Social Institutions Support Programme

Social support institutions throughout the Western Balkans Region are badly in need of reform.

While cooperation on cross border social protection in the region has started, such co-operation needs to be expanded and enhanced, as a condition for the further integration of the entire region into “the larger Europe”. At the same time the levels of protection offered to citizens and residents of the region will have to be brought in line with the standards common in the European Union. With this in mind, the Council of Europe has embarked on implementing an ambitious three-year programme in the Western Balkan/CARDS region, in order to support the modernisation of social policies and institutions, and to promote regional social security coordination. (more...) 

2nd ministerial conference on social security co-ordination

Tirana, Albania, 16 October 2007 (more...)

5th meeting of the Regional Steering Committee,

Tirana, Albania, 16 October 2007 (more...)

AWARENESS RAISING MEETINGS

1^st round, Skopje, Tirana, Pristina, 27-29 August 2007; 2^nd round, Zagreb, Sarajevo, Belgrade,18-20 September 2007 (more)

1^st Speaking days on Social and Health Insurance between Serbia and Bosnia & Herzegovina

Belgrade, 9 and 10 July 2007 (more...)

3rd summer school on social security co-ordination

Trogir, Croatia, 27 May - 8 June 2007 (more...)

Ministerial Conference on Social Security co-ordination,

Zagreb, 24 March 2006 (more...)

 

NEW! Glossary on Social Security

SISP:

progress and prospects

The Regional Office of the Social Institutions Support Programme (SISP) was officially opened in Skopje in March 2005. The Office serves as a central point for regional social dialogue.

In the meanwhile, a network of Local Project Officers in all beneficiary countries, as well as a Regional Steering Committee composed of governmental representatives, was created.

In the past period the Social Institutions Support Programme has implemented a number of activities, among which the most prominent were the 1^st  and the 2^nd Regional Summer School on Social Security; two rounds of the Speaking Days between Macedonia and Serbia; the Belgrade Conference of State Secretaries coming from the Ministries of Labour and Social Policy and the Ministries of Health from the region; the Ministerial Conference in Zagreb, with the signature of the so-called Zagreb Declaration; National Training Events conducted in Tirana, Skopje, Belgrade, Podgorica, Zagreb, Sarajevo, Banja Luka and Pristina; a study tour in Prague and Strasbourg; and an Experts Conference in Skopje.

In the framework of the Social Institutions Support Programme national reports on the present and future state of social security in the beneficiary countries were prepared on the basis of a uniform description template and the information collecting phase.

The website of the Programme has been created, as a source of information about the activities and achievements of the programme.