CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PROJECT
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PROJECT QUARTERLYQUARTERLY REPORT REPORT #10 #18
Reporting period: January 1 – March 31, 2021 Reporting period: January 1 – March 31, 2019
Prepared under the USAID’s Civic Engagement Project (CEP) in North Macedonia Contract Number AID-165-C-16-00003
Submitted to: USAID/Macedonia on April 30, 2019 Contractor: East-West Management Institute, Inc. CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PROJECT
QUARTERLY REPORT #13
29 April, 2021 This publication was produced by the East-West Management Institute, Inc., for review by the United States Agency for International Development.
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PROJECT
QUARTERLY REPORT #18
Reporting period: January 1 – March 31, 2021
Prepared under the USAID’s Civic Engagement Project (CEP) in North Macedonia Contract Number AID-165-C-16-00003
Submitted to: USAID/North Macedonia on April 29, 2021 Contractor: East-West Management Institute, Inc.
Disclaimer This document is made possible by the support of the American People through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of the East-West Management Institute, Inc., and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS 4 SECTION I: INTRODUCTION 6 1.1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 6 1.2 PROJECT DESCRIPTION 7 1.3 PROJECT MANAGEMENT 8 SECTION II: PROJECT ACTIVITIES 10 COMPONENT ONE: STRENGTHEN CSO ALLIANCES ENGAGEMENT AND OVERSIGHT OF PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 10 COMPONENT TWO: STRENGTHEN CSOS 12 COMPONENT THREE: STRENGTHEN YOUTH ENGAGEMENT 16 COMPONENT FOUR: TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE IN SUPPORT OF RULE OF LAW AND ANTI- CORRUPTION REFORMS 23 Activity 4.1: Provide technical assistance to judicial sector professional institutions on judicial ethics 23 Activity 4.2: Provide technical assistance to the government on the ethics code for state officials 23 Activity 4.3: Provide technical assistance to Ministry for Information Society and Administration (MISA) to improve the use of open data at the national and local levels 23 Activity 4.4: Expand the Openness Index 23 Activity 4.5 Strengthen systems of integrity to combat corruption at the municipal level 25 Activity 4.6: Provide technical assistance to the State Commission for Prevention of Corruption and create cooperation mechanisms between SCPC and civil society at the local level 26 Activity 4.7: Provide technical assistance to the Government of North Macedonia 26 Activity 4.8: Provide technical assistance to the Agency for Protection of the Right to Free Access to Public Information 27 SECTION III: CROSS-CUTTING ACTIVITIES 28 3.1 PUBLIC OUTREACH 28
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3.2 COOPERATION WITH USAID AND OTHER DONOR PROGRAMS 33
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
Academy/AJPP Academy of Judges and Public Prosecutors ACP Anti-Corruption Platform, North Macedonia ADI Association for Democratic Initiatives, North Macedonia CAFT Coalition “All for Fair Trials,” North Macedonia CCC Association of Citizens’ Center for Civil Communications, North Macedonia CEP USAID’s Civic Engagement Project in North Macedonia CoP Chief of Party COR USAID’s Contracting Officer Representative CSO Civil Society Organization DCM Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in North Macedonia DCoP Deputy Chief of Party DOC USAID’s Development, Outreach, and Communication Office DPM Deputy Prime Minister for Anticorruption, Sustainable Development and Human Resources EWMI East-West Management Institute, Inc. FAA Fixed Amount Award FID Financial Intelligence Directorate, North Macedonia FOSM Foundation Open Society Macedonia J2SR Journey to Self-Reliance GAU Grant Administration Unit GDOD USAID’s General Development Office Director GM Grants Manager GoNM Government of North Macedonia GRECO Group of States Against Corruption GUC Grants under Contract J2SR Journey to Self-Reliance
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LEAD MK Linking, Engagement, Advocacy, and Development Program under CEP LGU Local Governmental Unit M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MELP Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Plan
MEPO Monitoring, Evaluation, and Public Outreach MISA Ministry of Information, Society, and Administration, North Macedonia MoC Memorandum of Cooperation MoU Memorandum of Understanding NYCM National Youth Council of Macedonia OGP NAP Open Government Partnership National Action Plan PAB Project Advisory Board PBP Participatory Budget Process PCM Project Cycle Management PG Partnership Grants Program under CEP PMU Project Management Unit PRO Public Revenue Office, North Macedonia RfA Request for Applications RfCP Request for Concept Papers RRGs Rapid Response Grants under CEP SAO State Audit Office, North Macedonia SCPC State Commission for Prevention of Corruption, North Macedonia SP Strategic Plan SSG Strategic Support Grants under CEP TA Technical Assistance TI Transparency International – Macedonia, North Macedonia USAID US Agency for International Development USG Government of the United States of America YCEA Youth Civic Engagement Award under CEP
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SECTION I: INTRODUCTION
1.1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
CEP continued to provide technical assistance to selected government entities and judicial sector in the areas of rule of law, transparency and anti-corruption, and constructive engagement by civil society organizations on policies and issues of public concern. Highlights of outputs and outcomes for the reporting period include: • Center for Civil Communications (CCC) 34th monitoring report on public procurements attracted strong media attention and among other important findings, highlighted the following: the institutions consulted businesses in only 1.4% of tenders to improve the tender documentation and the public procurement process itself, resulting in over 11 million euros procured in direct negotiations, an increase of 15% compared to last year. Also the “lowest price” was used as a criteria in 96% of public procurements jeopardizing the principles of efficiency and effectiveness of public funds spending. • CCC’s advocacy efforts resulted in a decision of the Government that all financial statements submitted for approval to the Government by public institutions, will not be reviewed until 22 binding information and documents according to the Free Access to Public Information Law are published on the websites of the institutions, following the Governments’ Transparency Strategy. • NGO Info-Center raised public awareness about the significance of the Census 2021 through the census-dedicated website “popis.mk”. From March 10, the website had over 6,089 new users and 7,652 sessions, with 59 articles, 10 social media visuals, five short slides, two videos and two infographics published that reached 88,672 people. In addition, NGO Info-Center organized a workshop for 26 journalists (16 women, 10 men) from local, regional and national media. • NYCM implemented the LEAD MK Master Class Academy, as part of CEP’s annual LEAD MK (Linking, Engagement, Advocacy, Development) Master Class Fellowship Program. The Academy was held online, engaging a total of 28 participants (18 women, 10 men). • CEP conducted a survey with 19 LEAD MK Fellows of the 4th generation of the CEP LEAD MK Fellowship Program, showing that 71.05% of LEAD Fellows remained active in public life six months beyond the initial CEP support. • NYCM signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of North Macedonia Agency for Youth and Sports ensuring the sustainability of the Youth Policy Labs – to serve as a mechanism for future cooperation between NYCM and the Agency in policymaking and development of national youth policies. The Agency will also continue to support the Youth Civic Engagement Award (YCEA) beyond CEP funding. • CEP’s expert James Moliterno finalized the new integrity tests and the methodology for evaluation of publicly appointed officials. This is the first comprehensive integrity test that
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defines the categories of integrity for over 300 public officials, aiming to build an improved eco system for anticorruption at the highest levels. • CEP’s expert Chris Henshaw assisted the Cabinet of the Deputy Prime Minister for Anticorruption, Sustainable Development and Human Resources to identify their priorities, and designed a public opinion exercise in order to ascertain citizen’s views on corruption and anti-corruption practices. The public opinion research was completed in March, providing invaluable inputs for the Cabinet to build its strategy and action plan for the coming period. • CEP’s five local integrity plans are in a process of adoption in five targeted municipalities and already serve as a tool to establish and verify the integrity of local government units to enhance LGUs resilience to corruption and reduce the risk of corrupt behavior by its employees.
