Ohrid Lake Region - Safe Destination for Adventure Travel
The Project addresses one of the main constraints limiting successful development of adventure tourism in the cross-border Ohrid Lake region. The main goal of the Action was to contribute to the development of adventure tourism in this region, by establishing for the first time an efficient voluntary Mountain Rescue Service in the cross-border region, equipped and trained according to international practices and ICAR recommendations, thus increasing the safety of domestic and foreign visitors.
Cross-border/international
North Macedonia
Albania
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Ohrid Lake Region.
Municipalities in North Macedonia: Ohrid, Struga, Debrca, Vevchani, and Resen.
Municipalities in Albania: Pogradec.
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
Yes
IPA : Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance
IPA II Cross Border Cooperation Programme, Republic of North Macedonia - Republic of Albania, 2014-2020
No
Yes
2019-10-31
As individual(s) in partnership with organisation(s)
First name: Antonio Last name: Dodevski Gender: Male Please describe the type of organization(s) you work in partnership with: NGO Nationality: orth Macedonia Function: Project Manager Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: ul. Klenoec 2A Town: Ohrid Postal code: 6000 Country: North Macedonia Direct Tel:+389 71 342 248 E-mail:ohrid.ipa2cbc@gmail.com Website:https://pss.org.mk/
The overall objective of the Project “Ohrid Lake Region – Safe Destination for Adventure Travel” was to contribute to the development of adventure tourism in the Lake Ohrid cross-border region by increasing the safety of domestic and foreign visitors.
The specific objectives were to establish two rescue services for mountains and water for efficient interventions in cases of emergency, Mountain rescue service in Ohrid and a Water rescue service in Pogradec.
A modern rescue and training center was opened, local beaches in Pogradec were marked and signposted, and specialized equipment for mountain and water rescue was purchased.
By introducing and knowledge transfer about international standards and recommendations of ICAR (International Commission for Alpine Rescue) for mountain rescue service and ILS (International Lifesaving Standard) for water rescue service, 52 mountain rescuers and 40 water lifeguards are certified. The rescuers with the best performance and ability were further trained to become instructors.
By joining all parties involved in the rescue system: police, ambulance, local authorities, National Park, and existing local Centers for crisis management this Project contributed to a better collaboration that enabled the Rescue Services to efficiently operate in the region. The newly established rescue services and the set of risk management procedures and standards are strongly promoted to the tourism sector in order to be used in enhancing the competitiveness of the Ohrid Lake region for adventure tourism. During the implementation of the Project, there were numerous rescue interventions, as well as securing various outdoor events, thus confirming the need to establish efficient mountain and water rescue services.
This success story continued with the three-year implementation of the Project “New Opportunities for Safe Winter Adventures”, also under the same IPA CBC program, currently under evaluation process.
Safety
Adventure tourism
Mountain rescue
Lifeguard
Volunteer
Within the Action, a Feasibility Study for the Mountain Rescue Service was made and models for financial sustainability were developed. The main idea is the Service to act on a voluntary basis, with financial support from the municipalities covered by the Service. Ownership of the equipment intended for the Mountain Rescue Service was transferred to the Ohrid Red Cross. The available facilities and the team of trained trainers for mountain rescue ensure continuous capacity building of new mountaineers, alpinists and future rescuers. The municipality of Pogradec is obliged by national regulations to establish a Water Rescue Service. By this, the financial sustainability of the water rescue team is secured. The municipality provided material support (office, warehouse, etc.) for the operation of the Service, and funding for smooth operation is provided by concessionaires. The ownership of the purchased equipment was passed to the municipality of Pogradec, which ensures the use, safekeeping, and maintenance of the same.
By supporting the development of adventure tourism, the Action contributed to the protection of the environment and the preservation of natural resources and biodiversity. Additional to their primary service of rescuing in cases of accidents and emergencies, the teams are also often involved in action for saving animals from inaccessible terrains, food distribution and evacuation of animals in cases of heavy snow and blocked roads, food supply for wild animals in the existing nature reserves, etc. The Service is often engaged to support firefighters in cases of forest fires or other natural disasters. With their presence on the field, they often prevent actions that harm the environment. Inspired by these Services, voluntary organizations have been formed in other regions, which led to the establishment of the National Union for Mountain Rescue, in November 2020, with the goal to be established a National Mountain Rescue Service in R. North Macedonia.
