Dear Sir or Madam,
European Movement in Serbia and Friedrich Ebert Foundation are pleased to invite you to a panel debate
TALKS ON THE FUTURE OF SERBIA
Participation of local communities in public policies in Serbia
October 15, 2024, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Hotel Kragujevac, Kralja Petra I/18, Kragujevac
The aim of the debate is to bring together civil society organizations, representatives of local self-governments, international organizations, experts, citizens and all interested parties, in order to promote the participation of local communities in public policies of Serbia. The focus of the debate will be the analysis of the key challenges that local communities fase in this process and identification of effective measures to overcome them.
Local communities play a vital role in the creation and implementation of public policies that directly affect the quality of life of citizens. By strengthening their role and capacity, we can achieve more efficient and fairer public policies that respond to the real needs of citizens. During the debate, we will analyze how to improve the distribution of authorities and responsibilities between the state and local levels, overcome challenges in this process and enable more effective participation of local self-governments in the creation and implementation of public policies. We will pay special attention to the example of EU cohesion policies for reducing disparities and improving local capacities. Also, we will discuss the methods of financing local communities and self-governments, and distribution of resources between the state and local levels in order to increase efficiency and responsibility. Finally, we will focus on the role of civil society, specifically how civil society and youth organizations can contribute to the creation of public policies and how to better include them in the decision-making process.
Your participation and contribution to the debate would mean a lot to us. We expect your confirmation by October 14 at the following email address ivana.ristivojevic@emins.org
S poštovanjem,
Dragana Đurica Kirsten Schönefeld
Secretary General Director
AGENDA:
15:00 – 15:10 Welcome address
Vlatko Rajković, Local Council of European Movement in Serbia, Kragujevac
Kirsten Schönefeld, Director, Foundation Fridrih Ebert, Belgrade office
Dragana Đurica, Secretary General, European Movement in Serbia
15:10 – 16:30 Thematic debates
Panelists:
Slavko Lukić, Serbian Association of Regional Development Agencies
Milena Radomirović, Program Director for Planning Systems and Public Finance, Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities
Nicola Bertolini, Head of Cooperation, Delegation of the European Union in Serbia
Srđan Dimitrijević, Local Council of European Movement in Serbia, Leskovac (TBC)
Mirjana Prodanovic, Local Council of European Movement in Serbia, Kraljevo
Moderator:
Dragana Đurica, Secretary General, European Movement in Serbia
Themes:
- Authorities and responsibilities:
- What are the main challenges in the distribution of authorities between national and local levels, and how can we overcome them?
- How can we improve the process of transferring certain competences to the local level, so that local self-governments can more efficiently participate in the creation and implementation of public policies?
- What responsibilities should be transferred from the state to the local level in order to increase efficiency and responsibility in the implementation of public policies?
- Budget and resources
- What are the best ways to finance local communities and self-governments so that they can successfully participate in the creation and implementation of public policies?
- What resources should be transferred from the national to the local level in order to increase the efficiency and responsibility in the implementation of public policies? How can we improve models of financial distribution so that local communities have more resources and capacity to implement public policies?
- What steps can we take to increase transparency in budget allocation, which would enable more efficient and responsible implementation of public policies at the local level?
- Role of the civil society
- How can civil society and youth organizations contribute to the creation and implementation of public policies at the local level and how can they be better included in the process of decision-making and creation of public policies?
- What are the main obstacles that civil society organizations face in their work at the local level and how can we overcome them?
- Are there examples of successful cooperation between local authorities and non-governmental organizations?
16:30h – 17:00h Refreshments
