OSCE Mission in Kosovo supports municipalities in modernizing archives

As part of an OSCE-supported project to modernize municipal archives, refurbished offices will be inaugurated in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica and Skenderaj/Srbica and on 15 March and in Vushtrri/Vučitrn on 16 March.

“The project seeks to improve access to official documents and increase municipal transparency in accordance with good governance principles,” said Paolo Fraccaro, the OSCE Mission’s Senior Democratization Officer in the Regional Centre in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica.

He added that access to official documents had been impaired by the poor condition of the archive offices and that municipalities often could not locate documents or respond to information requests by residents in due time.

The OSCE Mission supplied the necessary equipment, including filing cabinets, air-conditioning units and photocopying machines, while the municipalities allocated adequate space and refurbished archiving rooms.

In a further joint initiative, the Mission and the municipalities will together carry out public awareness activities and organize municipal archive “open days” following the inaugurations, which are designed to encourage the public to use their right to access official documents.

The OSCE Mission supports democratic institutions in Kosovo in the implementation of good governance principles, including transparency, accountability and responsiveness. It helped modernize the municipal archive office in Deçan/Dečane, and established municipal legal libraries throughout Kosovo.