News Archive
Bregu: It’s done - the three RCC-coordinated centrepiece mobility agreements finally see the light of day
03 Nov 2022
Berlin – The Heads of Governments of the Western Balkans Six signed the three mobility agreements under the Common Regional Market (CRM) Action Plan’s mobility agendas - on Freedom of Movement with Identity Cards, on Recognition of Higher Education Qualifications, and on Recognition ...
All-inclusive regional cooperation and Common Regional Market deliver results
21 Oct 2022
Berlin/Sarajevo – The Western Balkans (WB) Foreign Ministers approved three regional agreements - on Freedom of Movement with Identity Cards, on Recognition of Higher Education Qualifications, and on Recognition of Professional Qualifications for Doctors of Medicine, Dentists and Architects ...
Bregu: Support of Western Balkan citizens to regional cooperation remains stable at 76%
24 Jun 2022
Brussels – “While many things change, our public and business perceptions surveys remain a truthful source of sentiments across the region. At times, the results surprise us, sometimes they serve as a wake-up call, while on other occasions they confirm that our efforts are not in ...
Bregu: European perspective of Western Balkans is the drive that makes the process of cooperation beneficial
15 Oct 2021
Sarajevo – “European perspective of Western Balkans is the drive that makes the process of cooperation beneficial to all in long-term. It is of highest importance that both the region and the EU deliver on the respective commitments – particularly when we take into account ...
Bregu: 2020 was difficult, but a real progress and achievements have been made for development of our region
16 Jun 2021
Antalya – “Last year, ruled by the pandemic has definitely showcased the extent of our interconnectivity and interdependency and demonstrated that in cooperating, we boost our strengths and resilience. It is clear that regional socio-economic integration is crucial for regional ...
Bregu: It is up to the region to retain commitment to cooperation and bring forth tangible progress to citizens
25 Jun 2020
Tirana/Sarajevo/Prishtina – The two meetings have been held today within the South East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) - the meeting of the SEECP Ministers of Foreign Affairs and the RCC Annual Meeting, which RCC co-organised with the outgoing Kosovo SEECP Chairmanship-in-Office ...
Bregu: Cooperation is the only blueprint that holds the promise of ‘Stronger Together’
24 Jun 2020
Sarajevo – “The regional cooperation continues to grow in prominence with an overwhelming majority of citizens supportive of its role in improving the political, economic and security situation in their home economies - 77%, and 65% of them believes that what brings WB citizens ...
Bregu: No brilliant regional plan can succeed without strong political leadership and fully synchronized EU- WB trajectories
06 May 2020
Sarajevo/Tirana/Zagreb - Now, almost 4 years after we initiated the work on Regional Economic Area (REA) the region is ready to embark on the next phase of deepening regional economic cooperation assure the WB6 economies to have ownership first, and bringing the region closer to the EU internal ...
RCC: Listen to women – they are the key to unlocking the economic potential of this region
15 Sep 2019
Sarajevo – Statistics show that more than 700.000 new jobs were created in the past 7 years in the Western Balkans, but only 4.3% of these were taken up by youth under 24 years of age. For a young person it takes about 2 years to get a job.
Bregu: RCC keen to embark on any challenges with full support of regional and EU partners - we don’t need to loose time in order to find it again
08 Jul 2019
Sarajevo – „A year behind us was a dynamic one and we are prepared to continue just as dynamic in the next one. We, at the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) are ready and keen to embark on any challenges ahead of us but we cannot do it without the full support of our regional and European ...
Bregu: Western Balkan should embark on serious, wide-ranging facilitation agenda, including movement of people, goods, services and capital
05 Jul 2019
Poznan – “Two years after the Western Balkans’ (WB) Prime Ministers endorsed the Multi-annual Action Plan for the Regional Economic Area (MAP REA) in Trieste the region has not fully embraced the opportunities offered by the Regional Economic Area. Flows of goods, services, ...
Bregu: Western Balkans needs to fully embrace and capitalize on the Regional Economic Area
04 Jul 2019
Poznan – “Two years since the endorsement of Multi-annual Action plan on Regional Economic Area (MAP REA) in Trieste and one year since London our region can show only a mixed track record at best. Western Balkans (WB) did not fully embrace Regional Economic Area (REA) and as a result ...
Bregu: Balkan Barometer 2019 clearly shows public and business appreciation of regional cooperation and need to strengthen it
04 Jul 2019
Poznan – “There's no better way to stress the need for stepping up the regional cooperation than quoting the citizens and businesses of the Western Balkans (WB) who overwhelmingly, with 74% and 67% respectively, believe in regional cooperation. The recent success with dropping of roaming ...
Turdiu: Mobility of students is essential for developing common European values, understanding and appreciation of each other’s’ cultures
04 Jun 2019
Belgrade – Ministers in charge of education from the Western Balkan (WB) economies have welcomed the Declaration on Mutual Recognition of Academic Qualifications in the Western Balkans, at the 8th Ministerial Meeting of the Western Balkans Platform on Education and ...
