POLICY ANSWERS: Shaping the future in the Western Balkans together

Fostering the stability and prosperity of the Western Balkans remains a key priority for the EU, especially taking into account the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic which has been hitting the Western Balkans societies and economies hard. As outlined in the European Commission´s priorities, green transition, digital transformation and an economy that works for people are crucial for relaunching and modernising the Western Balkans, helping to create jobs and growth, addressing the long-standing challenges faced by young people in the region such as limited job prospects, and inequality. Research, innovation, education and culture are essential drivers in this process – underpinned by evidence-based policy-making.

In such a context, the EU project entitled POLICY ANSWERS – R&I POLICY making, Implementation and Support in the WEsteRn BalkanS was launched on 1 March 2022 for a period of four years ending in April 2026.

This initiative funded under the Horizon Europe call “Support for R&I policy making in the Western Balkans” (HORIZON-WIDERA-2021-ACCESS-06-01) was positioned in line with the EU’s Western Balkans Agenda on Innovation, Research, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport (WB Innovation Agenda), outlining a comprehensive, long-term strategy for cooperation with the region, including an Action Plan for its implementation.

POLICY ANSWERS focused on the research and innovation (R&I) policy and governance systems, while also covering the aspects of education, culture, youth and sports. The project monitored and supported policy coordination within the EU-WB cooperation and strengthened the potentials in the Western Balkans for successful participation in regional and multilateral research and innovation activities, promoted regional cooperation in R&I and supported networking and access to information and excellence.

POLICY ANSWERS addressed these objectives through targeted project activities:

Organising policy dialogue events (i.e. Ministerial and Steering Platform meetings; ad-hoc policy coordination meetings), offering room for exchange about policy implementation;
Carrying out analytical activities such as mapping of relevant institutions, programmes, initiatives, needs and common priorities in the WB; monitoring ongoing activities at different levels related to the implementation of the WB Agenda and progress made related to ERA integration; providing strategic informed recommendations for policy making and agenda setting;
Providing and coordinating capacity building and pilot actions in the WB to contribute to the region’s EU integration process and to strengthen their innovation ecosystems;
Designing informed policy recommendations to decision-makers in the region in the areas of R&I, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport in addressing the EU’s key priorities such as digitalization, green economy and health and aligning them;
Implementing regional pilot activities, which reach out directly to academia, industry and civil society; creating new initiatives and initiating success stories at programme level;
Supplying an information hub and web platform addressing R&I, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport in the WB to enable better information sharing, create opportunities for joint actions and bring up the WB to EU policy-making.

All these activities were implemented by a variety of stakeholders from and beyond the WB region and in close liaison with the European Commission (EC), the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and other stakeholders invited in a Project Advisory Board (PAB), as well as associated partners.

You can read about the achievements in the publications below and you can reach the project coordination team by writing to policy-answers@westernbalkans-infohub.eu.