In the border between Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the municipalities of Plužine and Foča are developing a new dimension of cooperation with a view to creating a joint tourism offer based on natural beauties and cultural heritage of the region. This joint approach increases visibility of the destination, attracts a larger number of visitors and builds stronger foundations for sustainable tourism.
Piva Lake, Drina River and magnificent mountain landscapes become the centres of new contents, including the adventure park, developed gazebos and enhanced tourism signalization that facilitates movement of visitors and reveals less known localities. Digital tools contribute to modern presentation of the destination, which makes the region closer to the needs of modern tourists.
Project manager of the Municipality of Plužine, Božidar Knežević, underlines that the important steps have already been implemented: the electric bicycles have been purchased for development of MTB tourism in both municipalities, the equipment for rescue on water has been secured and joint field exercise for local search and rescue services implemented. In the period ahead, a promotional tour is planned for tour operators, media and influencers, as well as a joint participation in the Tourism Fair in Belgrade 2026. A special focus is put on the strengthening of capacities of search and rescue services, which brings more security to the visitors and contributes to preservation of natural heritage, the key resource for both municipalities.
Director of the Tourism Organization of Foča, Spomenka Popadić, underlines that the project has already brought visible changes to the city. Lighting bridges and Clock Tower emphasized the historical heritage, while electric bicycles, that are already in use, promote sustainable and active tourism. As a person living in Foča, I observe how the project is changing the everyday atmosphere in the city and bringing it closer to the modern tourism trends.
Developing new and upgrading the existing amenities, the project will enrich tourism offer in the cross-border area and contribute to increasing the number of tourists and visitors, as well as to increasing the revenues of the local and national economy.
Investments like installation of the adventure park in Plužine, LED lighting of the key tourism attractions in Foča and purchase of e-bicycles in both municipalities, make a constituent part of the activities that will be aligned with the integral tourism development strategy for Plužine and Foča that the project will work on. Installation of signalization boards and platforms for sight-seeing in the key tourism locations in both municipalities, together with the solar benches for charging mobile devices, will make the stay of tourists and visitors more pleasant and more interesting. In addition to the activities that contribute to a new and more pleasant experience, the project took into account the security of visitors that it enhances by purchasing equipment for rescue on the Piva Lake and Drina River, as well as by organization of exercises and better coordination.
The project is financed by the European Union within the IPA III Cross-Border Cooperation Programme Bosnia and Herzegovina – Montenegro 2021 – 2027, while the period of implementation is from 1 December 2024 to 30 November 2026. It is implemented by the Municipality of Plužine, in cooperation with the Municipality of Foča, Tourism Organization of the Municipality of Foča and Nature Park Piva. The total value of the project is a bit smaller than 530,000.00 euros. The value of the EU support to the project is over 447,000.00 euros, while the budget for Montenegrin partners is a bit more than 268,000.00 euros.
By: Direction for Bilateral Cross-Border Programmes and Antena, Nikšić
This text was published in the 17th issue of Eurokaz magazine.