The government reviewed an informative report prepared by the Ministry of the Interior proposing measures to simplify and accelerate the procedures for constructing shelters and adapting buildings for shelter purposes.
Minister of the Interior Jānis Dombrava stated: "Our goal is to make the creation of shelters faster and simpler. Previous experience showed that in certain cases, disproportionate requirements were applied even to relatively minor adaptation works—instead of merely replacing wiring or lighting, it was necessary to draft a construction project, hire a construction supervisor, and perform other procedures that drove up costs and delayed progress. Therefore, we have reviewed the existing procedures. Together with the Ministry of Economics, we will develop standardized technical solutions, expand eligible costs to include engineering consultations, and allocate an additional EUR 10 million in ERDF funding for the construction of new standardized shelters. This will enable municipalities and state institutions to develop the shelter network much faster and more efficiently."
Currently, shelter adaptation in Latvia is supported through the European Union Cohesion Policy Programme 2021–2027. Funding exceeding EUR 26.1 million has been earmarked to adapt and equip at least 500 facilities for civil protection needs by the end of 2029.
To date, 64 projects encompassing the adaptation and equipping of 509 facilities for shelter needs have been approved, including 434 municipal properties.
Concurrently, plans are underway to launch an additional project call, which will enable the implementation of at least 65 Category III shelter projects.
Efforts will also be made to promote the use of industrially manufactured, standardized shelters. Such shelters can be produced and installed significantly faster than traditionally constructed buildings; moreover, their design and approval process is simpler and their costs are more reasonable. Consequently, standardized technical specifications for the production and installation of these shelters are currently being developed.
