As part of our efforts to provide a more enabling civil society environment, and to inform our audience about recent civil society developments in the region, we present our periodical civil society updates. Divided into three areas based on our flagship tool, the Monitoring Matrix, the April 2024 report highlights ongoing challenges and progress in areas of basic freedoms, financial sustainability, and government-CSO relations. In this edition, we find delays in legal reforms impacting civil society, increased state interference, and obstacles to freedom of expression across the Western Balkans. CSOs in Albania and Montenegro face regulatory challenges hindering VAT exemptions and operational sustainability. Lack of meaningful collaboration hampers progress in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, and North Macedonia. Civil society voices discontent over inactive Councils for cooperation between governments and civil society, alongside a lack of substantive communication. Explore the full update for comprehensive insights.
Source: BCSDN