**4.2 PONT strategy promotes transboundary cooperation between government and non-government partners**

The PONT ten year strategy for Prespa is based on the experiences of the PrespaNet partners who have worked in the area for a long time. By working directly with the protected area management authorities and the main NGOs the conservation and capacity development objectives were determined. Instead of re-inventing the wheel the priority gaps for financing were gathered by PrespaNet. This was done under coordination of World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) Greece who knows the area very well and could verify the results. The recommendations for the conservation objectives were verified by the protected area management authorities and this formed the basis for the conservation objectives for the PONT ten year strategy for Prespa. With the help of the more social science oriented expertise by PONT the objectives for the inclusion and beneficiation of local stakeholders, organizational development and capacity development were identified and added. This resulted in a participatory developed strategy and conflict

assessment study that were accepted by both government and non-government stakeholders within and across state borders.

With a focus of financing of the identified gaps the selection of grantees was made based on their mandate, vision, proven track record and expertise to work in the area [18]. This enabled the rapid granting of first grants to NGOs and protected area management authorities focusing on action-oriented implementation. Remaining identified gaps were addressed by several open calls for proposals. After four years of operation PONT has one five-year grant and ten three-year grants for their long-term partners. Through this process based on previous learning a strategy was established focusing on the financing of the gaps and building of strong partnerships with stakeholders that have a mandate, vision and the expertise to achieve the conservation results in the Prespa area. The PONT strategy also promotes transboundary cooperation between government and non-government partners based on previous lessons learned.

#### **4.3 Taking operational planning seriously**

Protected area managements plans have been gradually integrated into the longterm management cycles for the protected areas in the Prespa-Ohrid Ecoregion. However, there is still a wide gap with annual or operational planning. The gap exists due to a number of reasons, including unrealistic and non-operational management plans, lack of knowledge and skills, inadequate work procedures, missing or ineffective decision-support systems, as well as insecure funding. The heavy dependence over the past two decades on short-term international project funding and external consultants have often perpetuated these weaknesses. The resulting ad-hoc and inconsistent management hampers the effective implementation of the management plans.

Protected area management authorities in the Prespa-Ohrid Ecoregion use a template developed by PONT in Microsoft Excel to prepare annual operational plans and budgets that are part of their grant applications to PONT. These operational plans state the actions to be implemented each year to achieve the objectives set out in the management plan for the protected area concerned. While most of the actions are selected from among those identified in the management plans, additional actions arise from the (annual) METT assessments, by learning from experience, or in response to uncertainty and change. The operational plans integrate both recurrent (routine) activities and non-recurrent activities (investments, projects) to ensure resources are adequately distributed across the different functional areas. The operational plans only include activities that are currently achievable with existing staffing, technical and financial resources, including the co-financing from PONT.

Using pre-defined templates developed by the national authorities on protected areas in both Albania and North Macedonia, the protected areas in the Prespa-Ohrid Ecoregion prepare annual (operational) plans that are subject of formal approval by the national authorities. Aside from the budget that is more detailed, the template developed by PONT is similar in content to those used under national legislation. The operational plans and budget are prepared at the end of each calendar year for the subsequent one and constitute the key element of the grant applications submitted to PONT; the grant application process of PONT is aligned with the national system planning and reporting cycles to avoid duplication of work.

Although operational plans have been in use for about a decade in North Macedonia and for several years in Albania, management and on-ground work continued to be largely ad-hoc and inconsistent. The PONT template and the input from the regular METT assessments enable protected area managers develop more realistic annual

operational plans and budget. The PONT template prompts the managers to plan in more detail the deployment of human, financial and technical resources related to the basic functional areas, such as biodiversity monitoring, patrolling, habitat restoration, environmental education or visitor management that were often neglected in the past. This proved to be quite a challenging task due to the lack of adequate procedures and systems in place, in particular for functions and activities where no prior experience exists.