1.2 PROJECT DESCRIPTION
CEP is a five-year USAID-funded program that strives to achieve two objectives: (1) strengthen the constructive engagement by civil society organizations (CSOs) on policies and issues of public concern and (2) increase and sustain youth engagement in public life in North Macedonia. CEP is implemented by EWMI in partnership with three local CSOs: Foundation for Internet and Society “Metamorphosis” (Metamorphosis), the Association for Democratic Initiatives (ADI) and the National Youth Council of Macedonia (NYCM). The overall goal of CEP is to enhance CSOs and youth’s capacity to advance public policies, improve public services, promote good governance, and contribute to improving the standard of living of people in North Macedonia. At the close of CEP, CEP-supported CSOs and CSO alliances will possess the knowledge, mechanisms, and resources to generate civic activism and lead public debate and action, and constructively engage with government counterparts and institutions to foster transparent and accountable governance at all levels of decision-making.
CEP also creates and supports a cadre of youth leaders and youth-focused organizations that will develop the skills to connect with relevant government stakeholders and participate in public policy discussions. These results directly contribute to USAID/North Macedonia’s Development Objective (DO) under its Country Strategic Framework FY 2018 - 2020: North Macedonia is Prosperous, Self-Reliant, and Inclusive Democratic Society, and Intermediate Result 2: Enhanced Participation by Informed Citizens.
EWMI, together with its three partners, reoriented and redesigned its grant support to activities that strengthen North Macedonia’s ability to undertake necessary reforms in CEP’s new focus areas – anti-corruption, rule of law and transparency. EWMI also identified public institutions that will receive CEP’s technical assistance in order to ensure that North Macedonia’s institutions have the capacity and knowledge to address key challenges in their country’s path towards EU accession. CEP’s support for initiatives in its new focus areas will center on a combination of grants and technical support for CSOs and public institutions, fostering cooperation between government and CSOs, in order to contribute to North Macedonia’s progress towards EU integration.
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To achieve its objectives, CEP implements its activities under four components: Under Component One: Strengthen Civil Society Organization (CSO) Alliances Engagement and Oversight of Public Institutions, CEP, in cooperation with its existing grantees (three CSO alliances), will capitalize on their existing work and knowledge, especially when it comes to CSO engagement in the justice and anti-corruption sectors. To that end, CEP will provide targeted assistance to the following institutions: The Academy of Judges and Public Prosecutors; the State Audit Office (SAO); and the State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (SCPC). Activities will focus on: judicial ethics strengthening; monitoring public institutions’ performance and practical recommendations for improvements; advocacy for good governance; and generating greater public awareness of corruption/transparency issues.
Under Component Two: Strengthen CSOs, CEP will continue to work with its existing CSO grantees, expand their work in the key areas of rule of law, anti-corruption and transparency, and provide tailored technical assistance as needed. To strengthen the transparency and accountability of public institutions at the national and local government level, activities will focus on: building citizens’ capacity in municipalities to become effective watchdogs and address local issues; reduce corruption by improving the effectiveness and transparency in public spending through public procurement monitoring and amendments to the legal framework; and strengthening the capacities and improving the performance of municipal councils to involve citizen in local decision-making processes.
Under Component Three: Strengthen Youth Engagement, CEP will continue to organize the annual yearlong LEAD MK (Linking, Engagement, Advocacy, Development – North Macedonia) program that equips 80 highly-motivated young people with the skills, knowledge, and networks that will enable them to become leaders in advancing public interests at the community, regional, or national level. CEP pairs each LEAD MK Fellow with a mentor and ensures organizational support for their LEAD MK Projects. Every year, CEP also organizes the Youth Civic Engagement Award to promote civic engagement and recognize successful youth, CSOs, and/or groups that engage in promoting their communities’ wellbeing.
Under modified Component Four, Technical Assistance in Support of Rule of Law and Anti- Corruption Reforms, CEP will provide technical assistance to government entities and the judicial sector in order to improve North Macedonia’s capacity in the key areas of rule of law, transparency and anti-corruption, and to help the country implement relevant strategic reforms on the road towards EU accession. To that end, CEP and its sub-contractors will focus on the following activities: strengthening judicial ethics; implementing a revised Ethics code for state officials; improving the use of open data at the national and local levels; monitoring the institutional openness of national institutions, agencies and local governments as part of the Strategy for Transparency of the Government of North Macedonia; and strengthening systems of integrity to combat corruption at the local level.
1.3 PROJECT MANAGEMENT
EWMI. During the reporting period, EWMI’s Monitoring, Evaluation and Communication Specialist, Mrs. Natasa Nikolovska Stankovic resigned and will be leaving CEP on April 18. EWMI has decided to replace Mrs. Stankovic with Mrs. Mirlinda Alemdar, EWMI’s current Youth Engagement Specialist, as she is fully qualified for the position given her prior work experience and the fact that Component Three will be phased out in the coming months.
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On February 22, EWMI submitted a one-year no-cost extension request of the period of performance and a revised estimated completion date of August 31, 2022 to USAID. The extension would allow EWMI to accommodate the constraints and delays caused by COVID-19 and continue to provide critical support in rule of law, anticorruption and transparency efforts of the Government and the CSO sector.
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SECTION II: PROJECT ACTIVITIES
COMPONENT ONE: STRENGTHEN CSO ALLIANCES ENGAGEMENT AND OVERSIGHT OF PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS
Under Component One, CEP provides grants to leading CSO alliances. The CSO alliances include registered and non-registered CSO coalitions, platforms, networks, and alliances comprised of more than five-member CSOs. Metamorphosis manages the grant-making activities under Component 1.
Activity 1.1: Grantees progress
Name of grantee: Coalition of Civil Associations All for Fair Trails (CAFT), Skopje Project name: Legal, Financial and Physical Access to Justice in Primary Courts in Macedonia Project duration: June 01, 2018 – June 30, 2021 Project target areas: Rule of Law and Human Rights
Key activities completed during the reporting period include: • CAFT continued with the onsite-monitoring of criminal cases with 280 cases monitored on confiscation of assets (146 hearings in Skopje, 9 in Tetovo, 10 in Shtip, 21 in Ohrid, 8 in Strumica, 7 in Gostivar, 3 in Kichevo, 15 in Veles, 19 in Bitola, 16 in Prilep and 26 in Kumanovo). • On February 24, CAFT held a National Trail Monitoring Conference. In order to strengthen their education, knowledge and skills, CAFT held an online National Trial Monitoring Conference for their 26 trial monitors (15 women, 11 men) focusing on systematic trial monitoring, confiscation of assets in financial crime cases and monitoring of high profile criminal cases. • CAFT’s multistakeholder working groups to continue to operate beyond CEP support. In order to increase the efficiency and engage more participants in CAFT’s existing multistakeholder working groups (WGs) – on physical access to justice, legal access to justice, and financial access to justice – CAFT will hold three meetings of the WGs in April and May. During the last three years, the WGs analyzed conclusions from all monitored court cases and proposed solutions and recommendations to relevant institutions, and CAFT is working on a mechanism on how to use the WGs beyond the life of the project.
