Organise Trainings for Public Administration Officers in Connection with the Application of the Guidelines on Inclusion of Civil Society Organisations in the Process of Passing Regulations (RS0015)

THEME: Improve the consultative process with the civil sector at national and local levels when adopting public policy documents; COMMITMENT 2: Organise trainings for public administration officers in connection with the application of the Guidelines on Inclusion of Civil Society Organisations in the Process of Passing Regulations; Status quo or problem addressed by the commitment: In 2015 we conducted the “Initial Survey for the Purpose of Drafting the First Strategy for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society Development in the Republic of Serbia for the Period 2015–2019”, which consisted of two parts. The data collected cover the period from 1 January to 31 December 2014. The first part included data relating to cooperation between state administration and CSOs, based solely on information obtained from state administration bodies. Based on the survey results, of the 32 public administration bodies which participated in the survey, although invitations had been sent to 42 state administration bodies, only 11 state administration bodies reported they had held public hearings in 2014 in the process of passing regulations. According to the available data, of the total number of regulations passed in 2014 (351), only one in ten were subject to a public hearing (37 regulations in total, or 10,5%). Furthermore, a minority of the surveyed state administration bodies formed working groups tasked with drafting regulations in the course of last year. Generally, the only CSOs that are invited to participate in this form of cooperation are those that are recognised by the authorities as relevant for various reasons. Furthermore, public calls for CSOs to apply for membership in working groups are relatively rare (such calls were made only in respect of eight working groups of the 38 formed in 2014). The second part of the survey includes data on cooperation between LSGUs and CSOs, which included 122 LSGUs, or 75% of all LSGUs in the Republic of Serbia. The results of this survey have shown that, of the total number of instruments passed in 2014 (11,000 instruments - budgets, strategic development plans, decisions, zoning plans. Statutes etc.), only 3% had undergone any kind of public hearing. In addition, those municipalities that did hold public hearings usually involved CSOs in the public hearings during the drafting stage, but not during the follow-up and implementation stages. In 2015, the Office for Cooperation with the Civil Society collaborated with the TACSO project in Serbia to organise 10 two-day training events for representatives of LSGUs on the issues of transparent financing of civil society organisations and importance of cooperation with CSOs. The recommendations set out in the reports from these trainings are indicative of a need for additional training of civil servants about improved cooperation and possible cooperation mechanisms and models, especially with regard to involvement in the process of planning and allocation of funding. Main objective: Improved capacities of public administration bodies to establish sustainable models and mechanisms of cooperation with CSO when developing and implementing public policies. Brief description of commitment (140-character limit): Plans have been made for up to 5 training events for representatives of public administration that would address the importance and potential modalities of cooperation with civil society organisations in the process of developing and implementing regulations and other public policy documents. The trainings will be organised in collaboration with the Human Resource Management Service and other public administration services. The minimum planned number of participants is 20, including officers in charge of drafting regulations, as well as officers in charge of financing and cooperation with civil society organisations. OGP challenge addressed by the commitment: Improving public services, Strengthening public integrity. Relevance: By increasing the capacities of public administration bodies in connection with the application of the Guidelines on Inclusion of Civil Society Organisations in the Process of Passing Regulations, we will contribute to better understanding of the role and importance of cooperation between public administration bodies and CSOs, which will contribute to greater civic participation in the work of public administration bodies and drafting of sounder regulations. This, in turn, will lead to greater transparency and accountability in the work of the authorities. Ambition: Improved practice of applying the already established mechanisms and levels of cooperation between public and private sectors by public administration bodies should contribute to civic participation in the drafting and implementation of regulations and public policies and ensure greater efficiency in the work of public administration bodies, along with cost cuts and optimisation of work of institutions, i.e. it should bring about to an overall increase in capacities, knowledge and skills of the staff of public administration bodies.

For Commitment details, please see Serbia Mid-Term Report 2016-2018 (Year 1).

For commitment details, see Serbia End-of-Term Report 2016–2018.