The project includes activities that provide impact on different levels. They include capacity building activities, research, international and local events, and local CSOs led advocacy activities for cooperation between Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and Local Authorities (LAs).

To address the need of reinforcement of the capacities of the CSOs and LAs in North Macedonia, a number of the activities will focus on capacity building. Educational tools and trainings will be developed, which are customized to the needs of the target groups (representatives of CSOs and LAs). Series of 4 two-day trainings will be organized addressing CSOs and LAs from North Macedonia, taking into consideration the balanced regional representation. Each training will involve 20 CSOs and 10 LAs representatives. The training actions will reach a total of 80 CSOs and 40 LAs representatives. Training topics are the following:

1)            Training “Tools for Local Democracy”

2)            Training “Local finances: budgeting and transparency”

3)           Training “How to create transparent process for CSOs funding by LAs budget – methodology”

4)            Training “Project cycle management and EU funds”

The research aspect will involve in-depth study of LAs’ financial and non-financial support to CSOs, and identification of cooperation practices between LA-CSOs in North Macedonia, Balkans and EU. Series of local and national meetings, consultations, forums and debates for promotion of the research will follow. In addition, the project foresees creation of tools that will facilitate participatory approach on policymaking and an increase in information flow and exchange of knowledge between LAs and the civil sector, including a publication with practices for LA-CSO cooperation and local advocacy activities to reinforce the CSOs-LAs cooperation.

A sub-granting component of the project aims to support grass-root and other types of local CSOs to develop their own actions, contributing to increased cooperation between CSOs and LAs.

All actions have the aim to encourage networking and awareness raising among different stakeholders (CSOs, LAs, Centres for regional development, National Authorities, experts, media, private sector) on different levels (local, national, as well as regional on the Balkans and EU). Raising awareness and networking are complementary to the other activities in order to complete the image and provide possibilities for sustainable changes of the existent framework and practices. In addition, the following events will be organized to reinforce these two elements.

1)     kick-off conference;

2)     Closing conference;

3)     National Forum for sharing best practices;

4)     International conference.