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The Municipal Development Project in the Doboj region (MDP) is based on a bilateral agreement between the Swiss Federal Council represented by the Swiss Agency for Development and Co-operation (SDC) and the Council of Ministers of BiH, represented by the Ministry for Civil Affairs and Communication of BiH, the Ministry of Justice of the FBiH, as well as the Ministry of Local Self-Governance of the RS.

Main MDP partners are eight municipalities from both BiH entities – municipal authorities and civil society. In the first implementation year (May 2002 – April 2003), Steering Committee selected 3 pilot municipalities (Doboj, Doboj Istok and Maglaj) and in the second year of implementation (May 2003 – August 2004) three new municipalities were included: Usora, Doboj Jug and Petrovo. Gracanica Municipality as the seventh MDP partner municipality joined the program in July 2005, while Modrica Municipality signed the Cooperation Agreement in June 2006.

Internal and external evaluation had been organized in May and October in 2007 and SDC decided to continue its support to Municipal Development Project during the third and final phase (April 2008 – March 2011) but with modified parameters. In the previous two phases, MDP was implemented by a development foundation from Bern – Intercooperation. But from 2006 on, Project management has been in the hands of local staff and the implementation team has shown strong facilitation skills, high level of commitment and expertise, which guided SDC to make a decision to give the implementing mandate for the third phase of the Project to the local team. Project team is registered as an association and its name is Centre for management, development and planning - MDP Initiatives (MDPi).

The long-term development goal of MDP is that the municipalities in the Doboj Region lead their development processes in accordance with the principles of good governance and continuously upgrade the standard of living of all their citizens, in the frame of BiH’s progression towards EU accession. Although the main focus is on local governance, MDP aims at making a contribution to the overall democratisation process and the economic recovery in BiH. Working in both entities and fostering inter-entity cooperation and partnerships, MDP also aims at contributing to the reconciliation process towards sustainable co-existence based on mutual tolerance.