Over the years, the focus of the Stability Pact has shifted from conflict prevention through confidence building to a framework for regional co-operation in South Eastern Europe. In addition, the Stability Pact has taken on the role of assisting the SEE countries in their efforts to comply with the criteria for European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization membership. Today, the Stability Pact is working on issues of democratisation, economic reconstruction, co-operation and development as well as security. With its Secretariat in Brussels, it provides an important link between the countries of South Eastern Europe and the EU and NATO institutions.

A success story

Since 1999 regional free trade has almost doubled and the process of close economic cooperation has been crowned by the signing of the CEFTA agreement between the SEE countries in Bucharest in December 2006. Furthermore, SEE countries have adopted a common approach on how to address difficult issues such as the fight against organised crime and corruption. Best practices in the area of migration are being exchanged. The Energy Treaty has created a regional electricity market in line with EU standards. Four countries have formed the Sava River Commission to manage the economic and environmental issues of this important basin. There is ever closer cooperation among the local authorities along the borders of SEE countries which are today being protected almost exclusively by police and not by military. Thanks to the involvement of the Stability Pact, coordination among the countries of the region is significant with regard to reform of science and education policies, parliamentary cooperation, local democracy and cross border cooperation and media.

Towards regional ownership

There is no doubt that the region has come a step closer to Euro-Atlantic integration today and credit for this success goes also to the Stability Pact. In the next stage the region must move away from what has been essentially an internationally driven process towards a greater ownership of its own affairs. Bearing this in mind, a transformation and streamlining process was launched in 2005 with the final aim of having the new framework for regional co-operation in South Eastern Europe in place by 2008. Following a wide consultation process with countries of SEE, the Stability Pact’s highest decision-making body – the Regional Table in Belgrade in May 2006 – took decisions on the transformation of the Stability Pact into Regional Cooperation Council (hereinafter RCC). The main task of this organisation will be to play the role of a facilitator of regional cooperation and support for the European and Euro-Atlantic integration of the Balkan countries. Regional ownership of the new structure will be not only political but also financial. The representatives of the region reached consensus on contributing €1 million annually to the budget of the RCC Secretariat. In turn, the financial commitment of the countries of the region is an important sign of the political commitment of the SEE countries to engage even further in the process of regional cooperation. Simultaneously, the Stability Pact and its international partners ensure the continued involvement of the donor community, thus preserving the legacy of the Pact.

The RCC is to be chaired by a Secretary General from the region, nominated by the South Eastern Europe Co-operation Process (SEECP) May 10-11, 2007 in Zagreb and endorsed by the Regional Table and subsequently by the RCC. The Secretary General will head the Secretariat of the RCC and also provide support to the SEECP Chairmanship. Considering the importance of close relations with EU institutions, the SEE states agreed that a Brussels-based representation of RCC would be necessary. It was agreed that the RCC and its Secretariat should focus its activities on six areas which the countries of the region have already identified as those where regional cooperation will be beneficial to all: Economic and Social Development; Infrastructure; Justice and Home Affairs; Security Co-operation; and Building Human Capital with Parliamentary Co-operation being an overarching theme that is linked with each of the other areas.

Building Human Capital (Education and Research)

During the last Stability Pact Regional Table Meeting, held in Belgrade on May 29-30, 2006, SEE countries and Stability Pact partner states reached an agreement to make Fostering and Building Human Capital (hereinafter BHC) the new core objective of the Stability Pact. The rationale for establishing this new core objective derived from the key role that education and research play in the overall economic, political and social development of countries, as well as from the fragile state of education systems and research facilities and opportunities in all SEE countries. The new core objective concentrates on both education and research in order to tackle the specific challenges faced in the reform of both fields, and it intends to actively promote regional cooperation in order to foster the development of a learning society, which is democratic and accessible to all. In the process of promotion of regional cooperation in the above mentioned fields, the new core objective of BHC aims to complement the activities and receive the active support of the SP SEE Task Force Education and Youth, the Education Reform Initiative for SEE and the Steering Platform on Research for Western Balkan countries as well as SEE-ERA.NET.

Within the framework of the new core objective, the Working Table I (WTI) envisages several activities to be completed in the following period. So far, WT I has produced a Mapping Document of regional Vocational Education and Training Centres and a Recommendation paper for the development of vocational training in SEE. It continues to support the Joint History Workbooks Project of the Centre for Democracy and Reconciliation of South Eastern Europe (hereinafter CDRSEE) with a view to having the workbooks translated in all languages of the SEE region. Apart from these activities, WT I has launched a capacity building traineeship project for the junior experts from the SEE Ministries of Science and Education.

The Stability Pact, through its Transfer of Information Meetings continues to serve as a regional platform for the exchange of useful information between the EU and SEE countries on the opportunities offered by the new financial instrument of the EU for the Balkans – the Instrument for Pre-Accession - and to discuss the use of this instrument in order to facilitate the Western Balkans participation in EU programmes in the field of research (namely FP7).

One output of the BHC core objective has been the recent launching of the database on Post Graduate Scholarship and Grant Opportunities for SEE Students in Social Sciences, a web portal for graduate students from South Eastern Europe on available scholarships and grants in the European Union Member States and beyond. As Marijana Grandits, Director of Working Table I puts it, “The opportunity to be informed about scholarships and grants should not be a privilege of a few. Everyone should be able to have the benefit to study in a wider European educational space.”

Initial coverage will gradually be expanded towards covering all fields of study. But bearing in mind the overall process of transformation of the Stability Pact and the intention to constantly expand the information offered in the database, the Stability Pact intends to transfer the charge of this pilot project to an established regionally-owned, constantly updated information service. In cooperation with its partners as a follow-up to the launching of the database, the Stability Pact is preparing to organise a large public event dedicated to the issue of brain circulation between the SEE and the EU in the summer of 2007.

Conclusion

Ultimately, it needs to be underlined that the phased evolution of the Stability Pact into a regionally owned framework should not be interpreted as the international community withdrawing its support or leaving the region on its own. On the contrary, many of Stability Pact’s international partners have assured us that they will remain involved, but want to see the countries of the region gradually take more ownership of the process – politically, financially and also personnel-wise. It is in the interest of all parties to ensure the sustainability of the cooperation processes initiated within the Pact and thus safeguard its legacy for South East Europe. Its success depends on two pre-conditions: enhanced regional ownership and continued international support in the transition phase. To put it differently, the role of the Regional Co-operation Council is necessary in order to allow for continued international involvement and support while enhancing regional ownership. Therefore, the South Eastern European countries, the SEECP and the international community must take the necessary decisions to make this a reality.

Article published in see-science.eu eJournal spring 07.