Name of grantee: Transparency International – Macedonia, Skopje Project name: Strengthening the capacities of institutions in the fight against corruption Project duration: June 15, 2020 – June 14, 2021 Project target areas: Anti-corruption
Key activities completed during the reporting period include: • TI-M agreed the list of trainings with partner institutions. TI-M together with the State Audit Office, State Commission for Prevention of Corruption, and Academy of Judges and Public Prosecutors has defined a list of trainings that will be delivered in the upcoming period. These three institutions will go through the following trainings: (1) Importance of audit reports and
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knowledge of public finances in the fight against corruption; (2) Good practices in analyzing the audit reports; (3) Strengthening the role of the judiciary in the fight against corruption; (4) Conflict of interest and Law on Protection of Whistleblowers; (5) Cases of corruption and actions taken by judiciary; and (6) Financing of political parties. Due to COVID-19 situation in the country, the training schedule had to be modified and the trainings are scheduled for May - July 2021. • TI-M to provide technical support to SCPC. TI-M’s expert will guide the SCPC’s employees through the process of assessment of bank statement and accounts of holders of public office. This will help SCPC assess and streamline the process of reviewing bank accounts in regard to financial crimes and improper acquirement of wealth among elected and appointed public officials. • TI-M developed guidebooks on prevention of conflict of interest. Upon request from SCPC, TI-M developed two guidebooks on prevention of conflict of interest – one for judges and one for public prosecutors. TI-M submitted the draft guidebooks to SCPC for comments and final versions are expected by the end of April 2021. • TI-M developed one policy brief and two investigative stories. The policy brief covers the topic of “Integrity plans as a mechanism for prevention of corruption in the public sector”. The first investigative story focuses on “Fight against corruption without resources” and the second focuses on the judiciary: “If five judges have been scrutinized in two years, how long it will take for all of them”.
COVID-19-related Delays in this Quarter • CAFT postponed three workshops for April 2021; • TI-M postponed trainings for SAO, SCPC and AJPP for the period May-July 2021; • CEP staff was unable to travel for monitoring purposes due to the COVID-19-related travel restrictions and health risks.
Plans for Next Quarter • Regular monitoring of the activities of the current PG Grantees; • Prepare one-month no-cost extension modification of the TI-M grant agreement.
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COMPONENT TWO: STRENGTHEN CSOS
Under Component Two, CEP provides grant support to CSOs, including think tanks that work in the following priority areas: rule of law, anti-corruption, and transparency. Metamorphosis manages the SSGs and EWMI manages the Rapid Response Grants (RRGs) under Component Two.
Activity 2.1: Grantees Progress
Name of grantee: Association of Citizens “Center for Civil Communications” (CCC), Skopje Project name: Public Spending for Public Good Project duration: April 1, 2018 – June 30, 2021 Project target areas: Good Governance and Transparency
Key activities completed during the reporting period include: • CCC continued to work on its public procurement monitoring report for the period July- December 2020 (monitoring report #35). In order to collect tender notices, technical documentations, e-auction notices and final decisions, award notices, contracts, etc. for the 35th monitoring report, CCC submitted hundreds of requests for free access to information, in many cases with appeals at the Agency for Protection of the Right to Free Access to Public Information. • CCC published the 34th public procurement monitoring report covering the period January- June 2020. The report pointed out that the institutions consulted businesses in only 1.4% of tenders to improve the tender documentation and the public procurement process itself, resulting in over 11 million euros procured in direct negotiations which is 15% more than last year with one or no bids submitted at every third tender. “Lowest price” was used as a criteria in 96% of public procurements jeopardizing the principles of efficiency and effectiveness of public funds spending; the electronic auction was used in 92% of the procurements which according to CCC enables manipulations especially with bids that are symptomatically close to the estimated, secret value of the tender, which opens the possibility for the bidders to use leaked data from within public institutions. • CCC continued to provide support to investigative journalists. CCC assisted seven investigative journalists in the reporting period: Alsat M TV program "360 Degrees" on research on the Agency for Regulation of Railway Sector and research on public procurement of a railway traffic software; TV 24 on research on corruption in preparation for an interview with the DPM for Economic Affairs, Coordination with Economic Departments and Investments; Telma TV’s "Top Tema" on transparency of municipalities; TV Tera Bitola on research on the amount paid to the members and the President of the Council of the Municipality of Mogila; Magazine Fokus on research on public procurement on the software for the Births, Marriages and Deaths Registry office; and the Center for Investigative Journalism SCOOP Macedonia on research on database on urgent procurements related to coronavirus. • CCC developed six public policies and advocated for their adoption: 1) Government’s Anti- corruption Plan “Action 21”; 2) Government’s decision: All financial statements of public institutions (quarterly, semi-annual and annual) submitted for approval to the Government will not be reviewed if the list of 22 binding information and documents as defined in the Free Access to Public Information Law are not published on the websites of the institutions, following the Government Transparency Strategy; 3) CCC’s “Active transparency” concept
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(public institutions should publish data at their own initiative) became one of the key GoNM commitments in order to increase transparency; 4) DPM for Anticorruption, Sustainable Development and Human Resources announced the implementation of two measures proposed by CCC: (a) the GoNM will develop a single registry of state assets, and (b) the GoNM will develop by-laws for purchase and disposal of official vehicles; 5) CCC provided multiple recommendations on anticorruption measures in public procurements during the CSO Platform against Corruption’ conference; and 6) CCC provided recommendations under the “Transparency, Accountability, Proactivity and Inclusiveness” priority area for the next OGP Action Plan 2021-2023.
Name of grantee: Local Community Development Foundation (LCDF), Shtip Project name: Effective Mechanisms for Civic Participation Project duration: March 1, 2018 – February 28, 2021 Project target areas: Good Governance and Community Development
LCDF completed its project in this quarter. Here are some of the most notable successes of the project “Effective Mechanisms for Civic Participation”:
• LCDF’s Capacity Building program included 11 Municipalities and worked with a total of 62 (38 men, 24 women) first time councilors at the local level. 33 of the 62 councilors have started to regularly consult citizens on local priorities, making sure citizens’ needs and input are built into local decision making. Councilors recommended introducing continuous compulsory capacity building/trainings for newly elected councilors. • Eight Advisory Bodies (ABs) have been created within eight participating municipalities which resulted in 32 implemented initiatives for the duration of the project. These activities also engaged over 50 citizens in local activities. • Piloting new, sustainable mechanism for direct civic participation is the most notable success of the project. Advisory Bodies represent a simple, effective, and cheap mechanism that allows citizens to participate in decision making processes at the local level. Additional value of the ABs is that they stimulate individuals to join community development activities and also provide a direct link among citizens and decision makers. • On February 11, LCDF organized the conference “Decentralization, effective mechanism for civic participation” as a final event within the project, with 91 participants attending the online conference. During the conference, LCDF representatives highlighted the most notable achievements of the project.
Activity 2.2: Rapid Response Grants
On January 21, the Parliament of North Macedonia, voted on the Census 2021 Law, which effectively scheduled the Census for April 1-21. The last census in North Macedonia was held in 2002 and the census is a statistical operation of key importance for the country. Having in mind that the census is subject to extreme politization, polarization and misinformation, it is very important to educate the public about the statistical value of the census, but also to follow the media coverage and identify key challenges and misinformation narratives. Due to the rise of COVID-19 cases in March, a postponement of the census for September 2021 is still pending and may result in a delay of the activities under two RRG’s awarded in the reporting period.
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Name of grantee: Foundation NGO Info-Center Skopje Project name: “Statistics Not Politics - Census 2021” Project duration: 4 months (February 22, 2021 – June 21, 2021) Project target areas: Census 2021 – Statistic not Politics
Key activities completed during the reporting period included: • Successful launch of the census-dedicated website popis.mk. According to the Google analytics data, from the moment Info-Center published and promoted new content on March 10 the website spiked from zero to 6,089 new users (88% returning users) with 7,652 sessions. • 59 articles were published on the website, 19 of which supported and approved by USAID. • Info-Center produced and published 10 social media visuals, five short slides, one video with information about Census 2021 and one short educational video, and two infographics. During the quarter, these materials reached an online audience of 88,672 people. • On March 10, NGO Info-Center conducted a workshop with 26 (16 women, 10 men) participants, mostly journalists from local and regional media, as well as local correspondents from the national media outlets. Info-Center’s workshop equipped journalist with useful information about census procedures, the legal process, approach, rights of citizens, etc.
