This paper was prepared by the group of authors – Svetlana Cenic, Ardian Hackaj, Amer Kapetanovic, Maria Eleni Koppa, Gazmend Qorraj, Dusan Spasojevic, Dragan Tevdovski and Daliborka Uljarevic and has been supported by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung.

In November 2014 the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung initiated a process to develop policy recommendations for a positive change of the political and economic situation in the Western Balkans. Representatives of academia, civil society and politics from the Western Balkans were invited, along with political experts on European integration from Germany and Brussels, to discuss core challenges and necessary reform policies. The public debate on the EU integration of the Western Balkans and a two-day workshop in November 2014 and March 2015 in Berlin resulted in the formulation of four core theses that point to the deficits of current policy approaches and suggest alternatives to policy-makers at the national and European levels.

Tags: European Union, Regional Cooperation, Society, Western Balkans

This Factsheet has been produced as part of the research within the Think and Link Regional Policy Programme project titled “Enhancing Regional Youth Connectivity” leaded by Cooperation and Development Institute (Albania) in partnership with European Movement in Montenegro (Montenegro) and European Movement Novi Sad (Serbia), supported by the European Fund for the Balkans. The data of this Factsheet has been provided through a survey carried out in April 2016, where 193 youth organizations based in three Countries, Albania, Montenegro and Serbia participated.

Tags: Regional Cooperation, Western Balkans, Youth

This policy paper has been produced as part of the research within the Think and Link Regional Policy Programme project titled “Enhancing Regional Youth Connectivity” lead by Cooperation and Development Institute (Albania) in partnership with European Movement in Montenegro (Montenegro) and European Movement Novi Sad (Serbia), supported by the European Fund for the Balkans.

The methodology of this paper is based on a mix-methods approach, which aimed to define the profile of a “classical youth organization”, identify the “population of youth organizations” in the country, contact & engage with them, collect, generate (where applicable), and analyze the data and evidence. The applied methodology was the same in the three partner countries, i.e. Albania, Montenegro and Serbia. Due to their specificity, no young movement from any political party in any of the three countries was included in the sample.

The paper highlighted the pressing need to create and update the register of youth organizations, especially in Albania and Montenegro. This will allow for an exhaustive overview of the youth actors and will create the basis for an informed policy making process adapted to the needs of the YOs. This registering exercise should be completed and enriched permanently with research on the ever-evolving profile and contextual conditions of YOs.

Tags: Regional Cooperation, Western Balkans, Youth

In the aftermath of Brexit referendum and after the Paris Summit, it is of utmost importance to reflect over the progress achieved so far in the framework of the Berlin process (BP), its place in the myriad of existing regional cooperation initiatives and platforms 2, and the challenges ahead. Three years after its inception and one year before its end, it is time to take stock of its dynamics and to contribute with contextualized recommendations on its role to further enhance regional cooperation in the Western Balkans (WB6), and to its contribution to the EU accession path of the WB6 countries. In its endeavour to document, analyse and promote the Berlin process, Cooperation and Development Institute (CDI) and its partners – Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) and Hanns Seidel Stiftung (HSS) – are producing their latest study “Monitoring the Berlin Process: From Paris to Trieste”. Its aim is to assess the current achievements and remaining challenges, to identify innovations and the added value of the process, to document its parcours with focus on Albania, and provide an assessment on its future the Summit of Trieste. This study is a component of the Berlin Process Series and complements former assessments done by CDI on specific pillars of the BP such as connectivity, migration or youth cooperation.

We have included in the first section of the study the main conclusions of the annual conference “From Paris to Rome – Perspectives from Albania on Regional Cooperation”, held in Tirana on October 26-27, 2016, developed under the Chatham House Rules.

Tags: Berlin Process, Connectivity Agenda, European Union, Institutional Governance, Western Balkans, Structural Weaknesses

In the framework of the Berlin Process (BP) Summit that took place in Vienna in August 2015, the governments of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia officially agreed1 upon the initiative of the Prime Ministers of Serbia and Albania, to establish a Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO) of the Western Balkans. They were supported from the German-French Youth Office in setting it up. With the aim to “promote the spirit of reconciliation and cooperation between the youth in the region” through exchange, RYCO Office was officially established on December 8, 2016 in Tirana.

The Policy Brief “Let’s know Regional Youth Cooperation Office” is supported by the Albanian Agency for Support of Civil Society and aims to be a helpful tool for youth organizations, youngsters and other interested parties, who wish to be better informed on the most tangible outcome of the Berlin Process on youth cooperation, i.e. RYCO. Up to now, RYCO is most innovative contribution to youth cooperation in the Western Balkan region.

