In order to enhance the public participation and present the developments on the draft design of the Capital Investment Project (CIP), the Department of Public Services of the Gjilan Municipality, supported by UN-Habitat's Municipal Spatial Planning Support Programme (MuSPP), financed by the Swedish Development Cooperation, has organised the second public presentation of the CIP Adem Jashari and Zijah Shemsiu streets. This public presentation was organised in the City Theatre Hall on the 9^th of October, and accompanied by the exhibition of the project design that remained open until the 11^th of October. A considerable number of citizens, a representative of HANDIKOS, municipal representatives, including the mayor, deputy-mayor and department directors, and representatives from Traffic Police, participated actively in this presentation. This presentation was also covered by local media.

Adem Jashari and Zijah Shemsiu streets present one of the main and oldest arteries of Gjilan. The position of these streets, the functions that are developed along them - education, healthcare, business, administration, leisure, heritage, religion -   as well as connections with different parts of the city make them two of the most frequented streets in the city, both by pedestrians and cars. The main goals of the CIP Adem Jashari and Zijah Shemsiu streets are the improvement of infrastructure, mobility, safety, inclusion, and the improvement of public spaces along these streets.

The Mayor of Gjilan, Mr. Qemajl Mustafa, in his opening speech expressed his appreciation to the municipal departments of Public Services and Urbanism for their engagement on this project. Regarding the cooperation and support, Mr. Mustafa said that Municipality of Gjilan is being supported by different technical and financial partners, including UN-Habitat which has been supporting Gjilan for many years. Mr. Mustafa emphasised the need and importance of public participation in municipal projects. Speaking about the importance of CIP Adem Jashari and Zijah Shemsiu streets, Mr. Mustafa stated that it is one of the projects that will contribute to the improvement and modernisation of the city.       

UN-Habitat/MuSPP representative Mrs. Catarina Camarinhas congratulated the municipality on taking the initiative to promote public participation and stated that this is a significant project for Gjilan, and another important milestone in the implementation of the Mobility Action Plan, a project developed by the municipality of Gjilan together with USAID. The concept of improving soft mobility is very central in UN-Habitat's sustainable planning agenda, as a way to promote the attractiveness, walkability and compactness of the city centres. In the case of Gjilan, this is a trend that only needs to be encouraged since it is already a relevant aspect of its character, with a very lively and active city centre, that should be further promoted and developed.

The draft design was presented by Mr. Enver Biçkaj, traffic engineer in the Department of Public Services. During the presentation, Mr. Biçkaj emphasised the new approach where the priority is given to the pedestrians, cyclists and public transportation. Since the design and interventions will cover only the existing street spaces, Mr. Biçkaj also presented illustrations of street space improvements and their functioning. Prior to improving the mobility and public spaces works, the project foresees the completion of underground infrastructures.

The presentation was followed by discussions, where municipal mayor Mr. Qemajl Mustafa, director of Public Services Mr. Behar Mehmeti, municipal traffic engineer Mr. Enver Biqku, and municipal infrastructure engineer Mrs. Drita Kajtazi gave explanations to the interested participants. The main questions focused on the construction period, traffic functioning and management, and citizen awareness.

Opinions, suggestions and proposals made by the citizens were collected on the exhibition venue and through the internet. They will be reviewed, evaluated and incorporated in the draft design. The main design of Improving of Adem Jashari and Zijah Shemsiu streets will be completed under the supervision of municipal professional team, and then followed by the implementation procedures and processes.