Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye (Horizontal Facility III)

Back North Macedonia’s Prison Police Intervention Teams learn from Polish experience

Irena BABUSHKOVSKA

Modified 1 Month ago.

North Macedonia’s Prison Police Intervention Teams learn from Polish experience

Officers from North Macedonia’s Prison Police Intervention Teams made their first official study visit to Warsaw, exchanging experiences and best practices with Poland’s Prison Service Intervention Group (PSIG).

The delegation was led by the Acting Head of the Directorate for the Execution of Sanctions, Aleksandar PANDOV, along with five prison police officials based in Idrizovo, the largest prison in North Macedonia. They visited Warsaw-Białołęka Remand Prison and the base of PSIG, where they observed training facilities and equipment. During the visit they learned more about Polish procedures for engaging intervention teams. On the second day, visitors had the chance to visit Popowo External Detention Centre, which hosts the training centre for the Polish prison staff. Other topics of interest included the recruitment process and internal selection procedures for the prison police, as well as the resocialization opportunities for the sentenced persons.

In the past two years, the Council of Europe with the support of European Union has been assisting North Macedonia’s Directorate for the Execution of Sanctions in building capacities and establishing a legal framework for the intervention teams, which sets the rules of engagement and reporting, highlights their accountability, and ensures respect for human rights.

This exchange visit was conducted under the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”, and its action “Strengthening the capacities of the penitentiary system in North Macedonia”.

Warsaw, Poland 29-30 June 2026

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What is the Horizontal Facility?

The joint European Union/Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” (Horizontal Facility III) is a co-operation initiative and one of the results of the Statement of Intent signed on 1 April 2014 by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and the European Union Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, in which both Organisations agreed to further strengthen their co-operation in key areas of joint interest.

The programme is ongoing since 2016 and the third phase begun in January 2023 for a period of 48 months. The third phase of the programme (worth €41 million (85% funded by the EU, 15% by the CoE) keeps building on the results of the previous phases and it combines Beneficiary-specific and regional actions.

It enables the Beneficiaries to meet their reform agendas in the fields of human rights, rule of law and democracy and to comply with European standards, which is also a priority for the EU enlargement process.

Themes covered by the Horizontal Facility include:

strengthening justice
fighting corruption, economic crime and money laundering
promoting anti-discrimination and protection of the rights of vulnerable groups (including LGBTI, minorities and Roma) and
promoting and protecting freedom of expression and media

The Expertise Co-ordination Mechanism that provides legislative expertise and policy advice within the Council of Europe system remains also an important part of the programme available to all Beneficiaries.

The Horizontal Facility relies on the Council of Europe’s unique working methods, whereby tailor-made technical co-operation activities are based on conclusions and recommendations of the Council of Europe’s monitoring bodies highlight areas where improvements are needed in legislation and policies of the Beneficiaries to comply with the Organisation’s treaties and other standards.