Contracts signed for building of flash flood defenses

BELGRADE - Contracts were signed in Belgrade on Tuesday for construction of 14 flash flood defense units and clearance of river beds in western Serbia, in which USD 1.5 million will be invested.

The building of the flood defenses in eight municipalities in Serbia - Krupanj, Mali Zvornik, Vrnjacka Banja, Loznica, Osecina, Ljubovija, Kosjeric and Bajina Basta, will be financed by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

The contracts were signed by UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Irena Vojackova-Sollorano and representatives of the contractor firms SADE and Autotransport.

The contracts with the state-owned enterprise Srbijavode were also confirmed, as the enterprise will monitor the building of the flood control systems, as well as the agreement on the maintenance of flood defenses between the Government Office for Reconstruction and Flood Relief and the eight municipalities in which they will be built.

With the contracts, the UNDP backs the efforts put by the Serbian government and the municipalities in Serbia which were worst hit by last year's floods in further activities aimed at long-term protection from possible floods, said Sollorano after signing the contracts.

The works will finish in May, marking one year since the devastating floods, she said.

Sollorano noted that at a conference on flood risk reduction that will be held in Japan in March, Serbia will be presented as a positive example, as a country that managed to quickly recover from major floods.

Besides the construction of the flood control units, the UNDP project will include the accompanying clearance of two kilometers of watercourses (category 2) in the municipalities.

The project is being...