14. 6. 2022 | POTC, PR
Klikni tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku. 
Between the 7th and 10th May 2022, the Peace Operations Training Centre (POTC) has successfully implemented the first module on EU project management in Prijedor, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Improved capacities for project proposal preparation will help Bosnia and Herzegovina to work more closely with EU partners and secure more EU funding for BiH’s development.
23 local government officials and NGO representatives from municipalities surrounding Prijedor participated in a four-day training program delivered by Slovenian experts Gorazd Jenko and Slavka Zupan. During these days, they shared knowledge and practical expertise on EU project management with a particular focus on the application procedures. Interactive lessons and group work constituted a large part of the training program and the facilitators steered participants towards establishing concrete project proposal ideas. Participants will continue working on project ideas and will form them into concrete ready-to-submit proposals in Module 2 that will be delivered in Prijedor in September.
The project was carried out with the support of the Slovenian Ministry of Defence and the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
13. 6. 2022 | Macedonia - Finance, PR
Klikni tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku.
In line with the recommendations of the European Commission, North Macedonia is stepping up its efforts to improve the effectiveness of law enforcement in fighting certain forms of crime, such as money laundering and financial crimes.
Financial investigations leading to the confiscation of proceeds of crime derived from offenses and illicit assets are weapons, which the Macedonian investigative and law enforcement authorities are using with increasing frequency and success in the fight against organized crime and corruption.
On this path, Slovenia offers support and assistance to North Macedonia through international development cooperation. In the framework of this program, 17 representatives from the units of key institutions dealing with financial investigations in North Macedonia: the Ministry of the Interior, the Customs Administration, the Financial Police Office, and the State Prosecutor’s Office, were hosted for a working visit from 6 to 9 June 2022.
During the first part of the working visit, the Macedonian participants met with some senior officials and other representatives of institutions dealing with financial investigations in Slovenia: the Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office, the Specialised State Prosecutor’s Office, the Financial Administration, and the Ministry of the interior, where they had the opportunity to exchange experiences and learn about the work of their Slovenian colleagues.
The second part of the visit was followed by practical workshops in the field, where simulated financial investigations were carried out. The extremely intensive agenda demonstrated the good preparedness of the Macedonian investigative authorities, who had the opportunity to test their operational performance in practice as well as the implementation of the Common Guidelines adopted by the Macedonian institutions in 2019 in Ljubljana.
The working visit showed that Macedonian institutions and investigative authorities have made remarkable progress in making financial investigations more effective, which was confirmed not only by their Slovenian mentor and colleagues but also by the participants themselves.
The working visit participants expressed their gratitude to Slovenia for its friendly assistance and continued support for North Macedonia’s reform efforts on the path to the EU, and were assured by their Slovenian colleagues and interlocutors that they can count on Slovenia’s support in the future.
The project is part of the program activities of international development cooperation, financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia and implemented in cooperation with the State Prosecution, Financial Administration, Ministry of the Interior and the Police of the Republic of Slovenia.
Further information:
Andreja Dolničar Jeraj
Programme Director
Centre for European Perspective
6. 6. 2022 | PR, Youth
In the first week of June, Module II of EUSAIR Communication Academy took place. The Academy was launched in April to equip different EUSAIR stakeholders with communication knowledge, skills, and tools. You can read more about Module I here. In essence, the knowledge attained at the Academy will help participants in communicating their work to the outside world and in navigating the ever-changing landscape of digital communication.
Module II, like Module I, took place online and was attended by three groups of participants – EUSAIR key implementers and EUSAIR government communicators on 31 May and 1 June. On 2 and 3 June, the Academy was attended by youth participants that share an interest in EUSAIR and macro-regional cooperation and strive to improve their communication skills.
The topics covered at the Academy included lessons on (technical) storytelling, how to behave online (from wits to manners), how to spot disinformation and verify information, how to develop a digital campaign, what technological developments await us in the future and how to adapt, how to use data to improve our social media performance, how to apply the principles of rhetoric to digital communication and many other useful (digital) communication tips and tricks.
