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Author: WeBalkans

EU rolls out €21 million mobility scheme for culture professionals

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The European Commission has signed an agreement with the Goethe-Institut to implement a new €21 million mobility scheme for artists and cultural professionals: Culture Moves Europe. The new Culture Moves Europe will become a permanent action under the Creative Europe programme and follows the successful I-Portunus pilot project that operated between 2018 and 2022. The scheme builds on the recommendations stemming from this pilot phase.

 

It will offer grants to artists, cultural operators, and host organisations from all the sectors covered by the culture strand and from the countries participating in the Creative Europe programme. Emerging artists will receive special attention.

 

Culture Moves Europe has a budget of €21 million over the next three years. This will allow around 7,000 artists, creators and cultural professionals to go abroad for professional development or international collaborations, to co-produce, co-create and present their works to new audiences.

 

The first calls are expected in autumn 2022.

EU supports the first International Prosciutto Fair in Montenegro

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The first International Prosciutto Fair in Montenegro – MESAP 2022 – was organised at Dvorski Square in Cetinje on 14 and 15 July, with the financial support of partners including the European Union in Montenegro. Seventeen exhibitors from Montenegro, countries of the region and beyond presented their products, giving visitors the opportunity to enjoy a free tasting of cured meat delicacies.

 

Aside from the promotion of prosciutto, the organisers had games offering prizes for visitors, a competition for the most beautifully decorated stand, and a concert with local performers and popular regional stars such as Jelena Tomašević and Kaliopa.

 

The fair also had an educational character. Excellent professors and lecturers, the Director of the Cluster of Croatian Prosciutto, Ante Madir, and Professor Vladimir Tomović from the University of Novi Sad introduced the process for production of prosciutto.

 

In addition to the EU in Montenegro, MESAP 2022 was also supported by the Montenegrin Prosciutto Cluster, the Tourism Organisation Prijestonica Cetinje, the Old Royal Capital Cetinje, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Water Management, the Ministry of Economic Development and Tourism, the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro, and the company Mtel Imate Prijatelje.

EU donates refrigerators to Bosnia and Herzegovina for vaccine storage

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The European Union has donated medical equipment worth €355,000 to health institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The donation includes 253 refrigerators and cooling devices, as well as spare equipment for refrigerators, portable devices for vaccines, ice packs, and cold rooms. This high-quality equipment will be used for the storage of vaccines against COVID-19 as well as other vaccines, in order to preserve their quality and effectiveness.

 

Head of the EU Delegation and EU Special Representative in BiH, Johann Sattler, officially handed over the equipment to the Minister of Civil Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ankica Gudeljević, in Sarajevo. The equipment will further improve the capacities of the healthcare cold chain.

 

The equipment was procured through the EU-funded EU4Health project worth over €13 million, which enables the procurement of vaccines, equipment and materials for immunisation, cold chain equipment and vehicles for the transport of vaccines. The project is part of the EU’s overall support to BiH for crisis mitigation and recovery from the pandemic in the health and economic sectors, for which the EU has allocated over €95 million.

Reloading cooperation with civil society

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Local governments in Albania improve their capacity to manage cooperation with civil society with the support of the European Union.

The European Commission’s 2016 progress report for Albania identified that local government lacked adequate capacity to ensure proper cooperation and funding of civil society. The report noted the need for adequate administrative and legal structure changes and increased human capacity to enable a better environment for cooperation between civil society and local government.

Stela Mardusha has worked as a specialist in the European Integration Department at Shkodra Municipality for eight years. She explains the difficulties that the municipality used to face in disbursing funds and cooperating with civil society. “We did not have any specific methodology for cooperation with civil society organisations (CSOs). This made it difficult for us to have targeted CSO projects with clearly defined priorities and results,” says Stela.

The Regional Programme on Local Democracy in the Western Balkans (ReLOaD) is a regional initiative financed by the European Union and implemented by UNDP in the six Western Balkans countries. In 2017, ReLOaD in Albania launched a call for municipalities to apply to be part of the support programme that aimed to help them increase administrative and human capacity efficiency in cooperating with civil society organisations. Shkodra municipality was among 35 municipalities that applied and among 12 municipalities that were granted support.

“There is a considerable workload, but in the end, it is all worth it because it provides an excellent opportunity to work closely with civil society.”

For Stela, the main and most important novelty introduced by the programme was the LOD methodology and manual which was approved by the Municipality Council at the beginning of cooperation with the ReLOaD programme. “LOD” stands for Local Democracy and is an instrument closely aligned with EU rules on the financing of external actions and guaranteeing an open procedure, equal opportunities for all candidates, visibility, and transparency. The manual starts with setting priorities, and covers the launch of the call, management of the project and implementation and monitoring of progress. “There is a considerable workload, but in the end, it is all worth it because it provides an excellent opportunity to work closely with civil society,” says Stela.

