Municipality of Malishevë/Malisevo conducted a Visioning Workshop to launch drafting of Municipal and Urban Development Plans.  The visioning workshop for Malishevë/Malisevo was organized jointly by UN-Habitat/ Municipal Spatial Planning Support Programme (MuSPP), Cultural Heritage without Borders (CHwB) and Friedrich Ebert Schtiftung (FES). The Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning (MESP), also supported the workshop through its professional staff from the Institute of Spatial Planning and the Department of Spatial Planning. The role of these institutions and organizations was to facilitate the participatory process of the workshop held in Prevalla, Prizren from 21-24 May, 2012. 

The purpose of the workshop was to formulate a vision statement for Malishevo municipality, which would give direction to the formulation of development objectives and selection of priorities. The programme of the workshop provided for panel discussions, group work and presentations. To capture different aspects of development, participants were divided into groups that focuses on economic development, infrastructure, housing and settlements and housing and on cultural and natural heritage as a basis for development of tourism. Ongoing construction of the highway was viewed as an important development factor. Group work led to the formulation of vision for each of the above mentioned components and a joint vision declaration and a joint motto. The vision statement is as follows: “Malishevë/Malisevo with opportunities for all, proud of its heritage, wealthy with natural resources and sustainable development.”  The mottos that derived from the working groups were: “All roads take you to Malishevë/Malisevo”, “Malishevë/Malisevo, for citizens” and “Image of generosity and hospitality”.

The results of the intensive 4-day workshop will be used as a foundation for guiding the process of drafting the MDP and UDP document, and they will be presented to a wider audience in the municipality at a later stage.

The group of participants in the workshop from the municipality of Malishevo consisted of political leaders, municipal officers, civil society, business community and citizens at large.  The workshop was also honored by the presence of the mayor of Malishevë/Malisevo, a recent MuSPP partner municipality, advisor of the minister of MESP and the Head of MuSPP/UN-HABITAT office in Kosovo. Special guests were experts from the EU Programme for Stronger Municipalities who are working on tourism development aspects for Malishevo/Malisheve, Rahovec/Orahovac and Dragash.