The workshop brought together national NGO programme operators from 15 beneficiary countries to share knowledge and expertise. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs was also present at the meeting to learn from the experiences of the Operators.
As reported by EEA/Norway Grants, the meeting provided an opportunity to discuss emerging challenges, to improve ways of communication, learn from previous experience and coordinate future events. Speakers from the European Commission provided advice on how to deal with challenges that NGOs are facing in Europe nowadays. They also quoted ECNL Executive Director who said:
“Today, a lot of legal and policy initiatives are threatening the independence of NGOs. This issue is very important because it is the base for what civil societies needs in order to make improvements and change.”[…]”There are opportunities out there and the sector is very vibrant; it has a wide breadth of experience to rely on. We can look at tactics that worked in the past, as well as different mechanisms and methods to overcome these challenges and ensure that NGOs can have an impact in their community and can gain support through funding and engagement of citizens.