Projects

Short Description:

Overall goal

Building Administrative Capacity in the Danube Region & Western Balkans (BACID) aims to improve good public governance with a focus on:

? Increasing the quality of public administration and public services with the Common Assessment Framework (CAF), hosted by the Ministries for Public Administration of the EU member countries and recognized from EU and OECD.

? Decentralisation and local autonomy as key elements of the “Western European Democracy Model” and guarantors for the provision of high-quality local services.

Expected results

? The Regional Quality Management Centre of the Regional School for Public Administration (ReSPA) is sustainably established and provides excellent CAF services

? The institutional sustainability of the Network of Associations of Local Authorities in South East Europe (NALAS) is ensured through high competence in decentralisation and excellent services.

The results mainly contribute to SDG 16 (…build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels), SDG 11.3 (…enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization and capacity…) and SDG 5.5 (…ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership …).

Target group / Beneficiaries

The main target groups are civil servants, leadership in public sector organisations from all levels of government and politicians (mainly from the local level) in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Kosovo* and Moldova. Through capacity development, study visits, workshops, events and publications around 969 people will directly benefit. Around 8800 people will be reached indirectly including the indirect beneficiaries of the smart digital city pilots in Veles/North Macedonia and Sombor/Serbia.

The project will be implemented together with two regional organisations, ReSPA and NALAS. ReSPA, based in Montenegro, was established by the Ministries for Public Administration in the Western Balkans and NALAS, based in North Macedonia, by the Local Government Associations of South East Europe (SEE).

Activities

? The Regional Quality Management Centre of ReSPA provides excellent CAF services by

(1) setting up the CAF-Feedback and Certification System,

(2) establishing a Network of CAF-Feedback Actors,

(3) providing CAF-Feedback and awarding “Effective CAF User” labels in pilot organisations and

(4) linking the CAF-actors of the Region with the European CAF-Network (CAF Regional Network).

(5) Quality assessments and organizational development on all levels of governments with the support of digital CAF tools;

(6) Networking events and a publication for know-how exchange and awareness.

? The NALAS Observatory for Transparency and Decentralisation shall include:

(1) fostering budget transparency through citizens budgeting

(2) integrating regional and administrative decentralisation assessments

(3) supporting NALAS members on smart digitalization

(4) analysing digitalization in local governments to identify strengths, challenges, good practices, and frontrunners in the Region

(5) two smart city digital pilots with the North-Macedonian city of Veles on the improvement of elderly care and the Serbian city of Sombor on improving the urban park management system.

Context

The lack of good governance in the Western Balkans and the Republic of Moldova at all levels of government together with deficient intergovernmental relations impairs social and economic development and the quality of public services for its citizens. By contributing to improving good public governance the project will have impact on the overall socio-economic development of the partner countries. Hence, the project supports both to comply with the OECD principles of public administration for EU membership in the Western Balkan countries and the Republic of Moldova and to implement the recently adopted SEE 2030 Strategy.