, Kosovo and Prof. Asoc. Oltion Marko, Head of Environmental Engineering Department, Faculty of Civil Engineering, UPT, Albania.

The Conference program continued with parallel sessions dedicated to “Technical Management of Water Utilities”; “Integrated Water Resources Management’ and “Alignment with EU Acquis Communautaire”.

The second working day of the Conference, 9^th of November, was opened with a welcome address by Abdullah Derguti, Executive Director of SHUKOS, who welcomed the participants and presented a quick review of the day before.  In addition, he invited Arne Gooss, Head of Municipal Infrastructure Division for South-East Europe and Turkey, KfW Development Bank, Germany to deliver his keynote address on “Financings in the Water Sector in WB-Countries: The Approach of German Development Bank KfW”.

The fourth and final Plenary Session, “Water and Sanitation Sector Financing” was moderated by Semira Kasimati Vathi, Chief Operating Officer, Valuadd Management Services, Albania and co-moderated by Bekim Juniku, SHUKOS, Kosovo. The panelists who joined the discussions were

Flauers Shoshi, Deputy General Director, National Agency for Water Supply, Sewerage and Waste Infrastructure, Albania; Evis Gjebrea, Deputy General Director, Tirana Water Supply and Sewerage Company, Albania; Adelina Farrici, Executive Director, Association for Local Autonomy, Albania;Valon Prebreza, Director, Policy and Monitoring Unit for Public Enterprises, Ministry of Economy, Kosovo; Dirk Vallerien, Senior Principal Engineer, Municipal Infrastructure Southeast Europe and Turkey, KfW Development Bank, Germany and Arsim Fetahu, General Director, Regional Water Company Pristina, Kosovo.

The program continued with parallel technical sessions dedicated to “Regionalization of WSS Services: Challenges & Opportunities”, “Open Knowledge and Innovation on Water Utilities”; “Regulatory Aspects”; “Wastewater Management” and “Customer Management”.

Technical Exhibition

The Conference participants had the chance to visit the Technical Exhibition which officially opened on the 7^th of November, after the Welcome Reception, and continued for two days in parallel with the Technical Program on the 8^th and 9^th of November.  The Exhibition attracted 21 private companies coming from 10 different countries from the Balkan region and Europe, which showcased their very latest products, from pipes, pumps, meters, software to engineering and management services.

As it has been a tradition at the Exhibition, SHUKALB and SHUKOS organized a joint booth, situated close to the entrance of the Exhibition Hall, where participants had the opportunity to get information regarding the respective activities of each Association, as well as the joint initiatives.

SHUKALB and SHUKOS would like to thank the organizations and companies who supported the organization of the 11^th Balkans Joint Conference and Exhibition, particularly the Regional Capacity Development Network (RCDN) for Water and Sanitation Services and the World Bank.

The presentations presented during the three days of the conference, as well as some photos of the event may be accessed in the links below:

• Presentations
• Conference and Exhibition Photos