What's New

News and updates from BCSDN and the region

Whistle-Blower Status in the Western Balkans: A Guarantee of Protection or Persecution?

An article supported with interview statements from anti-corruption experts from the region examines the state of the whistle-blower’s protection practices in the Western Balkans was published by the European Western Balkans. The article notes that despite their contribution to transparency and justice, individuals who report illegalities are very often deprived of adequate treatment. Zorana Marković,

Read more →

Strengthening Resilience of Youth to Organized Crime

A policy brief published by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime looks at topics of common interest to CSOs in the Western Balkans dealing with issues related to organized crime. The main findings suggest CSOs in small communities can make a big difference but are also more exposed, they need support from other CSOs,

Read more →

The Turning Point for AI Accountability

The European Centre for Not-for-Profit Law (ECNL) has published its second set of proposals on the EU AI Act amendments focus on risk designation and impact assessments – flexibility mechanisms that support innovation and fundamental rights. In the document, ECNL calls on the EU to adopt meaningful fundamental rights impact assessment requirements for AI systems

Read more →

Philanthropy Forum in Kosovo

As a part of the Citizen Engagement Activity, implemented by our member Kosovar Civil Society Foundation (KCSF), in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development in Kosovo, the first meeting of the Informal Philanthropy Forum in Kosovo was held in Pristina, last week. Designed to be a platform for dialogue and action between

Read more →

Regional Anti-Corruption Forum in Skopje

Institute for Democracy Societas Civilis – Skopje, our member organization, Macedonian Centre for International Cooperation and Southeast European Leadership for Development Initiative (SELDI) held a regional forum: “Fighting Corruption: The Western Balkans in Focus” in Skopje last week. The event aimed to give impetus to ongoing and necessary anti-corruption reforms and to provide a space

Read more →

TACSO  Civil Society Guidelines 2020 Assessment Report

EU TACSO has published Assessment of the State of the Enabling Environment and Capacities of Civil Society against the2014-2020 Guidelines for EU Support to Civil Society in the Enlargement region for the year 2020. The study has been carried out by a team of researchers of the Balkan Civil Society Development Network. The main focus

Read more →

CSO Representatives in North Macedonia Dissatisfied with the Government’s Draft-Program for Financing CSOs and Foundations

The Council for Cooperation between the Government and the Civil Society in North Macedonia does not agree with the suspension of the procedure for adoption of the General Secretariat’s Draft-Program for financing the program activities of the associations and foundations for 2022. With this decision, the Government has abandoned the current good practice for consultations

Read more →

COVID-19 Pandemic Influence on Civil Society in BiH

Centre for the Promotion of Civil Society has published and promoted the research on the state of Civil Society under the CVID-19 circumstances, for 2020. The main goal of the research is to show the consequences of civil society organizations in BiH due to reduced public funding by all levels of government in order to

Read more →

Civil Society’s Shrinking Space

Civil society needs a safe and enabling environment. That civic space has been shrinking in parts of Europe was widely documented even before the pandemic hit. The adoption this month by the European Parliament of the report on this theme is crucial in the current political environment that emphasizes the need for CSOs to act,

Read more →

State of Youth Civil Society

Youth civil society’s lack of confidence in formal power and rejection of traditional hierarchies has led it to rely on its own creativity and embeddedness within communities to be a powerful force for good. Without youth civil society, communities’ recovery from the pandemic to date would have undoubtedly been held back. Youth civil society has

Read more →