INVITATION FOR TRAINING IN NOVI PAZAR: COOPERATION OF LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENTS WITH CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS IN LOCAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT (DEADLINE: MARCH 2, 2020)

27. February 2020.

In 2020, the Office for Cooperation with Civil Society, as an expert service of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, continues its activities aimed at strengthening the capacities of public administration bodies and civil society organizations in the direction of building and improving dialogue and their mutual cooperation.

In the previous period, at the proposal of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, a set of laws was introduced, which introduced various obligations of administrative bodies that aim to encourage greater participation of citizens and civil society in decision-making processes, primarily in the preparation of regulations and public policy documents. The aforementioned legal solutions, at the same time, encourage the development of cooperation with associations and other civil society organizations that bring together citizens on the issues of common interest and are the most active part of the interested public.

In addition to fostering co-operation in decision-making processes, the Office continuously promotes and works to strengthen the capacities of local self-governmental units and civil society organizations for greater participation in the EU's Europe for Citizens Program, for which the Office is a national contact point in the Republic of Serbia.

Bearing in mind the need to ensure the effective implementation of the new legal framework and strengthen the capacity of local self-governments and civil society to cooperate with each other for the development of local communities, the Office organizes a training cycle that will include representatives of both sectors.

In view of the above, we invite you to take an active part in the training that will be held in Novi Pazar, on Wednesday, March 4, 2020, at the Cultural Center (Stevana Nemanje 2), starting at 9 a.m, so please confirm the attendance of at most two representatives of your institution/ organization by Monday, March 2, by sending an e-mail to sanja.atanaskovic@civilnodrustvo.gov.rs .

The training is part of the activities foreseen in the Action Plan for the Implementation of the International Partnership for Open Governance Initiative for the period 2018 - 2020, which the Republic of Serbia joined in 2012, which aims to secure the Government's obligations towards citizens in terms of promoting transparency, empowering citizens, the fight against corruption and the use of new technologies in strengthening the capacity and efficiency of public administration.

For more information, please contact Danilo Rodic (011/313-09-72, e-mail danilo.rodic@civilnodrustvo.gov.rs) or Sanja Atanaskovic Opacic (011/313-09-68, e-mail sanja.atanaskovic@civilnodrustvo.gov.rs).

The organizers are not able to cover the travel expenses of the participants.

The invitation letter is available on https://civilnodrustvo.gov.rs/upload/documents/Pozivi/Javni%20poziv%20za%20OCD%20i%20JLS%20Novi%20Pazar.pdf

The agenda is available on https://civilnodrustvo.gov.rs/upload/documents/Pozivi/2020/Agenda%20Novi%20Pazar%20final.pdf

Source: Office for Cooperation with Civil Society and Coordination Body