Bregu: Western Balkans Digital Summit and Poznan Summit are our chances to showcase we can deliver together as a region
26 Mar 2019
Brussels – “Upcoming second WB Digital Summit in Belgrade, as well as the Poznan Summit are our chances to showcase that we can deliver together as a region,” said Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), Majlinda Bregu, at the meeting of the Multi-Annual Action Plan ...
RCC Secretary General Bregu calls for more efficient future action and better communication with the citizens
21 Mar 2019
Sarajevo – Coordination Board of the Regional Cooperation Council’s (RCC) South East Europe’s growth Strategy (SEE 2020) has met in Sarajevo today, to reflect on the implementation results, identify potential action synergies for further cooperation as well as post-2020 regional priorities ...
RCC Secretary General: Each negotiation is a story of impact and dialogue for individuals, communities and economies
21 Jan 2019
The 2nd round of negotiations on mutual recognition of professional qualifications in the Western Balkans (WB) for Doctors of Medicine, Dentists, Architects and Civil Engineers started in Skopje today.
Preparations for the next WB6 Prime Ministers Summit continue at the 4th Meeting of Working Group on Recognition of Academic Qualifications in the Western Balkans
13 Dec 2018
Sarajevo - The 4th meeting of the Joint Education Reform Initiative of South Eastern Europe (ERI SEE) and Regional Cooperation Council’s (RCC) Working Group on Recognition of Academic Qualifications (WG RAQ) took place in Sarajevo today.
RCC organizes training of teams for negotiations on mutual recognition of professional qualifications in the Western Balkans
14 Nov 2018
Tirana – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) concluded a two-day training session for the negotiations teams who will conduct the negotiations on the Agreement on the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications of Doctors of Medicine, Dentists, Architects and Civil Engineers ...
Western Balkans agree to step up the work on research infrastructure
30 Oct 2018
Sarajevo – Six Western Balkan (WB6) economies agreed to step up their work on research infrastructure in the region. Specifically the WB6 agreed to develop policies to open access to the existing research infrastructures (RIs) for researchers from the region, to cooperate in development ...
RCC hosts the third meeting of MAP REA Coordinators from Western Balkan Six
09 Oct 2018
Brussels – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) hosted the 3rd meeting of Coordinators of Multi-Annual Action Plan (MAP) on Regional Economic Area (REA) in Western Balkan Six (WB6), discussing the implementation results, next milestones, the most pressing challenges and reiterating commitments, ...
Western Balkan Six open negotiations on mutual recognition of professional qualifications of doctors of medicine, dentists, architects and civil engineers
08 Oct 2018
Brussels – The Western Balkans began the negotiations on mutual recognition of professional qualifications of doctors of medicine, dentists, architects and civil engineers at the 1st meeting of Lead Negotiators convened by the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) in Brussels today.
RCC Secretary General takes part at the Western Balkans London Summit
11 Jul 2018
The Secretary General of the regional Cooperation Council (RCC), Goran Svilanovic, took part at the Western Balkans (WB) Summit on 10 July in London.
RCC’s Balkan Barometer 2018: Satisfaction of people and businesses on overall situation in the region is steadily improving
06 Jul 2018
Brussels – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) revealed results of 2018 edition of the Balkan Barometer (BB), an annual survey of citizens and business communities’ opinion on the situation in the region, in Brussels today. The main findings of the survey show that satisfaction of ...
Major milestone in SEE 2020 Strategy implementation: Western Balkans ADDS more than 600 000 JOBS
05 Jul 2018
Brussels – Governing Board of the Regional Cooperation Council’s (RCC) South East Europe 2020 Strategy (SEE 2020) endorsed the 2018 Annual Report on Strategy’s implementation (ARI), at its fifth meeting held in Brussels today, in the eve of the presentation of the RCC’s Balkan barometer ...
Svilanovic: Notable progress achieved in the implementation of Multi-Annual Action Plan on Regional Economic Area in the Western Balkans
04 Jul 2018
Vienna – Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) Goran Svilanovic presented key results of the implementation of Multi-Annual Action Plan on Regional Economic Area (MAP REA) at the ministerial panel dedicated to this topic of the Economy Ministers’ Meeting of the ...
RCC to present SEE2020 strategy implementation results and its Balkan Barometer 2018 this week in Brussels
03 Jul 2018
Brussels – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is to present the implementation results of the region’s growth strategy, South East Europe 2020 (SEE2020) on 5 July 2018 in Brussels, and day after, on 6 July also in Brussels, the RCC will reveal the results of its 4th edition of the public ...
