As part of hosting the Thematic Focus Group (TWG) Access to Single Market, one of the seven TWGs of the Berlin Process CSF in Tirana, EPI organized a discussion titled “Deeper economic integration of the Western Balkans to the European Union – when, how, and how much?” The event featured a presentation and discussion of the draft policy paper, which was prepared based on input from the TWG Access to the European Single Market participants.

The event aimed to exchange views on the policy recommendations and refine the TWG arguments and policy recommendations for the Berlin Process Summit.

The panelists and participants at the event discussed how to facilitate access and early access of the Western Balkans into the EU Single Market, enhance sound public finance management, and streamline structural reforms with better coordination and monitoring of the Economic Reform Programmes. Participants emphasized the need for increased Pre-Accession Assistance with a formal plan to boost pre-accession assistance. The involvement and participation of vital societal stakeholders, including CSOs, were recognized as necessary to maintain a strong focus on the rule of law throughout the process.

The critical points of discussion from the TWG Access to the Single Market were presented by Stefan Ristovski, a researcher at EPI. The panelists who discussed these points included Milena Mihajlovic from the Centre for European Policy from Serbia, Ardian Hackaj from the Cooperation and Development Institute from Albania, Dragan Tilev from the Secretariat for European Affairs of North Macedonia, Oleksandra Bulana from the Ukrainian Centre for European Policy, Matteo Bonomi from the Istituto Affari Internazionali from Italy, and Adnan Cerimagic from the European Stability Initiative.

Civil Society and Think Tank Forum (CSF) was organized as a series of events that brought civil society representatives, think tankers, and experts from the Western Balkans together to discuss various regional challenges, share best practices, and develop policy recommendations. These recommendations were intended to be presented to decision-makers at the Berlin Process Summit.