Between June 11-15, ECNL organized an experts meeting: “Improving the Legal Framework for the Establishment and Work of Associations and Foundations; and Public Benefit Status" in Budapest. The meeting was organized for members of the Macedonian Ministry of Justice working group, which aims to develop proposal for reform of the NGO law. The objectives of the meeting were:
- To increase the knowledge and understanding of the participants regarding general policy concepts of regulating NGOs, the European and Hungarian standards and best practices in the field and their applicability in Macedonia.
- To show successful examples and opportunities as well as challenges in regulating NGOs and public benefit status.
- To provide an immediate assistance to the group in reviewing the provisions of the current Law and reaching consensus on key issues, by applying the learning points from the visit.
The program was organized into the following general areas:
- European and Hungarian standards and best practices in regulating NGOs,
- public benefit status,
- sources of income and tax benefits,
- internal governance and oversight and control.
The participants took part in training sessions delivered by ECNL experts and partners. They also met with range of officials from the Hungarian Government, Hungarian judges and experts. The participants also met with representatives from NGOs and learnt about their experiences with the implementation of the laws and their suggestions for reform.
At the end, under the guidance of ECNL, the working group members discussed the lessons from the study visit, the main conclusions and the possible approaches that can be undertaken in revising the NGO law.
This meeting was organized within the frames of the Civil Society Strengthening Project, financed by USAID, and implemented by the Institute for Sustainable Communities, in cooperation with the Center for Institutional Development, the European Center for Non-Profit Law, and the Macedonian Institute for Media.