Skopje Promises Cameras at 30 Locations by New Year - While the Ones on "Orce Nikolov", Installed Five Years Ago, Don't Work

The City of Skopje is announcing video surveillance at 30 critical locations - spots where illegal dumps keep springing up and parks where street furniture keeps getting smashed. The cameras will record 24 hours a day, five people will work in three shifts in a dedicated control centre in the City Hall building, and footage will be kept for a maximum of 30 days. According to the city, the whole system should be up and running by New Year at the latest.

There's just one small detail: the cameras haven't been bought yet. The public tender for them, and for the entire monitoring system, has yet to be published. That leaves a little over three months until New Year - for the tender, delivery, installation and training.

Skopje's cameras that don't record

Past experience isn't encouraging. Back in spring 2024, the Centar municipality adopted a decision on video surveillance of public spaces, complete with a monitoring centre and footage meant to serve as evidence for the Interior Ministry. More than two years later - nothing. The cameras on "Orce Nikolov" street were installed five years ago and don't work. Asked why the decision hasn't been implemented, the municipality responds with silence.

A few months ago, Butel announced it had started installing cameras. Whether they've actually been installed, how many there are and whether they record, the municipality hasn't said. Aerodrom launched the procedure after a children's playground was destroyed, but the system will only go live once the Personal Data Protection Agency gives its approval - and how much it will cost, they won't say. Karpoš, meanwhile, has trained four municipal officials to operate drones for inspection work.

The city promises to coordinate with the municipalities so that the locations are "properly integrated". Sounds nice. But before any integration, it would help if at least one of the announced cameras actually started recording. Vandals aren't afraid of council decisions - they're afraid of footage that ends up in front of someone who will act on it.