Second National Conference - SMART Balkans project

The Center for Research and Policy Making (CRPM) in cooperation with the partner organizations from BiH – Center for the Promotion of Civil Society (CPCD) and Albania – Institute for Democracy and Mediation, with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway organized a Second National Conference to Promote the project SMART Balkans – Civil Society for a Connected Western Balkans, which took place on 08.06.2023 starting at 09.00 in Aleksandar Palace Hotel, Skopje. Two panel discussions took within the conference where the panelists addressed regional issues such as youth violence, natural disasters, and global security challenges in the Western Balkans, including radicalization that leads to terrorism.  Introductory speeches were given by Ms. Marija Risteska, Executive Director of CRPM, Mrs. Hanne Malgaard, Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of the Kingdom of Norway in Belgrade; and Mr. Metodija Dimovski, Secretary General of the Government. During the conference, grant contracts were signed with Macedonian organizations within the National Intervention grant line. Out of the 60 applications received for National Interventions, 11 organizations passed the first phase of evaluation, the pre-selection, and were invited to submit a full application. In the second phase of evaluation, four (4) organizations were selected to receive funding. The awarded organizations will implement their projects over a period of approximately two years. NEKST-EM dooel also had its presence.