Name of grantee: Foundation NGO Info-Center Skopje Project name: “Spotlight on the Media - Census 2021” Project duration: 4 months (March 04, 2021 – July 03, 2021) Project target areas: Census 2021 – Media monitoring
Key activities completed during the reporting period included: • Custom-made methodology developed and tested prior to official start of the monitoring. • Using the custom-made media monitoring methodology, Info-Center selected four online media outlets and five national TV stations to be monitored for Census reporting, with a focus to provide a balance between pro-government, pro-opposition as well as neutral media. The following media outlets were selected: KURIR - kurir.mk; PLUSINFO - plusinfo.mk; FRONTLINE - frontline.mk; 360 STEPENI - 360stepeni.mk; MRT1; SITEL; ALFA; ALSATM and TELMA. • 451 media articles collected and analyzed (3.3 articles daily per media outlet), which is 47% of the initially expected articles for the entire monitoring sample.
Name of grantee: Association for Emancipation, Solidarity, and Equality of Women - ESE Project name: “Sustained Support for Women that Suffered Domestic Violence” Project duration: 4 months (March 01, 2021 – July 12, 2021) Project target areas: Rule of Raw and Human Rights
Key activities completed during the reporting period included:
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• ESE provided 21 beneficiaries with free legal aid for the resolution of domestic violence and other related legal problems: child alimony (6); divorce (4); civil protection against domestic violence (4); custody (3). • ESE provided psychological counseling for 4 women that suffered domestic violence. • ESE enriched its platform “Ask for Advice” for the provision of free on-line legal services for women victims of domestic violence with written submissions for beneficiaries.
COVID-19-related Delays in this Quarter • Potential delay of Rapid Response Grant on Census 2021; • CEP staff was unable to travel for monitoring purposes due to the COVID-19-related travel restrictions and health risks.
Plans for Next Quarter • Regular monitoring of the activities of the current SSG and RRG grantees; • Initiate closeout procedure of the CCC grant agreement; • Prepare no-cost extension modifications of the Info-Center grant agreements.
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COMPONENT THREE: STRENGTHEN YOUTH ENGAGEMENT
Under Component Three, CEP, through the local partner NYCM, implements a yearlong LEAD MK Program, which represents an innovative approach to supporting North Macedonia’s next generation of leaders as they become active and engaged citizens working on the issues they care about deeply. Under this component, NYCM also administers the Youth Civic Engagement Award (YCEA) to recognize the work of young women and men (ages 18 - 29) and informal youth groups whose activities demonstrate exemplary youth civic engagement.
Activity 3.1: Develop a Cohort of Youth Leaders
a. LEAD MK Master Class Academy
On January 15-21, CEP implemented the LEAD MK online Master Class Academy, as part of CEP’s annual LEAD MK (Linking, Engagement, Advocacy, Development) Master Class Fellowship Program, engaging 28 participants (18 women, 10 men) as an advanced leadership program enabling LEAD Alumni of the previous four LEAD MK Fellowship Program generations to master their leadership skills, create breakthroughs through innovative leadership, communicate effectively with others and impart leadership values to team members. The LEAD MK Master Class Academy was led by Craig A. Bowman of Common Ground Consulting and his team, Dr. Robin Saunders and Dr. J’aime M. Grant, enabling the Fellows to learn more about LEAD MK Fellows participating at the online LEAD leadership from international experts in diplomacy, MK Master Class Academy (Jan 15-21, 2021) and international relations and the youth sector, such the Annoucement photo of Ambassador Kate Marie as: Ambassador Kate Marie Byrnes, U.S. Embassy in Byrnes, U.S. Embassy in North Macedonia, as a guest speaker at the Academy. North Macedonia; Erwan Fouere, Former Ambassador of the EU Delegation in North “What I like about this Academy is the fact that it was well- Macedonia; Andrea Ugrinoska, Chairperson of organized, well-planned and it gave us the feeling of being the Advisory Council on Youth of the Council of together despite the fact that it was completely online. Having the activities in breakout rooms really helped us Europe; Anja Fortuna, Vice President of the bond and learn a lot from each other. All the guests were European Youth Forum; and Shalom great. The fact that they are coming from different parts of Konstantino, Public Affairs Specialist at the U.S. the world and having different stories can really help us get various advice, tips and inspiration.” - LEAD MK Master Department of State. Based on the evaluation Class Academy Participant findings, the participants highly rated the LEAD MK Master Class Academy (average score of 4.82 on the content, and 4.89 on the results, on a scale of 1-5). In addition, 100% of responders would recommend the academy to others.
b. LEAD MK #4 Follow-Up Survey
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The CEP survey with 22 LEAD MK Fellows of the fourth generation of CEP’s LEAD MK Fellowship Program aimed to collect data about the % of the CEP-supported youth (LEAD MK Fellows) who remain active in public life six months after the initial CEP support, with a questionnaire including seven questions for the Fellows regarding different ways of maintaining their engagement in public life, in their community or in CSOs, as well as questions on the influence of the LEAD program on their personal development. 19 out of 22 (86%) LEAD MK Fellows responded, 9 men and 10 women (14 Macedonian, 4 Albanian and 1 Bosnian), belonging to the age group of 18–25 years. 71.05% of the 19 LEAD MK Fellows stayed active six months after the initial CEP support as an average calculated across four types of activities (Follow Up to LEAD MK Project, Other Community Activities, Joined CSO, Informal Group, Public/Private Sector, and New Links and Networks). Below is the breakdown by type of activity.
LEAD MK Fellows who remain active 6 months after initial CEP support
Yes No
10.50% 21.00% 31.60% 52.70%
89.50% 79.00% 68.40% 47.30%
Follow Up to LEAD MK Other Community Activities Joined CSO, Informal Group New Links and Networks Project or Public/Private Sector
“After completing my LEAD MK small-scale project, I’m proud to share that I LEAD MK Fellows continued to received permission to open the first LGBT+ club at school to help and support implement various youth-related fellow queer students.” activities such as workshops and Ivan Alinchanec, LEAD MK 4th generation Fellow (“Gender UnBoxed”) trainings, gender equality, legal aid to vulnerable groups, artistic activities addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, meetings and discussions with relevant stakeholders on different topics, etc. Some became part of different CSOs, informal groups, including the Macedonian Young Lawyers Association, Center for Legal Research and Analysis (CPIA), Youth Educational Forum, Youth Can, Center for Youth Activism KRIK, Scout Unit 'Skaut' in Kumanovo, Scout Unit Equinox Scout in Shtip, Pirka AVH, Yag Excel, Center for Economic Policy, Analysis and Consulting (CEPAC), AIESEC, PsychLab, while others started working for institutions (Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning, Ombudsman) or joined the business sector. 68.4% of the respondents intend to start a new community initiative addressing environmental problems, mental health, improving the educational system, promoting rural culture, tourism and entrepreneurship, starting clubs in schools on different topics (ecology, LGBT+ support), starting youth CSOs, etc.
