SHAPEDEM-EU Partner Panel at EaP-CSF Annual Assembly 16 November 2023

Three SHAPEDEM-EU members participated in a panel debate at the 15th Annual Assembly of the consortium partner, Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum in Brussels Belgium on 16 November 2023. Nona Mikhelidze (IAI), Richard Youngs (CEF) and Fabian Schöppner (JLU) sat together to discuss the "EU’s Democracy Support in the Eastern Partnership: how to strike balance for sustainable civil society engagement?"

The panel debate looked deeper into the EU’s democracy support in the EaP countries from a civil society’s standpoint and discussed the needs for achieving a sustainable civil society ecosystem in the region in terms of achieving sustainable funding, resilience, and long-term viability of civil society. The participants also further explored the potential impact of sustainable civil society on the EU's democracy agenda in the region.