Strengthening human resources to improve the quality of services

Strengthening the capacity of the partner municipalities’ staff and CSOs, in the area of the project management cycle, was one of the key pillars of the ReLOaD programme. In addition to the introduction of the LOD methodology, the programme also supported partner municipalities in training their staff on the implementation of the methodology. The training included technical knowledge on drafting reports and budgets, project implementation and monitoring, with the standards of the European Union, and other necessary skills. Stela says that in addition to bringing her in close contact with civil society organisations, this training helped her to structure good work practices.

The municipalities of Shkodra and Tirana adapted quickly and successfully applied the LOD methodology and now serve as mentors to new partner municipalities.

“After five years of experience, I call on my colleagues to benefit as much as possible from the opportunity that ReLOaD offers. It is a great learning experience for the administration: it is a long-term course where in the end the winners are local administrations, civil society organisations and society.”

About the project

The Regional Programme on Local Democracy in the Western Balkans (ReLOaD) is a regional initiative financed by the European Union and implemented by UNDP. The Programme aims to strengthen participatory democracies and the EU integration process in the Western Balkans by empowering civil society to take an active part in decision-making and by stimulating an enabling legal and financial environment for civil society and pluralistic media. It also works to strengthen partnerships between local governments and civil society in the Western Balkans by scaling up a successful model of transparent and project-based civil society organisation funding from local government budgets towards greater civic engagement in decision-making and improvement of local service delivery.

In the first three years, the ReLOaD programme also provided funding for local non-profit organisations. More than 5,000 Shkodra citizens benefited from initiatives promoting social inclusion, women’s empowerment, tourism, culture and youth. This grant scheme also enabled the officials from the municipality to implement the LOD methodology and their learning from the training.

Stela says that she has learned a lot from this successful journey and is now ready to share with her peers in other ReLOaD partner municipalities which have joined in 2021. “After five years of experience, I call on my colleagues to benefit as much as possible from the opportunity that ReLOaD offers. It is a great learning experience for the administration: it is a long-term course where in the end the winners are local administrations, civil society organisations and society,” Stela says.

EU starts accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia

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The European Union’s 27 members have agreed to open accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia. The decision came following the ‘historic’ vote in North Macedonia’s parliament at the weekend, which opened the way to the start to accession talks for both North Macedonia and Albania.

 

Today, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen issued a Press statement to mark the start of the accession negotiations process and of the screening of the EU acquis. Through this press statement, she addressed the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Petr Fiala, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Prime Minister of North Macedonia Dimitar Kovachevski.

 

On her address to the Prime Minister Kovachevski President von der Leyen stated as follows: “What a historic moment. Today, Albania and North Macedonia are opening the accession negotiations to the European Union, and I am so glad to be here with you. This is your success. It is your success and your citizens’ success. You and your citizens, you and your people have been working so hard to get here. You have shown so much enduring commitment to our values. You have demonstrated resilience. You maintained faith in the accession process. You strengthened the rule of law. You fought against corruption. You have free media. You have vibrant civil societies. You have done countless reforms and you have modernised your economies. You have made all these changes not just because they were necessary on your path towards the European Union, but above all because they are good for your countries. And they are already delivering a better quality of life for your people. We, the European Commission, have supported you all the way. And we will continue to do so. “

 

On her address to the Prime Minister Edi Rama President von der Leyen stated as follows: “Let me address you personally: You have shown so much leadership, so much vision. You have shown strategic patience, Edi, in abundance. And not only but importantly in these challenging times of Russia’s brutal war, you have proven time and again your attachment to European values, as true friends and true partners. And I want to personally thank you for that.”

 

On her address to the Prime Minister Petr Fiala President von der Leyen stated as follows: “Congratulations. Congratulations because the start of negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia is a major deliverable right at the beginning of your Czech Presidency. It is building on the work of previous Presidencies. And I know that you will now play an important role to make sure that this process advances swiftly. The people of Albania and North Macedonia deserve it. And we will all stand to gain when one day we welcome Albania and North Macedonia as full-fledged members of our European Union.”

 

Albania and North Macedonia’s leaders are meeting today Prime Minister Fiala in Brussels to discuss the next steps on their path to the EU.

Western Balkans Youth Orchestra Summer Tour 2022

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On Thursday, 14 July, rehearsals have started for 30 young musicians from Albania, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. They have gathered in Pristina for eight intensive days of preparation under the baton of conductor and pianist Desar Sulejmani, after which they will go on a Balkans concert tour, followed one month later by a concert tour in Germany.

 

The inaugural concert of the Western Balkan Youth Orchestra will take place in Pristina on Thursday, 21 July at the Bogdani Polis hall. The concert will start at 20:30, and on the menu are works by Chopin, Grieg, Tansman, Shostakovich, as well as a world premiere by Albanian composer Gerti Druga.

