Skopje, 6 October 2022 (MIA) - The green agenda for the Western Balkans is a new growth strategy of the region, which orients the traditional economic model toward sustainable economy in line with the European Green Deal. It is incorporated into the Economic and Investment Plan, which has a real transformative potential aiming at stimulating long-term recovery of the Western Balkan countries and their economic convergence with the EU, Environment Minister Naser Nuredini told the ninth Environment for Europe Conference, held on Oct. 5-7 in Nicosia, Cyprus. Addressing a plenary session and a roundtable on "Greening the economy in the pan-European region and working towards sustainable infrastructure", Nuredini touched upon the challenges in establishing sustainable infrastructure and the most important barriers for planning and executing sustainable infrastructural solutions in the Western Balkans as well as on innovative solutions and the best practices in planning, financing and implementation. "To overcome the need from financing, it is necessary to strengthen the capacities for development of a project line in the region, which increases chances to attract potential financiers and alleviates financing," Nuredini said. Greening the economy is increasingly becoming a strategic priority for governments worldwide. In an attempt to promote green economy in the pan-European region, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in cooperation with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and other key actors, including OECD and the European Environment Agency, has developed a Pan-European Strategic Framework for Greening the Economy, in which sustainable infrastructure plays a key role.