The Action “Combating Hatred and Intolerance in North Macedonia” is implemented within the joint programme of the European Union and the Council of Europe “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” running from 2023 until 2026. 

This Action supports the fight against discrimination, hate speech and hate crime in the beneficiary. The technical support is provided as part of North Macedonia’s EU accession process, in line with European standards – notably those from the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance and EU Anti-racism Action Plan  2020-2025.

It builds on the results of the previous phase of the Horizontal Facility and the Actions Promotion of Diversity and Equality in North Macedonia and  Promotion of diversity and equality in the Western Balkans.
 

Retour Co-operation is fundamental in combating hatred and intolerance

Co-operation is fundamental in combating hatred and intolerance

At the Sixth Steering Committee meeting of the EU and Council of Europe joint action “Combating hatred and intolerance in North Macedonia” beneficiaries, partners and stakeholders, agreed to boost their co-operation and co-ordinated efforts to improve efficiency on combating hatred and intolerance, especially among youth.

The members of the Steering Committee meeting had productive discussions on the results and impact of the action, emphasising that importance of building capacities of public institutions to develop harmonised institutional approach to tackle discrimination and hate speech, as well as work with the local communities, especially the youth to raise awareness regarding the dangers of hate speech. 

Some of the notable results were the support to the development and implementation of the Action Plan on Equality and Non-discrimination, the Call for small grants, as well the preparations of the Guidelines for teachers and parents aiming to recognise and combat hate speech and bullying.

The action “Combating hatred and intolerance in North Macedonia” is part of the European Union and the Council of Europe joint programme “Horizontal Facility for Western Balkans and Türkiye”.

Skopje, North Macedonia 21 November 2025
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The ultimate goal of the action on is to increase the awareness of the institutions and citizens about hatred and intolerance and develop a harmonised institutional approach to tackle these issues.

The action ultimate beneficiary is the population in North Macedonia. By providing technical assistance and raising awareness of public institutions and related actors in the field, the action will contribute towards improving the anti-discrimination policies, and policies addressing hate speech and hate crime, as well as its redress mechanisms and advancing in the overall protection of human rights for the vulnerable communities. 

The action will work with Government representatives in charge of combating discrimination and hate speech; with Commission for Prevention and Protection against Discrimination, law enforcement, judiciary and legal professionals, civil society organizations and youth activists. 

The action provides capacity building initiatives, adapting existing tools and methodologies of the Council of Europe. It also provides occasions for peer exchanges and multi-stakeholder dialogue activities to foster co-operation. 
Awareness raising on combatting discrimination and promoting diversity constitutes an important component of the action.
 

Notably, the action will ensure that: 

  • Institutions have Improved record of reforms to combat discrimination, hatred and racism in line with European standards
  • Equality Bodies and Institutions in North Macedonia improve their capacity in combating discrimination in line with ECRI standards and recommendations and EU anti-racism action plan.
  • North Macedonia’s central and local level institutions improve the fight against hate speech and hate crime and strengthens victims’ protection
  • The general become more aware of the dangers of hate and racism to cohesion of societies and the way to address them.
     

The total budget of the action is 450.000 Euros.

The budget allocated to the overall Horizontal Facility programme amounts to ca. 41 Million EUR (85% funded by the European Union, 15% by the Council of Europe).
 

The “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” is a joint initiative of the European Union and the Council of Europe that enables the Western Balkans Beneficiaries and Türkiye to meet their reform agendas in the fields of human rights, rule of law and democracy and to comply with the European standards, which is also a priority for the EU enlargement process. 
 


 

Duration: 48 months (January 2023 to December 2026)

Beneficiaries:

  • Citizens of North Macedonia
  • Public authorities, including the law enforcement agencies
  • Education professionals
  • Civil society organisations engaged in promoting and protecting human rights

Funding: The European Union and the Council of Europe

Budget: 450.000€