 

The Western Balkans Youth Orchestra (www.wbyo.org) is an initiative of Artium Eudora, a Pristina-based NGO that is promoting the arts as a tool for individual and social progress. The orchestra went on tour for the first time in October 2021, and in May 2022 it played at the occasion of the Europe Day in Novi Sad.

 

After the Pristina concert, the orchestra will continue its tour in Skopje, (22 July), Novi Sad (24 July), Mostar (26 July) and Kotor (28 July). In August, the young musicians will perform for the German audience with concerts in Berlin, Kassel, Königswinter, Aachen and Essen.

 

The 2022 WBYO tour has been made possible with the support of the EU Directorate-General for Enlargement and Neighbourhood, EU in Kosovo and North Macedonia, several Rotary Clubs of the Aachen region, the Engagement Global, the Foreign Ministries of Germany and Luxembourg, the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Kosovo, as well as the Austrian Cultural Forum in Serbia.

YEA at EXIT Festival in Novi Sad

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This July Young European Ambassadors (YEAs) gathered in Novi Sad, Serbia, to join the EXIT Festival. YEAs organised four different activities over the four days of the festival, and also had the chance to meet their peers from civil society.

 

On the first day, YEAs talked to visitors about the key topics that youth advocate for: environmental activities; cultural cooperation; associations with the EU; EU educational programmes and experiences; improving the treatment of vulnerable groups in local communities; and presented the YEA network. The second day was reserved for a “living library” where YEAs interacted with other young people by sharing their stories about Western Balkan culture, tourist sites, famous people, and their personal experiences.

 

On the third day of the Festival, YEAs organised a discussion on the main stage of the OPENS state of mind zone with topics of LGBTQ+ issues, inclusion, and youth participation and facilities. The speakers were Anja Jokić and Maša Vračar from the National Youth Council of Serbia, Nemanja Obradović from OPENS, and YEAs Anja Kafedziska (Serbia), Enes Pućurica (Montenegro) and Stjuart Islamaj (Albania), and the discussion was moderated by Filip Lukic from the EU Delegation to Serbia.

 

On the last day, YEAs and visitors painted a LGBTQ+ flag, leaving messages of support to the community.

Conference in Belgrade on Western Balkans and European foreign and security policy

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On 27 and 28 June the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) organised a conference titled “Moving the Western Balkans towards European foreign and security policy” supported by the EU’s Technical Assistance to Civil Society Organisations project, TACSO 3. The event marked 25 years of BCSP’s work and provided an opportunity to consolidate long-standing partnerships between BCSP and other Western Balkans think-tanks specialising in security policy within the Balkan Security Platform.

 

The conference brought together members of civil society from the region along with EU and world experts on foreign and security policy. It was attended by 76 participants in person and 17 via Zoom.

 

After the public event, members of the Balkan Security Platform continued with sessions dedicated to developing a joint advocacy plan for engaging EU audiences on foreign and security issues related to the Western Balkans and the Balkan Security Platform’s joint strategic plan for further cooperation on regional security issues.  An International Advisory Committee was formed, consisting of 16 internationally-recognised researchers, professors, representatives of the think-tank community, former officials, and experts in international relations, defence, security and the rule of law.

CONNECTA “Technical Assistance for Smart and Sustainable Mobility” workshop

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The second workshop within CONNECTA’s Technical Assistance for the Deployment of Smart and Sustainable Mobility in the Western Balkans-initiative was held in Belgrade this month.  
The event was attended by representatives of the Transport Community Permanent Secretariat, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy of Albania, the Albanian Institute of Transport, the Albanian Agency for Energy Efficiency, the Ministry of Transport and Communications of North Macedonia, the Public Enterprise for State Roads of North Macedonia, the Ministry of Construction, Transport, and Infrastructure of Serbia, the Public Enterprise Roads of Serbia and a representative of the Charge&GO company.  
The workshop agenda included a presentation of activities so far and an overview of practices in the region, with a review of the global situation for electric vehicles and e-charging.

Successful completion of the first cycle of the Superschools exchange scheme

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The Regional Annual School Conference took place on Tuesday 5 July in Struga, North Macedonia,  marking the successful completion of the first cycle of the Superschools programme run by the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO). This programme is a part of the “Western Balkans School Exchange Scheme” multi-donor project co-financed by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) together with RYCO.

 

This event gathered all participating schools represented by a teacher and a student in order to share their experiences, achievements, and results with young people, other teachers from the region, RYCO staff, ministry representatives, donors, and high-level officials. The event promoted the impact of exchanges and RYCO Superschools project in the region. A student fair featured as part of the event and gave the participants the chance to have in-person conversations with the schools that participated in the first cycle of the RYCO Superschools exchanges.