The Secretary General’s Roadmap on Civil society engagement with the Council of Europe 2024-2027 (SG/Inf(2023)28) has been published on 15 December.
The Committee of Ministers welcomed the Roadmap as a significant step in the follow-up of the relevant parts of the Reykjavík Declaration, which called for a review and further reinforcement of the Organisation’s outreach to, and meaningful engagement with, civil society organisations and national human rights institutions. As the Reykjavík Principles for Democracy, appended to the Declaration, reaffirm: “civil society is a prerequisite for a functioning democracy”.
The Roadmap puts forward the Secretary General’s proposals aimed at shaping a policy for meaningful engagement with civil society as a whole, including youth civil society, in all aspects of the intergovernmental work (standard-setting, monitoring and co-operation activities) building on the existing framework. The Report from the Secretary General’s First Regular Exchange of Views with Civil Society on 15 September highlights how the Roadmap also meets the views of civil society as regards its engagement with the Organisation.
Link to the Report in EN and FR
More information:
- 129th Session of the Committee of Ministers on “the need to strengthen the protection and promotion of civil society space in Europe”
- Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)11
- Secretary General’s final report “Follow-up to the Helsinki decisions on civil society: implementation of the Secretary General's proposals” endorsed during the 132nd Session of the Committee of Ministers (20 May 2022,Turin, Italy).