The establishment of an efficient Mountain Rescue Service in the cross-border region has significantly increased interest among the local population, especially the younger population, in outdoor activities and healthy lifestyles. Proof of this is the constant growth of calls to the Mountain Rescue Service, which corresponds to the growth of visitors in the high mountain areas. One can conclude the same from the increased sale of entrance tickets to the National Parks and from the increased number of overnight stays, especially in rural accommodation facilities, as well as from the opening of new accommodation facilities. On the other hand, the volunteer rescue service inspired local young people and increased their interest in getting involved in this or similar volunteer initiatives to support and strengthen local communities. In Albania, regarding tourism, special attention is paid to the sea coastal region, where in the last 20 years there have been serious investments in the development of the tourist infrastructure, resulting in a rapid increase in the number of visitors, forcing the authorities to focus on the safety in this region. The high mountain areas remained neglected, which is the main reason for the lack of a lake shore security system on the Albanian side of Lake Ohrid. This resulted in a significant number of accidents and several lost lives every year. The project encouraged the establishment of an efficient lifeguard service in the summer tourist season, which for several years recorded a large number of interventions. The number of victims was significantly reduced, until 2022, when no cases with fatal consequences were recorded.
The rescue services are activated in case of emergency or accident, whereby is totally irrelevant who the person in need is and his/her class, religion, ethnicity, politics, or any other affiliation. Thus, the newly established services increased not only the safety of domestic and foreign travelers but also of the communities in the cross-border Ohrid Lake region. On the other hand, while implementing the Project, care was taken to allow for greater inclusion of vulnerable categories, as well as gender equality, during rescue training, with no discrimination whatsoever. As regards gender representation, additional measures were taken to motivate as many women as possible to be included in the training, which significantly improved the ratio of men to women in the rescue services.
Considering safety is a key prerequisite for the successful and sustainable development of adventure tourism, the establishment of these Services for the first time has a great impact on everyday living and tourism. The number of rescue interventions and assistance, delivery of food and medicine in cut-off places and communities, and the assistance they provide to the local government services (firefighters, police, army, ambulance, etc.), once again proves the need and benefits of these kinds of Services.
In addition to the rescue interventions and assistance, the Services are regularly engaged in supporting various outdoor events.
Also, tour operators, travel agencies and other tourism service providers involved in adventure travel are having direct benefit from the Action, reflected in the increased business opportunity in adventure tourism as a result of securing efficient rescue services. Now, the tourist sector has the possibility to offer new and undiscovered adventure travel destinations to their clients while at the same time securing their safety.
The project idea was developed upon consultations held with the local authorities in both Albania and Macedonia, National Parks, providers of tourism services in the region such as travel agencies, tour operators, local small-scale service providers, sports clubs (mountain and alpine clubs, ski and snowboard clubs, paragliding clubs, etc). This project idea was fully supported by the involved stakeholders. Most of them were among the main target groups of this Action: tour operators, travel agencies, and other service providers involved in adventure travel, small-scale businesses, and local communities. The action helped tourism providers in creating new, innovative products. Moreover, encouraged the municipalities to create a climate for business growth, to create opportunities for new jobs and income, and encouraged local people to start investing in tourism facilities, reducing migration and unemployment of young people. By establishing the new mountain infrastructure and operative Mountain Rescue Service and Lifeguards, various tourist providers had an opportunity to create competitive adventure travel products, where the safety of adventurers is secured.
The project developed strong cooperation with all parties in risk management: police, ambulance, firefighters, local centers for crisis management, National Park, and local authorities from Ohrid and Pogradec. The joint development of the standard operating procedures between the newly established rescue services and risk management stakeholders contributed to the effectiveness of rescue operations.
The project idea was developed on two main knowledge fields: mountain and water rescue on one side and adventure tourism on the other. Through the organization of workshops for adventure tourism service providers, knowledge and awareness about the benefits of rescue services were raised. The increased safety of tourists and locals in the Ohrid Lake region enhanced the region's competitiveness in adventure travel tourism. Now, tour operators (domestic and foreign) have the possibility to offer new and undiscovered destinations to their clients, while at the same time, their safety is secured by the mountain and water rescuers trained according to the ICAR (International Commission for Alpine Rescue) and ILS (International Lifesaving Standards) recommendations.
Project impact was accomplished by delivering the results and outcomes: 1. Infrastructure for two rescue centers. Operational training center for the Mountain Rescue Service in Ohrid and marked and signposted local beaches for the lifeguards in Pogradec; 2. Procedures and standards for the rescue systems were defined and agreed; the recommendations of ICAR for the mountain rescue service and ILS for the water rescue service were applied; standard operating procedures are followed in risk management in tourism in Ohrid Lake region; 3. Trainers and rescuers for rescue services are trained;
These accomplished results led to the first projected outcomes: To establish two rescue centers for mountain and water rescue for efficient interventions and Certified mountain and water rescuers are ready for engagement
4. Tour operators and domestic and foreign visitors are aware of and use the newly developed rescue services. A guidebook for risk management in adventure tourism was published for the use of tour operators, tourist agencies, and other service providers. Also, an SOS mobile application was developed which enables quick contact with the rescue services.
