Project Description
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANISATIONS (TACSO 3) IN THE WESTERN BALKANS AND TURKEY (JANUARY 2019 - JUNE 2025)
What is TACSO?
Technical Assistance to Civil Society Organisations in the Western Balkans and Turkey (TACSO) is a regional project funded by the European Union (EU) that improves capacities and strengthens the role of civil society organizations (CSOs). The project assists CSOs to actively take part in democratic processes in the region, and it also stimulates an enabling environment for civil society and pluralistic media development.
TACSO is a part of the Civil Society Facility (CSF) EU mechanism that provides support to CSOs in those countries that are not yet part of the EU. CSOs play an important role for the European Union and they are seen as key actors in supporting their country’s accession process. The CSF therefore aims is to strengthen the CSOs and make them actively participate in public debate and influence policy and decision making processes.
The project targets the following countries Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey.
TACSO Activities
During this 3rd phase of the TACSO project, which was first launched in 2009, the overall technical assistance continues, with a focus on activities where a regional approach enables stronger impact on the civil society development in each beneficiary country.
The activities include partnership and network promotion between project beneficiaries and stakeholders, sharing of lessons learned and best practices in developing civil society capacity, development and monitoring of guidelines, positioning TACSO web portal as a main regional information repository for civil society actors; training and training of trainers, and others.
TACSO has a key role in creating coherent support to civil society development in the region, and it provides services and assistance to its beneficiaries in six main areas:
Development of CSOs’ Organisational and Operational Capacity
that enables civil society actors to take part in the democratic processes, integration movement, and policy dialogue in the Western Balkans and Turkey.
Development of Enabling Environment for Civil Society
that creates better conditions for dialogue between civil society and other stakeholders in the region, and ensures enabling environment issues are mainstreamed into the decision and policy-making process.
Effective Communication and Visibility of Civil Society Activities
Effective Communication and Visibility of Civil Society Activities
Monitor, Consult and Document the Progress in Relation to “EU Civil Society and Media Guidelines”
as this represent a strategic document for programming and monitoring the progress of civil society in the region, and it has objective to streamline the EU’s support.
Enabling Effective Relations between the EU and CSOs
ensuring that the information on EU support is available and accurately communicated to interested civil society actors
Design and Implementation of the People to People (P2P) Programme
that, through various organized events, offers the opportunity for CSOs to expand their knowledge about the EU and the accession process, as well as the opportunity to network internationally and regionally.
Target Groups
TACSO’s primary target groups are civil society actors, including: non-governmental organisations, organisations representing national and/or ethnic minorities, local citizens’ groups and traders’ associations, cooperatives, trade unions, organisations representing economic and social interests, CSOs networks, resource centres and training centres for civil society, consumer organisations, women’s and youth organisations, activists, community based organisation and independent foundations.
Secondary target groups are staff members of stakeholder organisations including central and local governments, media and the private sector where relevant (e.g. social enterprises).
