A story of people moving
the region forward.
Across the Western Balkans, EU accession lives in ordinary days, in every town and village, in the work people do and the futures they build. This is where those stories come together. Explore the campaign four ways, and follow it as it happens.
What is EU with YOU?
EU enlargement is the process through which countries join the European Union, strengthening their economies, institutions and public services along the way. But behind that definition are real people, and change that is already happening.
For people across the Western Balkans, enlargement shows up in everyday life. More jobs. Support for local businesses. Better roads and railways. The chance to study, travel and build a career through EU programmes.
EU with YOU is the campaign that tells that story through the people living it. From a family business that grew with EU backing, to a student on an Erasmus+ exchange, to the journalists and young creators shaping the conversation across the region.
Explore the campaign below.
Explore the campaign
Everything we create under EU with YOU, in one place. Four ways into the story. Select a category to open it.
01A Day in the LifeEvery story starts with you.
The biggest changes are the ones you can see in an ordinary day. A Day in the Life follows real people across the Western Balkans: a business owner, a farmer, a student, someone speaking up, and the small, concrete ways EU support shows up in the choices they make. Change happens one day at a time.
02Creative HubsWhere the region’s storytellers meet.
The biggest changes are the ones you can see in an ordinary day. A Day in the Life follows real people across the Western Balkans: a business owner, a farmer, a student, someone speaking up, and the small, concrete ways EU support shows up in the choices they make. Change happens one day at a time.
03Festivals & EventsThe EU story, out in the open.
Beyond our own hubs, EU with YOU shows up where the region gathers: the festivals and public events WeBalkans supports across the Western Balkans and in Brussels. These are the moments where regional journalists, YEAs and citizens meet the campaign face to face, from Europe Day celebrations to cultural festivals. Here’s where we’ve been, and what it looked like.
04Campaign ContentEverything we made, in one place.
The biggest changes are the ones you can see in an ordinary day. A Day in the Life follows real people across the Western Balkans: a business owner, a farmer, a student, someone speaking up, and the small, concrete ways EU support shows up in the choices they make. Change happens one day at a time.
IN THE MEDIA
EU with YOU on social
Follow the story as it happens.
The campaign doesn’t stop here. Every day it lives across our social media channels. This section is the campaign in real time.
- €1.4bn+ committed across 150+ projects
- 53 modernised schools
- €477m in grants supporting €4.7bn of investment
- Candidate status (2022)
- Negotiations opened (2024)
- Reform Agenda submitted to unlock Growth Plan funding.
- Visa-free Schengen travel since 2024
- EU support for digital infrastructure
- Reform Agenda approved
- Negotiations opened (2022)
- Corridor VIII connectivity with Bulgaria
- Growth Plan funds for green transition & skills
- All 33 chapters opened
- First Growth Plan funds released in 2025
- Investment in energy, transport and rule of law
- EU is the largest trade & investment partner (65% of FDI)
- First Growth Plan funds released Jan 2026