5. The basis for a cross-border partnership and network for risk management in tourism was established. By organizing meetings, joint actions, and events, cross-border cooperation started.
These accomplished results led to the second projected outcome: To promote Ohrid Lake region as a safe destination for adventure travel activities.
The three pillars of the system: infrastructure, equipment, and rescuers, were gradually completed. According to statistics only in the first year, the rescuers have intervened in rescue operations involving 11 people, mainly tourists. In addition to the 24/7 operation of the Mountain Rescue Service, lifeguards in Pogradec are safeguarding the signposted beach areas on a daily basis in the summer period, thus contributing to the development of adventure tourism in the region.
The Action was a result of non-existent policies and regulations on a national level for terrestrial and water rescue. The weak reaction of the responsible national institutions to address the issue of risk and safety management in tourism has called for a bottom-up and proactive approach from the local stakeholders of the region. On a local level, the planned measures resulted in the development of standard operating procedures (SOP) in prevention and accident management. The setting up of rescue services according to high international standards for the provision of speedy and effective actions in case of emergencies and accidents, increased the competitiveness of the tourism business. This Action raised the importance of the topic of safety and risk management in tourism, which led to forming of the National Union for Mountain Rescue, with the purpose of establishing a national mountain rescue service at the level of national policy and regulations.
The proposed implementation of the Action strives to raise attention on the topic of risk and safety management in tourism as a prerequisite for further development of this sector. The Action enabled a systemic solution for the two new Services for the provision of safety and risk management by efficient interventions in cases of emergency on mountains and water. A solid base for future advancement of these services in the cross-border region was created, as a show model to be replicated in other regions. Through the implementation of the planned activities the following methods were used:
- Systematic approach in building risk and safety management
- The method of transfer of good practices and know-how was used in the process of establishing the water rescue service in Pogradec. The standard operating procedures and the functional network of relevant stakeholders used in the water rescue unit in Ohrid will be transferred to the municipality of Pogradec.
- Capacity development at an individual level (competence development) including theoretical and practical methods and learning by doing.
- Networking opportunities enabled through joint workshops, meetings, and events organized within the Action. Close networking of the local police, ambulances, firefighters, local centers for crisis management, National Park, and local authorities is crucial for the establishment of efficient rescue services and their future sustainability.
- Capacity building measures for tour operators and other tourism stakeholders on the topic of risk and safety management through organized workshops and events.
- Awareness-raising activities about the importance of safety and risk management. With the combination of printed and electronic and audio/visual instruments, a broad coverage was ensured.
The Action continued with the dissemination of project progress and results through different channels and methods. During the Project implementation with the municipality and other relevant stakeholders from Pogradec, the ways and possibilities for establishing the mountain rescue service in Albania were initiated. The ultimate objective is to ensure the whole cross-border Ohrid Lake region's coverage with water and mountain rescue services. The project's long-term vision was for the cross-border Lake Ohrid region to function as one attractive tourist destination that secures the safety of its visitors. The successful achievement of the set objectives of the Action demonstrated a model that can be used as a best practice example and be replicated beyond the borders of the Ohrid Lake region. The establishment of rescue services, as a measure to increase the competitiveness of the tourism business, was innovative not only for the Ohrid Lake region, and inspired other voluntary rescue teams to be actively involved in mountain rescue. As a result, a National Union for Mountain Rescue was formed, unifying all the voluntary mountain rescue teams with a single goal to be created a national mountain rescue service.
Threats from climate change increased the challenges of nature protection and thus the safety and well-being of people. A good organization and set of civil protection systems that ensure the safety and security of people are of crucial importance. Considering that we live in a region that has experienced social transformation in the previous 30 years, civil protection systems are one of the most affected, with the slowest implementation of reforms. In that direction, efficient volunteer rescue systems established in accordance with European and international practice through this kind of action, represent serious support for local communities. Also, it is fulfilling the lack of a civil protection system on a national level. On the other hand, these actions represent an excellent model (know-how) for quick implementation in other regions as well. In addition to the fact that the capacities of the civil protection systems are increased in this way, such projects at the local level also have serious economic significance, especially for tourism, but also for other economic branches that take place in high mountainous and rural areas. Adventure tourism in the last 10 years has continuously recorded a high growth rate in the world, and in the countries of Western Balkans, where still in its infancy, precisely because of the lack of efficient systems that guarantee the safety of visitors.
