IPA project ‘3C – Cross-border exchange with the aim of developing culture and creative industries’ was presented today in Podgorica. As emphasized at the presentation, the project provided funds for the restoration of the old Kotor prison facility, as well as for a cross-border model of cooperation in the field of creative industries.
During the event, Minister of Culture Aleksandar Bogdanovic and Deputy Chief Negotiator of Montenegro with the European Union and national IPA Coordinator Ivana Glisevic Djurovic addressed the attendees.
Minister Bogdanovic said it was envisaged that the old Kotor prison, in which 1.3m euros will be invested during the restoration, would become a creative hub for both local creators and residential artists.
With the restoration of the prison building in the Old Town of Kotor, the Ministry of Culture will continue to pursue a strategic goal aimed at promoting and developing the creative sector and creative industries in Montenegro. The creative hub, which will be put into operation within this project, is one of six such centres that the Ministry of Culture and its international partners plan to implement throughout Montenegro in order to support the sustainable development of the cultural and entrepreneurship sector – said Minister Bogdanovic.
He stressed that the 3C project represents a new positive example of cross-border cooperation between Montenegro, Albania and Italy, recalling that its total value is more than four million euros. Apart from the old prison in Kotor, the project will renovate the Cinema Studios in Tirana, set up an Art Park in the same city, while the Gamzi Square in Pula will be reconstructed, and the Molise Region will acquire the equipment needed to promote the cultural heritage there.
Ivana Glisevic Djurovic reminded that the 3C project was supported through the thematic invitation of the trilateral cross-border cooperation program for Italy, Albania and Montenegro, and that the thematic projects, because of their scope and concrete results, will represent the greatest innovation of this trilateral program in relation to the other eight European territorial cooperation programs in which Montenegro participates in 2014-2020. She emphasized that projects in which Montenegrin institutions are major partners – as in the case of the 3C project – represent a special responsibility, but also provide additional opportunities for our institutions in sharing valuable knowledge and experience with European partners and improving capacity both in managing funds and in adopting European standards in various fields.
The 3C project is supported under the Italy-Albania-Montenegro Cross-Border Cooperation Program and aims to enhance the cooperation of relevant actors in the programming area, through the establishment of innovative cultural and creative centres with residential arts programs and the creation of joint cross-border cooperation networks. The project will contribute to the integration of the cultural sector in the project territories through the exchange of information, knowledge, experience and creative potential. The results of the project relate to the establishment of residential arts programs, the opening of three multifunctional cultural centres in Montenegro, Italy and Albania and the establishment of a regional network of cultural entrepreneurs, with the aim of developing creative industries.
In addition to the Ministry of Culture, which is the main partner in the implementation of the project, the project partners are the Ministry of Economy of Montenegro, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Albania, Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments ‘Ghani Strazimiri’, Albania, Region of Pula – Department for Tourism, Economy, Culture and Territorial Development, Italy, the Molise Region, Italy and the Culture Foundation, Molise. Associated partners are the National Centre for Cinematography, Albania and the Gramsci Foundation, Pula, Italy.
