2015 Regional Report on the Enabling Environment for Civil Society Development in Enlargement Countries 7th September, Brussels #CivSocWBT

Regional Report 2015 General characteristics: 3rd annual comprehensive report on the policy and legal framework for CSOs in the WBT region Analysis of 7 countries Objective: To identify commonalities among the countries and highlight regional trends compared to 2 previous monitoring years Provide recommendations for common action on regional and EU level #CivSocWBT

Regional Report 2015 Methodology Assessment vis-à-vis all 24 MM standards as well as corresponding objectives of the EU Guidelines for Support to Civil Society in the Enlargement Countries 2014-2020 Developed based on 7 country reports and complemented with the reports on specific rights in the countries and other comparative information #CivSocWBT

Key Findings General issues Still relatively young sector- connection to many challenges, including the stigmatization of CSOs Lack of conclusive data does not fully enable a comprehensive analysis of the sector 2015 Findings similar to those from 2014 and 2013: highlight the continuous need for more enabling regulation and proper implementation of the legal guarantees

Key Findings 2015 findings Same as in 2014 & 2013 Continuous challenge to implement the existing legal guarantees of basic freedoms Repetitive crackdowns on the exercise of freedom of assembly and breaches of the legal guarantees Fiscal environment remains rather unfavorable

Key Findings 2015 findings Same as in 2014 & 2013 CSOs continue to struggle to financially sustain their everyday operation State-CSO partnerships remain to be inefficient CSOs continue to be regarded as social service providers, their capacities in other areas remain to be overlooked

Key Findings 2015 Positive developments Several countries announced drafting of social entrepreneurship laws (Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo) Grants, donations and membership fees are finally tax exempt in all countries (following the amendments in BiH) New PDCs adopted or being drafted (Albania, Montenegro)

Key Findings 2015 Worrisome trends Launch of initiatives to review CSO framework laws, some of them signaling restrictions (BiH, Montenegro, Serbia) Worrying regulation on police providing more rights to police officers in the course of assemblies (Macedonia, Turkey) Deterioration compared to 2014 in relation to the CSO involvement in decision-making (Macedonia, Montenegro, BiH)

for National Institutions Key Recommendations for National Institutions Legal guarantees for freedom of association and other related freedoms to be preserved and properly implemented in practice Fiscal regulations on the CSO income and tax incentives for donors need to be revised to provide supportive tax treatment for CSOs. #CivSocWBT

for National Institutions Key Recommendations for National Institutions Public funding mechanisms need to be reformed and their rules properly implemented to ensure relevant, transparent and accountable redistribution processes Mechanisms for CSO-state cooperation need to be made functional through sufficient allocation of financial and human resources with adequate capacities. #CivSocWBT

for National Institutions Key Recommendations for National Institutions CSOs to be regularly involved in decision and policy making processes at all levels, including effective access to information and inclusion in early stages of the process. Involvement of CSOs in provision of services on behalf of the state need to be increased also in areas beyond social services. #CivSocWBT

Key Recommendations for EU Institutions Participation of the civil society in the EU accession processes to become obligatory The EU to prioritize the enabling environment in the negotiation processes The EU funds to be distributed transparently and in a depoliticized manner The EU to support diversification of CSO financial resources #CivSocWBT

Thank you! www.monitoringmatrix.net #CivSocWBT