The Council for Cooperation between the Government and Civil Society has submitted a written request to the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia in which it requests from the Government to reexamine and change its decision on the planned funds for program activities of associations and foundations in the Budget of the Republic of North Macedonia for 2022 and in the Draft Budget, in Section 040.01 –
Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, Subprogram 10 – Administration, Item 463 – Transfers to non-governmental organizations, to anticipate 30.000.000 denars, intended for funding program activities of associations and foundations.
The funds to which this reaction refers to are funds that based on the Law on Associations and Foundations are allocated to civil society organization in accordance to the Decision of the Government on Criteria and Procedure for allocation of funds for program activities of associations and foundations of the Budget of the Republic of North Macedonia (“Official Gazette of the RNM” No. 277/2019).
These funds were anticipated for a long time in Section 04001 – Government, but with the Draft Budget for 2022, due to unknown reasons, the funds for program activities of associations and foundations for 2022 are planned in Section 04010-Ministry of Political System and Inter-Community Relations, in Subprogram 11, titled “Promotion of interethnic relations”, which specifies just one priority. We note that state administrationbodies, based on a program, can allocate funds for issues of their own scope of work (Article 49, paragraph 3 of the Law on Associations and Foundations), but given that the role of the Government is to identify priorities that are of importance for the funding of the entire society, it is necessary to plan the funds in Section 04001 – Government.
Such serious, systematic changes in the allocation of funds intended for civil society organizations, without prior consultation with the Council for Cooperation between the Government and Civil Society, meansnegating the role of the Council and minimizing its recent efforts for promotion of the system for funding civil society organizations. We note that the Government Work Program for the period 2020-2024 has envisioned a comprehensive reform in the system of state funding. In that direction, a working group for reform of the system of state funding of civil society organizations is in process. This working group, based on recent analyses and in a transparent and inclusive process, should propose a model in which allocation of state funds to civil society organizations will be performed. We consider that until a new model of state funding is adopted that there should be no experimental ways of funding program activities of associations and foundations, or changes in relations to the budget users who dispose with these funds.
Given that the Draft Budget of the Republic of North Macedonia for 2022 is already in parliamentary procedure, we ask that the proposer of the Draft Budget for 2022 takes into consideration this reaction and intervenes with amendments in the Draft Budget for 2022, which will ensure continuity of established practices, until the establishment of a comprehensive reform of the system of state funding of civil society organizations.
Translation: N. Cvetkovska
