The IPA Cross-Border Cooperation Programme Montenegro-Kosovo 2014-2020 programming spanned for a period of eight months, from mid-September 2013 to mid-May 2014. However, preparations involving both Operating Structures of the respective countries started in June 2013 and continued until May 2014 during which the programme document has been revised two times. In the programming process stakeholders were frequently consulted and asked to provide information (e.g. municipal and regional statistics and strategies, national and domestic statistics, policy documents and strategies, donor publications and initiatives, etc.). In addition to the programming the following initiatives were taken and events organized as part of the programme process:
- A Joint Task Force (JTF) was established, consisting of a representation of stakeholders from both Montenegro and Kosovo for the preparation of this CBC programme.
- A survey on Cross Border Cooperation among regional stakeholders in the programme area (municipalities, sector associations/NGOs and SMEs) was developed, disseminated, collected, processed and analysed.
- In-depth interviews with representatives of line Ministries were conducted in October 2013.
- Two workshops were organized for JTF members – on 25 September 2013 in Podgorica for the Montenegrin JTF members and on 1 October 2013 in Pristina for the Kosovar JTF members – to inform them about the objective of Cross Border Cooperation, the technicalities of programming this document and their role as JTF members.
- Three JTF meetings were organized, the first one on 18 October 2013 in Pejë/Peć to review the draft situational analysis of this document, the second one on 15 November 2013 in Podgorica to review the draft programme strategy of this document and the third on 25 February 2014 in Podgorica to present the second draft of the document.
- A Western Balkan Regional Forum was organized on 21 and 22 November in Belgrade, where representatives of Kosovo and Montenegro presented the programming process and the main characteristics of the draft programme document submitted to the EC by 15 November 2013.
- Public consultations were held in both Montenegro (30 October 2013) and Kosovo (13 May 2014), and the feedback was taken into account while preparing the final draft of the document.
- The Commission commented on the first and the second draft of the document and provided suggestion on improvements in preparation of the final version submitted to the Commission on 25 May 2014.