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All responders would recommend “It was literally a life changing experience, as I sharpened my set of skills and CEP’s LEAD MK Fellowship Program learned new ones. I also overcame a certain problem I had with public to others with many noting that the speaking. I am so grateful for this, because I had a chance to deliver a speech Program significantly impacted as a representative of my company at the European Business Assembly (EBA), where I had a chance to meet a lot of experts in different fields.” their personal development, as they acquired new knowledge and Elena Arsoska, LEAD MK 4th generation Fellow (“Be a Nature Force”) skills, developed their leadership potentials and established new networks and contacts. Many Fellows pointed out that the program improved their skills in project management, advocacy, time management, activity planning and logistics, as well as dealing with various obstacles and adapting to different scenarios as project implementation took place in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
c. Develop and Implement LEAD MK Activities During the reporting period, LEAD MK Master Class Fellows developed their small-scale project outlines and submitted them to CEP for review and approval. The Fellows had the opportunity to work on projects individually, and in groups. In mid-February, NYCM, on behalf of CEP, signed 18 in-kind grant agreements with LEAD MK Master Class Fellows. The approved projects are presented in the table below:
NAME OF THE PROJECT, No. PROJECT SUMMARY LEAD MK IMPLEMENTER
“GREEN COMMUNITY LEADERS” The project will serve to educate youth about 1. ALBRIE XHEMAILI environmental protection.
“COMPASS” The project will serve to create opportunities for ANA KLESOVA 2. participation in public life of youth from the Eastern and DARKO TOSHIKJ Southeastern region. MARTINA JACHEVSKA
“WEVOLVE” The goal of the project is to educate youth how to protect 3. ANASTASIA BOSHKOSKA their mental health in a post-pandemic society.
“GIRLS LEAD GIRLS” The project will serve to empower young women and girls 4. ANGELA NIKOLOSKA from the Pelagonija and Southeastern Region to take on MARIJA BANDULOVA leadership roles in their careers.
“TEAM B-WELL” The project will serve to educate youth on how to maintain 5. ANJEZA GORENCA SADIKU and improve their mental health and wellbeing. NERTILA AHMEDI
“ENTREPRENEURSHIP & EMPOWERMENT MASTER The project will serve to improve the entrepreneurial skills 6. CLASS” and capacities of youth in Gostivar. ARD ZEQIRI
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The project will serve to engage young people to actively “SKOPJE IN YOUR HAND” 7. contribute to the promotion and development of city ARMEND ALIMI tourism of Skopje.
“CAIR'S YOUTH ARTIVISTS” The project will serve to strengthen local youth community 8. ARTA QERIMI activism in the Municipality of Chair (Skopje) in addressing JETMIR ASANI issues of their concern.
The project will serve to increase interethnic cooperation “#YOUTHARTIVISM” 9. among young people in Kumanovo by undertaking joint BESART SHABANI activities of artivism.
“THE RURAL FAIR” The project will engage youth from rural areas in the BILJANA IVANOVA 10. promotion of rural culture, social inclusion, employability KAMELIJA JANEVSKA and health. IVA KITEVSKA
“I'M BETTER PREPARED” The project will work to improve the transition from 11. DAVID STOJANOVIKJ education to employment of VET students in Skopje.
The project will serve to educate youth on the importance “LITTLE ECO FOOTPRINTS” 12. of environmental protection and the impact of climate ELENA ARSOSKA change. The project will serve to empower youth from Kumanovo to “YOUTH POWER A-Z” 13. take action in their communities for issues they are ELENA TRPKOVSKA passionate about.
The project will serve to sensitize youth about the most “ENCOURAGE AND EMPOWER” 14. common forms of institutionalized discrimination on ENES BILLALI different ethnic groups, specifically the Roma community.
“SCULPT YOUR VOICE” The project will serve to advance social inclusion of Roma 15. MARIJA ALOA VERA youth through artivistic activities. DRZMANOSKA “ADVOCATING HEALTHY The goal of this project is to educate youth on different MINDS” 16. activities they can apply in their daily lives to address MELDA VELI mental health issues. SEJHAN RAMADANI “HEALTHY MINDS, HEALTHY The project will engage young people in outdoor activities 17. LIVES” to improve their mental wellbeing. NIKOLA SPASOVSKI “RADICAL IDEA: EQUALLITY” The project will educate young people on how to recognize 18. SASHKA STEFANOVSKA and address gender-based violence. Table 1: LEAD MK Master Class In-Kind Grants During the reporting period, the LEAD MK Master Class Fellows carried out five activities as part of their CEP-supported LEAD MK small-scale projects. The activities engaged 42 young people (20
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women and 22 men), and took place both online and with physical presence, following the Government protocols to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Project: “Entrepreneurship & Empowerment Master Class” implemented by Ard Zeqiri The LEAD MK Master Class Fellow Ard Zeqiri works on improving entrepreneurial skills and capacities of youth in Gostivar. Within the reporting period, he organized three entrepreneurial workshops for high school students, taking place on March 6, March 13 and March 20. The workshops introduced students how to develop ideas and translate them into business opportunities. The workshops engaged a
total of 25 participants (11 women and 14 men). LEAD MK Fellow Ard Zeqiri’s entrepreneurial workshop Project: “WEvolve” implemented by Anastasia Boshkoska The LEAD MK Master Class Fellow Anastasia Boshkoska works towards educating youth how to protect their mental health in a post-pandemic society. Within the reporting period, she started her series of workshops on mental health with different target groups. On March 26, she organized her first online workshop with LGBT+ youth, creating a safe
space to discuss mental health challenges. Guest speakers at the workshop included Antonio Mihajlov, Guest speaker Antonio Mihajlovski addressing the Executive Director at Subversive Front, Association LGBT+ participants at Anastasia Boshkoska’s for Sexual and Gender Minorities, and Lexi Lee workshop on post-pandemic mental health Brown, LGBT+ activist at Central Washington University. The workshop engaged 10 participants (7 men and 3 women).
Project: “Radical Idea: EquALLity” implemented by Sashka Stefanovska The LEAD MK Master Class Fellow Sashka Stefanovska works on educating young people how to recognize and address gender-based violence. On March 28, she organized an online workshop for young people to discuss gender-based violence and ways to prevent it. Following the completion of the workshop, Sashka, together with the participants will launch a social media campaign to raise awareness on gender-based violence. The workshop engaged a total of seven participants (6 women and one men).
Activity 3.2: Youth Civic Engagement Award (YCEA) Promotional photo for Sashka Stefanovska’s workshop on gender-based violence
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On March 15, CEP issued the Call for Nominations (CfN) # CEP-YCEA-05 for the Youth Civic Engagement Award. The call was advertised and promoted on National Youth Council of Macedonia’s web and Facebook pages; CEP’s web page and social media channels; and shared via NYCM’s and CEP’s email distribution list to local stakeholders. The deadline for submitting nominations is April 5, 2021. CEP will award up to six Youth Civic Engagement Awards (YCEA) to successful young men and women (age 18 - 29), informal youth groups (consisting of at least three members) and youth CSOs or youth CSO alliances that have demonstrated exemplary commitment to improving the life of their community or that of the society at large by undertaking actions that address issues of public concern at any level in North Macedonia. YCEA will be awarded for actions that the nominees have undertaken during the period January 2020 to March 2021. The nominated candidates that meet the criteria will be shortlisted and subjected to public voting process that will take place in the next quarter. Promotional photo for the YCEA Call for Nominations
Activity 3.3: Youth Policy Labs
On March 3, NYCM signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of North Macedonia Agency for Youth and Sports, ensuring their support in the implementation of the Youth Policy Labs, specifically cooperation in policymaking processes and providing timely information related to youth policies in North Macedonia. In addition, the Agency for Youth and Sports pledged to continue the implementation of the Youth Civic Engagement Award in partnership with NYCM following the completion of CEP. The MoU was signed by Bojan Petrovski, NYCM President Bojan Petrovski and Agency for Youth and Sports Director Naumche Mojsovski President of NYCM and Naumche Mojsovski, Director signing the MoU of the Agency for Youth and Sports.
