14. 2. 2018 | PR, Slovenian Development Assistance
After the obvious lethargy with the European Union by the politicians from the Western Balkans, who were in the last decade justifiably asking for some signal that enlargement is possible in the foreseeable future, that sign finally arrived in the form of the new the new European Commission’s Strategy for the Western Balkans on 6 February. After the EU and the region were caught in a limbo for a decade in which the EU demanded to see improvement in the region first but the region also anticipated a clear sign that EU’s expansion is actually possible, the EU finally did its homework.
After years of the situation deteriorating in the Balkans, where many social parameters declined badly, the EU included the Western Balkans on the enlargement map again. The Strategy indicates a year of 2025 as a possible year for the frontrunners, Serbia and Montenegro, to join the EU. It is now the Western Balkans’ homework to start delivering. Realistically, ten years from now seem like a more convincing date, however and more importantly, there seems to be the light at the end of the tunnel. The Strategy seems to arrive in the last moment before being too late. The region witnessed numerous small scale events, which contributed to the deteriorating of the security situation and reconciliation, especially between Serbia and Kosovo as well as in Macedonia. They proved that leaving the Western Balkans outside of the EU with no clear signals by the EU adds to the serious risks of even further democratic decline in the region.
The Strategy should now present an orientation plan in the state administrations of the Western Balkans six in order to boost the reform processes since it clearly recognizes the most pertaining problems the region: state capture, bilateral disputes and serious political interference in the media. The Strategy also proposes some encouraging measures, the opening of the additional EU funds, Western Balkans six government members could be included in the decision making process before the EU membership and lifting the barriers for trade and travel. The new Strategy puts a lot of emphasis on the rule of law with cooperation in security and migration through joint investigating teams and the European Border and Coast Guard, however there is not much direction how to achieve it in a step by step manner. External monitoring will be of utmost importance through various initiatives that are already active in the Western Balkans, each contributing a little piece in the mosaic, mostly country reports but also additional new tools and ad hoc reports in the field of corruption and organised crime since those fields, together with the judicial reform can pave the ground for the stable security situation on which further economic progress can be built.
2018 is thus setting the tone of what to expect in the years to come from the countries of the Western Balkans. ‘They will have to act with determination. Accession is and will remain a merit-based process fully dependent on the objective progress achieved by each country,’ stressed Commissioner Hahn, underlining that the process looks like a regatta and countries may catch up or overtake each other depending on progress made. The most difficult issue seem to be bilateral disputes, namely over borders, independence of Kosovo and the facts of wars in the 90s. There is no recipe on how to solve the bilateral disputes in the enlargement strategy. The current process of resolving the bilateral dispute between Greece and Macedonia nicely shows that those processes should be supported also by EU member states. If Greece and Macedonia fail to find an agreement on the name issue very soon, this will be a very bad signal for the whole region.
Civil society and all other actors across the EU and Western Balkans involved in the processes of region’s accession should be now involved as much as possible, so they can be able to put pressure on their own governments and support them in the right directions.
Op-ed was written by Ivana Boštjančič Pulko, Project Manager and Researcher at the Centre for European Perspective since 2008. Her focus are mainly development assistance projects in the Western Balkans in the area of security sector and rule of law reform as well as research activities in the field of conflict prevention and crisis management.
The views expressed in CEP commentary are the views of the author alone.
5. 2. 2018 | PR, Serbia - Opening Data
Centre for European Perspective is organizing international conference „Experience Exchange in Opening of Public Sector Data“, which will take place on Wednesday, 28 February 2018 in Belgrade, Hotel Zlatnik, Dobanovačka 95. A dynamic conference in an interesting format is organized in the framework of the Official Development Cooperation between the Republic of Slovenia and Republic of Serbia in order to present the best experiences and practices from both countries.
