Македонски центар за меѓународна соработка - МЦМС

MCIC is dedicated to the question for development cooperation, the need for enhanced and active civil society and key stakeholder in the process of establishing strategic and political approach. In collaboration with TRIALOG, since 2006 MCIC is working on networking CSOs, informing and capacity building, and also regional involvement in development cooperation.

The absence of civil society activities for development cooperation in Macedonia since 2011, it is primarily a result of stagnation in the process of accessing to the European Union. This situation is directly related with the lack of strategic approach of the country towards development cooperation, harmonization of legislation, and coordination among different stakeholders, including civil society organizations.

Relatively enabling environment in which civil society organizations operate in Macedonia, the challenge of sustainability and lack of donor interest in activities for development cooperation, affects the low arrangement of CSOs on these issues. The need of actualizing development cooperation question and strengthening the role of CSOs is obvious, taking in consider the refugee crisis that took over Macedonia, and also the need for joint contribution towards the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.

The project “Western Balkan CSOs for Global Development” is regional project in which are included 12 CSOs. MCIC is responsible for the activities that are part of this project (beside activity 7) and the same refer to Macedonia and will be implemented in Macedonia.

Overall objective of the project is to strengthen Western Balkans’ civil society and their involvement in efforts towards global poverty eradication and global justice.

The specific objective is to mobilise and support CSOs to work together to raise public awareness in EU candidate countries of the need for development education and engagement in the international development agenda.

Expected results from the project are: enhanced capacity of CSOs in the Western Balkans to raise public awareness of global development issues; better coordinated CSOs active in development education and global development issues have started a platform building process on national levels or have started to integrate a development focus within existing CSO networks; western Balkan CSOs engage in political dialogue at national and EU level on development policy, especially in the context of the EU enlargement process; western Balkan CSOs integrate into the work of European civil society active in development cooperation;

Activities that will achieve project results: mapping of CSOs engaged or interested in development cooperation, one national CSO networking and capacity building meeting, advocacy training for CSO representatives, advocacy roundtables with national stakeholders, national CSO position papers on global development, western Balkans country papers, two policy digests on relevant global development topics.

Planned duration of the project is from 1 January 2016 to 30 November 2017.

Total budget of the project 32.290 euros.