COVID-19 related delays in this Quarter N/A
Plans for Next Quarter
• Monitor the implementation of LEAD MK Master Class small-scale project activities; • Provide ongoing support to LEAD MK Master Class Fellows during project implementation; • Review nominations and prepare the shortlist for the fifth round of YCEA;
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• Design the visuals and promotional content for the YCEA; • Prepare and implement online voting process for YCEA winners’ selection; • Review and process project proposal outlines of YCEA winners; • Sign in-kind grant agreements with YCEA winners; • Organize orientation session with YCEA winners; • Organize YCEA event; • Monitor the implementation of YCEA activities; • Start the implementation of Youth Policy Labs.
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COMPONENT FOUR: TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE IN SUPPORT OF RULE OF LAW AND ANTI- CORRUPTION REFORMS Activity 4.1: Provide technical assistance to judicial sector professional institutions on judicial ethics During the reporting period, CEP continued the consultations process with the Association of Judges to assist them in designing specific activities for the coming period. Activity 4.2: Provide technical assistance to the government on the ethics code for state officials CEP, in cooperation with the Cabinet of the Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) for Anticorruption, Sustainable Development and Human Resources initiated the formal process of identification of the most suitable expert to be engaged to analyze the Code of Ethics, prepare the curriculum for the trainings, and deliver the trainings for up to 300 public officials. The formal process of expert identification, justification and approval is at its final stage and this activity is expected to begin and be completed during the next reporting period. Activity 4.3: Provide technical assistance to Ministry for Information Society and Administration (MISA) to improve the use of open data at the national and local levels
4.3.1 Open Data Technical Support CEP Metamorphosis PMU started a social media campaign to raise awareness and promote the 30 open data-sets published by the five institutions supported by CEP in the previous period: Ministry of Local Self-Government, State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, State Market Inspectorate, Public Revenue Office and the Agency for Real Estate Cadaster.
To support the development of the OGP National Action Plan, CEP Metamorphosis PMU prepared a list of eleven new institutions in need of assistance to open their data for users and submitted the list to MISA. MISA and Metamorphosis will select the second group of five public institutions to receive technical support in opening their data. 4.3.2 Curriculum Development and training Metamorphosis commenced with the activities for development of an automated webinar on Open Data to provide public servants with knowledge about the process of identification, cataloguing and prioritization of data sets, as well as practical knowledge about the process of publishing data sets on the portal data.gov.mk. The activities will be implemented in cooperation with MISA. The proposed concept for the development of the automated webinar (video training) was submitted to MISA for approval. 4.3.3 Open Data Hackathon Consultations with the Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering (FINKI), the SEEU Faculty of Contemporary Sciences and Technologies, UNDP Accelerator Lab and MISA continued in the reporting period. The concept of the hackathon and how to involve students and types of open data sets to be used will be finalized and hackathon organized in the next reporting period.
Activity 4.4: Expand the Openness Index
4.4.1 Openness Index – Central level
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On March 3, Metamorphosis organized a public discussion on “How to systematically improve the openness of institutions” to present the policy paper and results of measuring the openness of the public institutions at the central level in 2020, which was attended by more than 35 representatives of ministries, public institutions, CSOs, international organizations and activists resulting in a strong commitment of the public sector to open their data to the public. The USAID Representative in North Macedonia, Erik Janowsky provided the opening remarks to the event and stressed the importance of transparency and accountability of institutions, saying: “The central executive government benefits from the research because the findings and recommendations of the Openness Index are used to develop the Transparency Strategy, a strategic document that lays the foundation of the Government’s commitment to improving transparency in all its bodies. Therefore, the evidence-based recommendations obtained from this index are a useful tool for directing institutions towards improving their transparency and accountability.”
CEP Metamorphosis PMU started the assessment of the openness of public institutions at the central level in 2021, facing significant challenges in obtaining relevant and consistent data, due to poor web infrastructure of institutions, but also witnessing improved awareness and readiness for cooperation compared to previous years. 4.4.1.1 Monitoring of the Implementation of the Transparency Strategy of the GoNM In March, Metamorphosis published the results of their second six-month monitoring of the implementation of the Transparency Strategy of the Government of North Macedonia (2019- 2021) conducted on a sample of 50 institutions: 16 ministries and 34 executive bodies showing that only 2 of 45 activities in the Action Plan are fully implemented.
As result of Metamorphosis advocacy efforts, the Agency for Protection of the Right to Free Access to Public Information, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Government, establishing a partnership to promote free access to public information. In addition, the Government informed the municipalities and all information holders under their jurisdiction, that as a condition to receive finances to implement local development projects in 2021, they must implement the recommendations from the Transparency Strategy including their obligations under the Free Access to Public Information Law.
4.4.2 Openness Index – Local level CEP Metamorphosis PMU finalized the revisions of the Methodology of the Openness Index – to measure the openness of the public institutions at the local level. The revised Methodology was based on the Index for measuring the Openness of Local Government Units (LGUs) in the region of the six non-EU countries in Southeast Europe (SEE6). The ultimate goal was to create a practical tool for measuring the overall openness of LGUs which: will give a detailed overview of all aspects related to the openness of each LGU, will enable comparability between LGUs in order to encourage mutual learning and sharing of best practices, will create motivation in the LGU for continuous improvement and innovation, and will be accessible and understandable for citizens to have insight into the openness of their municipality.
Metamorphosis started providing technical support to 17 municipalities included in the Openness Index for 2020. This support is intended towards improving the transparency and accountability of the LGUs; increasing the number of published open data on their websites and increasing participation of the citizens in the decision-making processes at the local level.
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Metamorphosis held two trainings on improving transparency and openness with 36 representatives of LGUs and eight civil society organizations (25 women, 21 men) from Tetovo, Zhelino, Kavadarci, Rosoman, Prilep, Dolneni, Vasilevo, Strumica, Kumanovo, Lipkovo, Aerodrom, Gjorche Petrov, Shtip, Zrnovci, Ohrid, Vevchani and the City of Skopje. Participants learned about openness and transparency tools, involving citizens in the decision-making process, open city and open data concepts, and publishing open data sets.
Finally, responding to the CEP Metamorphosis PMU initiative, 31 municipalities signed the Declaration of Openness, Accountability and Transparency of Local Government Units: Aerodrom, Bitola, Bogovinje, Brvenica, Butel, Veles, Vevchani, Vrapchiste, Gazi Baba, Demir Hisar, Gjorche Petrov, Zhelino, Centar Zhupa, Ilinden, Kavadarci, Karposh, Kratovo, Krushevo, Kumanovo, Kriva Palanka, Lozovo, Makedonski Brod, Mavrovo and Rostushe, Ohrid, Radovish, City of Skopje, Tearce, Tetovo, Zelenikovo, Zrnovci and Shtip, committing to be more open and transparent, establishing procedures for participatory decision-making, and explaining how they have used public money at their disposal and how they have improved the lives of all citizens.