Data in the public sector are a newly discovered drivers of development. In Europe, there is a growing awareness of the fact that the public sector generates a large amount of data that are not useful only within the state administration system, but bring multiple benefits to the economy, science and society as a whole. Among its key priorities, the European Union has set the goal to increase the exchange of information and knowledge, to open up public data and facilitate cooperation among public bodies while creating and delivering public services. This will make public administration more efficient and offer user-friendly and tailored public services at a lower cost and with less administrative difficulties. The strategy of opening up public administration and its data is related to citizens’ participation in the public processes and decision-making. Such approach is embedded both in the strategic documents of Slovenia and Serbia.
While implementing the policies of opening the public sector data, the states go through different development stages of readiness and preparedness – from access to public information and data, governance and data exchange within the Government, e-Government, opening and publishing data for reuse and to various applications that use public sector data or so-called open data portals; all for the stages aiming to provide good public services for citizens and business. The ultimate goal is a free flow of all public data across Europe.
The purpose of the conference is to enable a comprehensive exchange of thoughts, experiences and practices between all interested parties (representatives of government, independent institutions, experts from the public administration, representatives of business sector, the media, academic institutions and civil society). The format of the conference will serve as a tool to obtain new ideas for encouraging an open, transparent and inclusive public administration, which is an important aspect of the endeavour for the EU membership, with a goal to strengthen the public sector data opening.
The conference is part of the CEP program activities financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia in the scope of international development cooperation.
21. 12. 2017 | Montenegro - EU Accession, PR
In the framework of the CEP’s bilateral technical assistance project “Assistance to Montenegro in negotiations on accession to the EU 2017” experts from Slovene Securities Market Agency (ATVP) host their counterparts from Montenegrin Securities and Exchange Commission on a two day study visit.
The participants were welcomed by Miloš Čas, Director of ATVP, who presented the experience of the Agency in the process of adapting and implementing of the EU legislation in the field of financial services. Three experts from the Agency will present different EU directives that regulate the field of financial services to Montenegrin colleague. On Friday, they will visit the management company KD Skladi.
ATVP experts provide their counterparts consultations and exchange of Slovene experience in negotiating Chapter 9 – Financial services in the securities market.
The project is part of the CEP program activities financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the scope of international development cooperation.
Read Slovene article here.
14. 12. 2017 | Montenegro - EU Accession, Slovenian Development Assistance
In the framework of the CEP’s bilateral technical assistance project “Assistance to Montenegro in negotiations on accession to the EU 2017” experts from Slovene Securities Market Agency (ATVP) will on 21 and 22 December 2017 host their counterparts from Montenegrin Securities and Exchange Commission on a two day study visit.
ATVP experts will provide their counterparts consultations and exchange of Slovene experience in negotiating Chapter 9 – Financial services in the securities market.
The project is part of the CEP program activities financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the scope of international development cooperation.
Read this article in Slovene language.
18. 10. 2017 | Montenegro - finance, PR
Three experts from the Bank of Slovenia hold a two-day workshop and advise colleagues from the Central Bank of Montenegro in Podgorica on how to harmonize the area of banking supervision and regulation with the requirements of the EU acquis. In the accession negotiations with the EU, the area is covered by Chapter 9: Financial services.
The two-day advisory workshop (17–18 October 2017) is carried out in the framework of the CEP’s project “Assistance to Montenegro in negotiations on accession to the EU 2017”. The workshop’s main focus is the banking supervision and regulation, in particular the methodology for banking supervision and the instructions for the supervision bodies.
The project is part of the CEP program activities financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the scope of international development cooperation.
Read this article in Slovene language.
9. 10. 2017 | Montenegro - finance, PR, Slovenian Development Assistance
In the framework of the project “Assistance to Montenegro in negotiations on accession to the EU-2016” CEP provides technical assistance to the Central bank of Montenegro. Two-day advisory workshop (17–18 October 2017) will be carried out in Podgorica by Slovenian experts of the Bank of Slovenia.
The workshop will focus on the banking supervision and regulation, in particular on the methodology for banking supervision and the instructions for the supervision bodies.
The project is part of the CEP program activities financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the scope of international development cooperation.
Read the news about it in Slovene language here.
