News and updates from BCSDN and the region
From 22 February- 2 March 2021, through seven online consultation meetings with the Western Balkans and Turkey IPA beneficiaries, EU TACSO 3 presented and received feedback to the draft version of the Guidelines for EU Support to Civil Society in the Enlargement Region for the period 2021-2027. Over 300 CSO representatives, public authorities, donors, and
Read more →On 25-26 February 2021, Think for Europe Network – TEN organized the WeBER 2.0 conference to enhance the dialogue on creating and implementing inclusive and transparent policies, taking into consideration citizens’ needs. The event, which is one of the 10 initiatives supported by Sida through BCSDN’s Regional Civil Society Development Hub, strived to facilitate greater
Read more →The Presidents of the European Commission, European Parliament, and Council have signed the Joint Declaration on the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE), agreeing to “open a new space for debate with citizens to address Europe’s challenges and priorities” so people all over Europe can “have their say on the future of Europe”. The “citizens-focused,
Read more →ECNL, Civil Society Europe, and other civil society partners call on the European Commission to strengthen the rule of law mechanism by including stronger civic freedoms and civil society protection. Some of the recommendations that the future MSs rule of law reports should contain are: Revised methodology to set a clear link between the respect of
Read more →As part of the Regional Civil Society Development Hub activities, BCSDN is proud to announce the 10 successful grantees awarded under the first Call for proposals for regional multi-country action grants. The aim of the Hub is strengthened regional cooperation in promoting the civic space in the Western Balkan region, by supporting activities that will
Read more →On 11 February 2021, EU TACSO 3 organized an online event to present the findings of the “Mapping and Needs Assessment of the Regional Networks and Regional CSF Projects” report. Panelists from four regional networks from the Balkans exchanged success stories of operating in a network. Tina Divjak, from CNVOS, as a chair of the
Read more →In its new publication, MCIC presents the case in which the Government of North Macedonia in 2020 decided to cut and then return and allocate funds to CSOs from the state budget. Following the basic principles of transparency and accountability, the publication offers conclusions and recommendations essential for establishing state support procedures for CSOs. The
Read more →The Expert Council on NGO Law of the Council of Europe published a review that analyzes the practices on NGOs’ participation in policy development in CoE member states. It presents the good practices and challenges of NGOs’ participation, providing an additional guide for the member states to ensure relevant application of the CoE standards and
Read more →On 29 January 2021, the Balkan Civil Society Development Network (BCSDN) held a meeting with the Commission’s Directorate-General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) representatives working on Western Balkans. The discussion was followed by more than 30 representatives, including countries’ EUDs and TACSO representatives. The aim of the meeting was BCSDN to present its
Read more →On 1 February, BCSDN participated at the FRP meeting 2021: Human Rights Work in Challenging Times– Ways Forward. The virtual event provided a platform on which the participants across Europe could share their opinion and lessons learned regarding the human rights challenges and opportunities they were faced in times of COVID-19. The event accented the
Read more →Economist Intelligence Unit presents its 13th edition of the Democracy Index, providing a snapshot of democracy in 165 independent states and two territories. The report’s main focus is the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on democracy and freedom across the world. It reveals that besides Albania that improved its democratic status, the rest of the
Read more →EU TACSO 3 project has been mandated by the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) to facilitate the preparation of the Guidelines for EU Support to Civil Society in the Enlargement Region for the period 2021-2027. The first step was a preliminary discussion on the effects and lessons learned from the current Guidelines results
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