4.4.3 Open Government Partnership Support CEP Metamorphosis PMU continued to work on the fifth National Action Plan for Open Government Partnership 2021 – 2023 by submitting two Initiatives in the priority areas of Transparency, Accountability, Proactivity and Inclusiveness and Delivery of Public Service. Activity 4.5 Strengthen systems of integrity to combat corruption at the municipal level Foundation Open Society – Macedonia, in a formal cooperation with municipalities Zhelino, Karposh, Dojran, Prilep and Ohrid and partner organizations in all of the targeted municipalities, finalized their activity on the development of the local integrity systems, as a mechanism to advance good governance, by improving local resilience to corruption and conflict of interests. To raise citizens’ awareness in detecting corruption and conflict of interest, FOSM, through its local partner organizations, conducted three workshops and three public discussions with around 180 participants, steered informative campaigns through social media and field distribution of educational materials. On March 9-10, FOSM conducted a joint workshop for all members of integrity working groups of five municipalities with 75 participants (42 men, 33 women) for the effective establishment and implementation of the integrity plans and reporting mechanisms. The workshop also included a training on how to respond to complaints on corruption and conflict of interest cases and means of cooperation with the SCPC as well as CSOs. As a final result, FOSM developed five risk assessments for the respective targeted municipalities that identified the most vulnerable areas for corruption and conflict of interest in each municipality, used as a base in the preparation of five integrity plans for the municipalities of Karposh, Prilep, Dojran, Zhelino and Ohrid. The five integrity plans will be used as a tool for establishing and verifying the integrity of local government units and as a basis for all policies, standards and procedures established in these local governments that enhance its resilience to corruption and reduce the risk of corrupt behavior by its employees. FOSM will also proceed with the advocacy efforts in order to ensure a formal adoption of the integrity plans by the municipalities during the next reporting period.
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Activity 4.6: Provide technical assistance to the State Commission for Prevention of Corruption and create cooperation mechanisms between SCPC and civil society at the local level On January 25-26, CEP ADI PMU held a training for CSOs on the provisions of the new Law on Prevention of Corruption, attended by 17 participants, representatives of local CSOs
from five target municipalities (8 men, 9 women). During the two-day training, the attendees gained relevant knowledge and information related to the provisions of the
Law on Prevention of Corruption and the mandate of the State Commission for “ Prevention of Corruption. The attendees were Training on the provisions of the new Law on Prevention of able to clear up any uncertainties related to the Corruption and management of corruption risks for CSOs applicable procedures for submitting complaints to SCPC. The training was of great importance in building the capacities of the local CSOs – ADI partners. In the next period these CSOs will provide citizens with
information about the work and mandate of the SCPC and procedures on how to file a complaint. From February 9 to February 22, ADI held five informative sessions and public debates in
Gostivar, Bitola, Kavadarci, Kumanovo and Shtip to present the key findings of ADI’s Assessment of corruption vulnerable areas to local government representatives, councilors, public enterprises, police, health institutions, and CSOs. The Assessment showed that dominantly, citizens in different cities have
similar views on corruption in their communities and find that inspectorates are most corrupt, while media needs to play a ADI’s informative sessions and public debates held online stronger role in anticorruption efforts. About and in person 80% of citizens in five municipalities believe corruption has increased compared with the period 10 years ago, which in combination with the other findings of the Assessment provides a basis for future activities and helps identify priorities for the society as a whole. These efforts were also supported with the infographics and video materials published on CEP’s and ADI’s website and Facebook pages, reaching over 36,000 persons. Activity 4.7: Provide technical assistance to the Government of North Macedonia
Ethics Code trainings for appointed public officials: CEP consulted with the DPM’s Cabinet on the approach and structure of the trainings, the curriculum and the documents that need to be
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analyzed before starting with the training sessions, and initiated the procedure for the selection of a local expert to analyze the regulation, design and perform trainings for up to 300 public officials and produce a Handbook on the Ethics Code for appointed officials.
Integrity Risk Assessment for public officials in central government: To support the Government efforts to comply with the GRECO recommendations, CEP’s international expert James Moliterno started developing the Integrity Risk Assessment tests for public officials in central government. The expert produced and provided a draft version of the test, submitted it to the DPM’s Cabinet for feedback and approval, and based on the feedback, included instructions for completing the test in the final version of the assessment test. The expert continues to develop a methodology for analyzing and evaluating the answers and templates for reporting the findings of the conducted tests which will be completed in the next quarter.
Strengthening the Financial Intelligence Directorate of the Government of North Macedonia: CEP completed the preparations and consultations with the Association Konekt for assistance to the Financial Intelligence Directorate (FID), finalized the scope of work for this activity, identified activities and designed final objectives and results. Konekt will create and improve existent documents and policies and hold a series of workshops and trainings to strengthen the capacities of CSOs and FID to become partners in preventing money laundry and terrorism financing and establish a system based on clear rules and principles, to protect CSOs from politically motivated prosecution in the future. Activity 4.8: Provide technical assistance to the Agency for Protection of the Right to Free Access to Public Information The Agency remains interested in technical support and trainings to be provided by CEP, however after their initial attempts to organize online trainings and the low response from other institutions, the Agency will strive to organize training sessions in person, once the situation with COVID-19 improves. Therefore, the Agency expects to identify the number of trainings and potential attendees in the next quarter, and plans for training rollout during the 3rd and 4th quarter. COVID-19-related Delays in this Quarter N/A
Plans for Next Quarter • Ethics Code training expert selected and commenced trainings of the public officials; • Integrity tests and the methodology finalized and the first group of testing for 100 public officials completed; • Konekt will review and adapt the Handbook on exposure of the non-profit sector for financing terrorism to reflect the latest Financial Action Task Force guidance; • Konekt will support FID in developing Communication and Public Outreach Strategy, internal procedures and guidelines for communication, PR crisis management, etc. • Metamorphosis will continue to provide technical support to improve transparency and accountability of 17 municipalities included in the Open Index measurement for 2020.
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SECTION III: CROSS-CUTTING ACTIVITIES
3.1 PUBLIC OUTREACH
• Production of promotional videos During the reported period, CEP continued to work closely with its service contractor AD+Venture, and despite COVID-19 managed to complete a five minute informational video about the Youth Civic Engagement Award (YCEA), promoting 18 winners in three categories and their activities in the past four years. The video received excellent feedback from USAID and was Video on YCEA 4 Years Results subsequently, promoted on CEP’s FB page https://www.facebook.com/CEPNorthMacedonia/videos/722065398434866, as well as on the social media handles of USAID/NM and NYCM. The video was provided with English subtitles and sound language.
• Success Stories During the reporting period, CEP developed success story titled: “Online or Offline, Citizen Engagement Needs to Be Strengthened by Core Open Government Principles” highlighting the achievements of the online platform for Open Government Partnership created in cooperation with the Ministry of Information Society and Administration.
• Educational campaign on detecting and reporting corruption in five municipalities CEP also created visualizations to promote the results of its activities under the Activity 4.5: Strengthen systems of integrity to combat corruption at the municipal level. As a result of the findings from the public opinion survey on prevalence of corruption and conflict of interests in targeted five municipalities, CEP developed: - Individual (31) and summarized infographics (13) on experiences, attitudes and perceptions of corruption and conflict of interest of 1,239 citizens from the municipalities: Karposh, Dojran, Ohrid, Prilep and Zhelino; The biggest problems of the citizens’ on the local (left) and national (right) level
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- Posts (6) for Social Media, presenting key messages on preventing corruption and conflict of interests in the following areas: health, judiciary, employments, education, inspections and administration; - Educational video and audio material, titled: “Иднина без корупција е можна” (Future without corruption is possible).
These visuals were promoted on FOSM SM handles, including: FB, YouTube, Instagram; national TV24 and radio station; as well as on USAID/NM and CEP’s FB page, as illustrated on the link below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vjh9muxUmF4. As a Тhe prevalence of corruption in areas result of the campaign implementation, CEP reached 367,364 people in the period March 12-29.