The Academy will continue in October with an in-person Module III where the participants will attend some additional workshops and will at the end of the training be a part of a simulation exercise where they will apply their knowledge to a practical example. Whereas online trainings are much more flexible and enable the participation of more people, they are not a perfect replacement for in-person events. We all agreed that nothing beats face-to-face interaction.
The EUSAIR Communication Academy is organized in cooperation with EUSAIR Facility Point Lead Partner.
3. 6. 2022 | POTC, PR
Klikni tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku.
On Monday 6 June, Peace Operations Training Centre (POTC) is launching the first set of workshops for local officials, who will be trained in the project application, project planning, project implementation, project finance management, and cross-border and transnational networking.
Bosnia and Herzegovina formally applied for EU membership in 2016 and has since then increased its efforts to participate in EU programmes. Fundraising and European project management competencies are still limited at the local level and need to be strengthened in most institutions, including local ones. Strengthening the capacity of local administrations for proper project planning, project implementation, project finance management, and cross-border and transnational integration is needed, and POTC, with the support of Slovenian development assistance, will implement several training modules in BiH this year. The participants, representing municipal administrations, development agencies, and NGOs, come from the municipalities of Sanski Most, Oštra Luka, Prijedor, Krupa na Uni, Novi Grad, Bosanska Kostajnica, and Kozarska Dubica.
The project is part of the international development cooperation activities funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia and implemented in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defence.
30. 5. 2022 | EUCTI, POTC, PR
Between 23 and 26 May 2022 Centre for European Perspective (CEP) has successfully implemented a four-day online training on Protection of Civilians for EUAM Ukraine in coordination with the EU Civilian Training Initiative (EUCTI) project.
The course was conducted by Peace Operations Training Centre (POTC), situated at CEP premises. POTC already delivered a Protection of Civilians (PoC) training in April, hence the training targeting EUAM Ukraine needed only a slight adjustment to be able to support the mission members in time of Russian aggression. It was attended by 21 participants, all member staff of EUAM Ukraine.
During those four days, eight trainers shared their knowledge and practical expertise on the topics such as basic principles, definitions, and constitutive elements of PoC, its legal framework, conflict-related sexual and gender-based violence, the EU approach to PoC, and last but not least examples of good and bad PoC practices.
Interactive lessons, group work, and small-scale simulation exercises constituted only one part of the two-way learning process between participants and trainers. The second part was a two-way process of experience sharing during the whole training. Experts came from different backgrounds, but all had one thing in common: extensive practical experience in peacekeeping, peacebuilding, and PoC, and the willingness to share it with their trainees. This proved to be highly appreciated by the participants and a value-added to the training.
Participants pointed out the importance of understanding who a civilian is to be able to better protect them during times of hostilities and violence. They also appreciated discussing the sexual and gender-based violence during the times of an armed conflict, as some of them mentioned not enough attention is given to this topic.
CEP is proud to be a part of EUCTI and wishes participants – first and foremost – to remain safe and to be able to use gained knowledge to help conflict-affected people.
27. 5. 2022 | Macedonia - Finance, PR
Klikni tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku.
Representatives of the Macedonian competent authorities responsible for financial investigations and confiscations of property of Illicit Origin will strengthen their capacities, within Slovenian international development assistance, on a study visit, which will be held from 6 to 9 June 2022 in Slovenia. They will meet with some leading representatives of institutions responsible for financial investigations in Slovenia and receive practical training with the help of Slovenian mentors.
The study visit will be attended by representatives of the Ministry of the Interior, the Customs Administration, the Financial Police Office, and the State Prosecutor’s Office.
The project is part of the program activities of international development cooperation, financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia and implemented in cooperation with the State Prosecution, Financial Administration, Ministry of the Interior and the Police of the Republic of Slovenia.
Further information:
Andreja Dolničar Jeraj
Programme Director
Centre for European Perspective