Western Balkans endorses key principles on recognition of academic qualifications
26 Jun 2018
Brussels – Ministers in charge of education from the Western Balkan economies endorsed a set of key principles on automatic recognition of academic qualifications in the region at the 7th Ministerial meeting of the Western Balkans Platforms on Education and Training & Research and Innovation, ...
RCC: Western Balkans Working Group on Research and Development meets in Brussels
13 Jun 2018
Brussels – The meeting of the Western Balkans Working Group on Research and Development (R&D) took place in Brussels on 13 June 2018. The participants focused on the possible participation of the Western Balkans in the Horizon Europe, which is the EC's proposal for a € 100 billion ...
RCC Presents Preliminary Findings of the SEE 2020 Draft Annual Implementation Report to Monitoring Committee
18 May 2018
Podgorica - Monitoring Committee of the South East Europe 2020 (SEE 2020) Strategy met for the 6th time, under auspice of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), in Podgorica today, to discuss and provide comments on the Strategy’s early draft Annual Implementation Report (ARI).
RCC at the Sofia Western Balkans Summit: Regional Cooperation Council proliferated regional cooperation across all sectors
17 May 2018
Sofia – The Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council, Goran Svilanovic, took part at the EU-Western Balkans Summit hosted by the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the EU, in Sofia today. The Summit is dedicated to strengthen links between the EU and the Western Balkans in ...
RCC presents draft MAP REA Implementation Monitoring Report
15 May 2018
Tirana - Component Contact Points (CCPs) of the Multiannual Action Plan for the Regional Economic Area (MAP REA) for the Western Balkans Six (WB6) met for the second time at the meeting convened by the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), in Tirana today, to discuss monitoring results and ...
Western Balkans confirms Recommendation to open negotiations on Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications
07 May 2018
Sarajevo – Representatives of six Western Balkan economies gathered in the Joint Working Group on Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications (JWG on MRPQ) at their meeting held in the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) headquarters in Sarajevo today confirmed recommendation to open ...
Exploring models for automatic recognition of academic qualifications in Western Balkans and working on design of a joint exercise and online system for recognition of academic qualifications in Western Balkans
27 Mar 2018
Podgorica - The Joint Working Group on Recognition of Academic Qualifications (WG RAQ) adopted the Group’s Terms of Reference and the Plan of Work, at their second meeting jointly organized by the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and Education Reform Initiative of South Eastern Europe ...
SEE 2020 Strategy Implementation: Programming Document for period 2018-2020 endorsed by the Strategy’s Participants
12 Mar 2018
Brussels – Representatives of the South East Europe’s (SEE) economies participating in implementation SEE 2020 Strategy endorsed the Programming Document for the period 2018-2020, at the 6th Meeting of the SEE 2020 Programming Committee held in Brussels, under auspices of the Regional ...
Western Balkans’ Regional Economic Area on the Agenda of Kopaonik Business Forum 2018
05 Mar 2018
Kopaonik – Regional Cooperation Council’s (RCC) Secretary General Goran Svilanovic moderated a panel titled ‘Western Balkans - challenges: Regional economic area?’ within the 25th edition of the Kopanonik Business Forum, at Kopaonik today.
Western Balkans should enhance its competitiveness and improve its market orientation to fight unemployment
21 Feb 2018
Although the Western Balkans region suffered the dramatic employment fall in the period following the global economic crisis 2008-2011, “the situation recovered over the subsequent five years and by 2016 total employment had again reached 6.5 million, representing an increase of 8.9%”, ...
Second Meeting of MAP Coordinators and B2G Meeting on MAP takes place in Trieste
30 Jan 2018
Trieste – The second meeting of the Coordinators for the RCC’s Multi Action Plan (MAP) for a Regional Economic Area (REA) in the Western Balkans six (WB6) took place in Trieste today. The meeting provided an overview on the key developments in MAP implementation in each of the WB6 economies ...
The WB 6 Start Work on the Model for Automatic Recognition of Academic Qualifications
15 Dec 2017
Belgrade – By formalising the Joint Education Reform Initiative of South East Europe (ERI SEE) – Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) Working Group on Recognition of Academic Qualifications (WG RAQ) the Western Balkans Six (WB6) have officially started its work on finding the model for automatic ...
RCC hosts the first meeting of coordinators for the Western Balkans Regional Economic Area
31 Oct 2017
Brussels - Following the Trieste Western Balkans (WB) Summit and the endorsement of the RCC’s Multi Action Plan (MAP) for a Regional Economic Area (REA) in the WB6, the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and the Western Balkans Chamber Investment Forum (CIF), organized the first Meeting of ...
Trieste: Six Western Balkans leaders endorse Regional Economic Area
12 Jul 2017
Trieste - The leaders of Western Balkans Six (WB6) endorsed the Multi-annual Action Plan on a Regional Economic Area in the Western Balkans (MAP), at the summit in Trieste today. The MAP has been created to enable unobstructed flow of goods, services, capital and highly skilled ...