The Policy Brief aims to provide an insight to the context and process of RYCO establishment. An historical overview on the youth positive agenda and on the first Albanian-Serbian youth exchanges will also be shortly analysed. The Brief is enriched with the personal views of 10 young participants of regional exchange activities that took place in the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding on Youth between the Republic of Serbia and Republic of Albania. These interviews provide an interesting point of view on youth cooperation from the youngster’s perspective.

The final section provides update on where RYCO stands now and what it will support. Two interviews, with the Albanian National Youth Service and with the Special Commissioner of the Franco – German Youth Office for South – Eastern Europe, enrich this Policy Brief and provide valuable considerations about what RYCO should achieve.

Tags: Berlin Process, European Union, Regional Cooperation, Western Balkans, Youth

The goal of this publication is to provide an overview of the state of democracy in all four EU membership candidate countries in the Western Balkans – Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Albania. To achieve this, the publication presents a “shadow report” on some of the key Copenhagen criteria – democracy, freedom of expression and regional issues and international obligations, as presented within the original country reports.

The report covers the period from November 2016 to October 2017, with the exception of Montenegro, where October 2016 was also included due to the importance of the parliamentary elections and the consequences they had for democracy in the country.

This publication represents a cooperation between the Centre for Contemporary Politics from Belgrade and the Cooperation and Development Institute from Tirana, published with the support of the European Fund for the Balkans through the Think and Link Regional Policy Programme.

Tags: EU accession, European Union, Western Balkans

This publication was supported by: Konrad Adenauer Foundation (Tirana Office), Hanns Seidel Foundation (Tirana Office) and Friedrich Ebert Foundation, (Tirana Office).

The main objectives of the publication “The Berlin Process 2014-2018” are twofold: to continue to build the body of knowledge on this initiative, to analyze its features and actions implemented under “its roof”, and: to provide additional data on its interaction with Enlargement, and on its contribution to regional cooperation in WB6. The state of advancement of the connectivity infrastructure projects will be analyzed as well.

The report contains:
• an assessment of the scope of the Berlin Process as reflected in the Final Declarations of the Chair in Western Balkans Summits in Berlin, Vienna, Paris, Trieste, and information about the upcoming London event;
• evaluation of interrelation of the Berlin Process permanent areas (connectivity and regional cooperation), with Enlargement process as expressed in the Enlargement strategies 2013- 2018 and in the EU funding through IPA Multilateral and IPA National;
• up-to-date information on the Connectivity Agenda, including state-of-affairs of connectivity projects NSPP of the Western Balkans 6, and progress made on the Economic Reform Programs and Regional Economic Area;
• WB6 regional cooperation achievements including people-to-people (P2P) connectivity, high level political cooperation, government-to-government (G2G), youth exchange (RYCO), Civil Society Forums, and Science Cooperation;
• debates spurred by Berlin process such as on the WB6 growth model, regionalization of enlargement, politisation of Enlargement, relations with Eastern connectivity, etc.

Tags: Berlin Process, Connectivity Agenda, European Union, Institutional Governance, Western Balkans

This Policy Brief was prepared for the Symposium on “16+1 Cooperation” in Synergy with the “Belt Road” Initiative”, organized by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing 25 June – 1 July 2017.

The current text is an updated and adapted version of March 2018 for publication under the Berlin Process Series. The Berlin Process Series is an initiative started by Cooperation and Development Institute, in November 2015, in Tirana, and supported by Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Konrad Adenauer Foundation and Hanns Seidel Foundation.

It consists in:
a) Research on the Berlin process and its priority areas;
b) monitoring of progress in Connectivity Agenda and in WB6
Regional Cooperation; and
c) Annual conference on the Berlin process”, followed by publication of conference proceedings.

Tags: China, Connectivity, Economy, Transport, Western Balkans

How does China’s growing global role affect the current dynamics of the Mediterranean region? This report aims to answer this question by exploring the most recent trends in the relations between China and the countries in the greater Mediterranean region.

Tags: China, Connectivity,  Mediterranean, Western Balkans

In 2018, Chinese investment in the Western Balkans shifted from infrastructure towards mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Two such M&As took place in the mining and rubber sector while a Chinese-owned steel mill in Serbia jumped from bankruptcy in 2016 to the 66th biggest company in Southeast Europe in 2018. Speedy loan procedures and the revitalization of “lost” cases characterize the Chinese involvement in the region. But Chinese companies are absent from regional cooperation thus limiting the expansion of “China Inc.”.

Moreover, when compared with investment volumes by the EU in the region, China’s resource commitment still remains small. The “Berlin Process” in the region focuses on connectivity and regional cooperation. This may provide the launching pad from which “China Inc.” and corporations in Europe can connect. It could be a win-win- scenario starting from the Western Balkans.

Tags: China, Connectivity, Economy, Transport, Western Balkans