Cooperation with the civil society

COOPERATION WITH CIVIL SOCIETY, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, ACADEMIC AND BUSINESS COMMUNITY

Montenegro's EU accession process is led by the Government, but a significant contribution is made by civil society.

Having in mind that European integration is a project of the whole society and that the precondition for its successful realization is the existence of a high degree of understanding and acceptance, as well as active participation of all social subjects, during the past decade has been established high-quality cooperation with NGOs, local governments, international organizations and foundations.

Civil society, and especially non-governmental organizations, have an important role, and they significantly contribute to the process of European integration by their specific knowledge and experience. As an important partner in implementing reforms on the European path, NGO representatives make a significant contribution to the development and improvement of key legal and strategic documents, as well as policy implementation. Appreciating the role and importance of non-governmental organizations, Montenegro is the first country to include representatives of the NGO sector in its negotiating structure.

When it comes to the EU accession process, in addition to the working groups in charge of individual chapters, NGO representatives also contribute to the sectoral working groups for IPA, as well as in the implementation of information strategies where, independently, in cooperation with national and local authorities  they implement numerous activities, projects and campaigns that continuously contribute to the improvement of citizens' information and their motivation to become active participants in the process.

Significant contribution to the negotiation process give the academic community (universities, faculties), the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro, Montenegrin Employers Federation and the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro, that hosted a large number of gatherings and events on various topics aimed to exchange views and stimulate debate on various aspects of the European integration process, with the aim of bringing the European Union closer to the citizens and continuing high-quality informing on the accession negotiations process, as well as the rights and obligations arising from EU membership.