• Promoting results from the Report on the Assessment of the Corruption Vulnerable Areas ADI developed eight infographics and an interactive video, in Macedonian and Albanian language, presenting the key findings from the Assessment of the corruption vulnerable areas in five targeted municipalities. To strengthen constructive engagement of CSOs on policies and issues of public concern, ADI used paid ads to boost the published infographics and the videos on their FB page. In total, the 81% of responders thinks that the corruption in the last 10 years has increased infographics reached 34,330 people and the videos reached 3,818 people.
The desire to get rich quick is considered to be the most important factor in the emergence of corruption
MK version:https://www.facebook.com/adimacedonia/videos/465371474508471 ALB version: https://www.facebook.com/adimacedonia/videos/447128146492558/
• Media Coverage Despite COVID-19, CEP continued to gain notable media coverage of its activities. As reported in the USAID Media Analysis for February, CEP activities were cited in 134 media articles, all of which were positive. During the reporting period, 457 media articles covered CEP supported events, as well as the activities of CEP grantees. The following activities and events generated the most media attention:
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On January 13, CCC published the database on municipal officials monthly lump sums and generated 53 media reports, including the following:
Number of news articles by individual projects
- https://lider.com.mk/ekonomija/opshtinskite-sovetnici-chinat-3-5-milioni-evra- godishno-najvisoki-paushali-zemale-od-grad-skopje/ - https://www.24.mk/details/filkov-za-tv- 24-opshtinskite-sovetnici-chinat-3-5- milioni-evra-godishno
On February 11, the Local Community Development Foundation (LCDF) Shtip organized an e-conference on Effective mechanisms for civic participation. At the
closing conference USAID’s Country Video statement by USAID’s Country Representative Representative Erik Janowsky and the Erik Janowsky Minister of Local Self-Government Goran Milevski made remarks. The hybrid conference resulted in 30 articles published in different media, including the following:
Mayor of Shtip (left) and the Minister of Local Self Government (right) panelists at the LCDF’s conference
- https://gragjanskizbor.mk/aktuelno/milevski-godinava-prioritet -ni-e- decentralizacijata-kako-fiskalna-taka-i-institucionalna/ - https://lider.com.mk/makedonija/milevski-godinava-prioritet-ni-e- decentralizacijata-fiskalna-i-institucionalna/ - https://www.slobodenpecat.mk/vo-shtip-debata-za-deczentralizaczija/
CCC’s Press Release on New Year’s decorations, titled: “For decorating for the New Year 2021, the municipalities have spent 41% less money than last year, and New Year’s goodie bags were bought by 35 institutions”. The activity generated 40 articles on various online platforms and media including the following:
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- https://makfax.com.mk/ekonomija/%D0%BE%D0%BF%D1%88%D1%82%D0%B8%D0% BD%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B5-%D0%B7%D0%B0- %D1%83%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%81%D1%83%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%9A%D0% B5-%D0%B7%D0%B0-%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0- %D0%B3%D0%BE%D0%B4%D0%B8%D0%BD/ - https://www.slobodenpecat.mk/czgk-za-ukrasuvane-na-gradot-skopje-i-ushte-15- drugi-opshtini-vo-zemjava-za-novata-2021-godina-se-potrosheni-vkupno-405-iljadi- evra/
ADI conducted five public debates on Corruption vulnerable areas in five municipalities: Gostivar, Kavadarci, Kumanovo Shtip and Bitola to present key findings from the Assessment of corruption vulnerable areas at local level and discuss findings with local self-governments, councilors, public enterprises, police, health institutions, and CSOs. The Director of USAID’s General Video statement by USAID’s General Development Office, Ms. Dawn Carmin Development Office Director addressed participants in Shtip through a video statement. The debates resulted with 41 articles published in different media, including the following:
- https://mms.mk/201467/%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B0%D0%B4%D0%B0%D1% 80%D1%87%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B8- %D1%81%D0%BC%D0%B5%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B0%D1%82- %D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BA%D0%B0- %D1%81%D1%83%D0%B4%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B2%D0%BE%D1%82%D0%BE- %D0%B5/ - https://tera.mk/%D0%B7%D0%B0- %D0%BA%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%83%D0%BF%D1%86%D0%B8%D1%98%D0%B0%D1% 82%D0%B0-%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%B1%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B0-%D0%B2%D0%BE- %D0%B1%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B0/
CCC published a comprehensive analysis and database on property tax collection covering a 3 year period (2017-2019) for all municipalities in North Macedonia. The activity generated 110 articles on various online platforms and media including the following:
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- https://netpress.com.mk/opshtina-centar- sobira-2-3-milioni-evra-od-danok-arachinovo- voopshto-ne-ni-napla-a/ - https://kanal5.com.mk/cgk-opshtinite-vo- prosek-naplakjaat-po-81-procent-od-danokot- na-imot/a464407 - https://360stepeni.mk/tsgk-polovina-od-parite- od-danok-na-imot-se-pribiraat-od-skopje/
Prime Minister Zaev statement on tax collection in Aracinovo municipality, published https://mkreporter.com/
- https://mkreporter.com/%D0%B7%D0%B0%D0%B5%D0%B2- %D1%82%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B1%D0%B0-%D0%B4%D0%B0-%D1%81%D0%B5- %D1%81%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B8-%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B4-%D0%B8- %D0%BF%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%BA-%D0%B2%D0%BE/
CCC published its Procurement Report no. 34 (January – June 2020), providing analyses on the monitored public procurements at the local and central level. CCC prepared and released a Press Release to the media, and gained 125 articles including the following: - https://vecer.mk/top-vesti/istrazhuvanje- korupcijata-napreduva-11-milioni-evra-potrosheni- bez-tenedr/ - https://www.24.mk/details/sabina-fakhikj-za- studio-10-korupcijata-ne-chini-300-milioni-evra Public procurement contracts worth 11 million https://nezavisen.mk/bez-javen-oglas-sklucheni- euros were concluded without a public announcement, article published on media dogovori-za-javni-nabavki-vo-vrednost-od-11- portal www.nezavisen.mk milioni-evra/
• Branding and Marking Plan CEP ensured that: (i) all online training and other activities organized by CEP, its grantees and LEAD Fellows complied with CEP’s Branding and Marking Plan; (ii) grantees used appropriate CEP’s templates, as well as CEP’s promotional items (banners, folders, notebooks, pens, and bags) in all CEP-funded activities. In addition, during the reported period, CEP held an orientation session with Konekt and provided all necessary guidelines, including reporting and B&M templates so that Konekt can implement its activity following USAID’s Branding and Marking regulations.
• Project’s FB page and web site During the reporting period, CEP shared information about its activities and accomplishments through its Facebook and website page, as well as through its local partners’ social media channels. During this quarter, CEP’s website had 1,625 page views, CEP’s Facebook page had
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3,227 likes, and CEP’s Facebook posts reached 68,299 users. CEP does not use ads and/or promote its Facebook page through paid services. All page reaches and likes are organic.
• Information Officers Meeting On February 23, CEP’s M&E and Communications Specialist attended an online Information Officers meeting organized by USAID Development and Outreach Coordination Office. USAID implementing partners discussed the CR participation at USAID events and introduced google drive USAID Calendar that should be updated on a weekly basis.
3.2 COOPERATION WITH USAID AND OTHER DONOR PROGRAMS
During this quarter, CEP team held a series of meetings and working sessions with USAID and other donor programs, including the US Embassy-DoJ, the EU Mission and different EU Projects, IRI, NDI and UNDP in the process of analyzing the country situation to design forms of assistance for specific target-institutions and build partnerships for an optimized resource effort.
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U.S. Agency for International Development North Macedonia Samoilova, 21 1000 Skopje, North Macedonia Tel: (+389 2) 310-2000 www.usaid.gov/north-macedonia
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