News and updates from BCSDN and the region
An Istanbul court on 25 October ordered the release of a group of leading Turkish human rights campaigners and two foreign co-workers in a surprise softening in Turkey’s yearlong prosecutions after a 2016 coup attempt. The decision was an interim ruling, and the case against the 11 human rights workers will continue. But eight of
Read more →As part of the intensifying crackdown on civil society groups despite growing international criticism, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán called on Hungary’s spy agencies to investigate a ‘Soros empire’ of NGOs that criticize his policies. The latest move comes months ahead of Orbán seeking for a fourth term as Hungary’s prime minister. He said on national
Read more →Representatives of eight major CSOs in Macedonia, including BCSDN’s member MCIC, have developed a Draft-Roadmap for civil society development in Macedonia for the period 2018-2020. All interested CSOs are invited to actively participate in the Roadmap development by commenting on the proposals encompassed in the document. After the commenting phase, consultations will be organized around
Read more →Civil society is facing a sustained, multi-faceted, global onslaught. According to the CIVICUS Monitor, fundamental civic freedoms are being severely restricted in an unprecedented number of countries. The operating environment for CSOs is becoming more hostile across the world and the organised bits of civil society – including in the biggest INGOs – are looking
Read more →The EU could take a generation to meet the 0.7%ODA/GNI target at the current rate of growth, reveals the CONCORD AidWatch Report 2017. While 2016 saw a substantial increase of 27% in development spending, there has also been a relatively dramatic increase in reporting of inflated aid, such as in-donor costs or debt relief. Over
Read more →It is a commonplace that corruption is the major stumbling block to aid effectiveness: in the U.S., the average response to the question “how much aid ends up in the pocket of corrupt officials?” is 60 percent, while in the UK, more than half of people surveyed said corruption is the single most important reason
Read more →BCSDN, as part of the activities of the Western Balkan CSOs for Global Development project, has published two country papers on Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina, analyzing the state of play with the civil society and the environment in which it operates in both countries. The country papers give background on the countries’ socio-economic situation and recent
Read more →Respect for freedom of expression and assembly is one of the key indicators of a government’s respect for human rights, and one of the pillars of modern participatory democracy. When people exercising their freedom of expression challenge or criticise government, or demonstrations are organised to oppose government policy or leaders, or even powerful non- state
Read more →How can the private sector, understood as organisations engaging in profit-seeking activities, contribute to realising the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development globally? In different ways, the private sector has already led many voluntary initiatives that contribute to sustainable development. However, to realise our collective transition towards a system that offers people worldwide a dignified life
Read more →In response to the evolution of the world economy and its impact on Europe, the European Commission proposed a set of programmes to boost jobs, growth and investment across the European Union. The programmes are part of the multiannual financial framework 2014-2020. This publication guides you through these programmes and the funding opportunities they offer
Read more →TACSO Office in Montenegro, in cooperation with the Center for Development of Non-Governmental Organizations (CRNVO), is organizing the third NVO EXPO fair for Montenegrin CSOs. The fair will be held in Budva on 28 October 2017 at Jadranski Sajam. The aim of this Fair is to improve and increase the visibility of activities of civil
Read more →Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the Black Sea NGO Forum must reassess its strategic positioning in the region and how it can adapt and further develop the opportunities it provides for the CSOs in the Black Sea Region to enable sustainable regional cooperation. For this reason, this year’s edition aims at: Reflecting on the achievements accomplished
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