About the project

This regional project is implemented by Think for Europe Network (TEN) and Transparency International-Bosnia and Herzegovina (TI-BiH), supported by the European Union, the Ministry of Regional Development and Cooperation with Non-Governmental Organizations in Montenegro and the Open Society Foundation – Western Balkans.

The overall objective of the project is to enable civil society organizations (CSOs) in the Western Balkans to actively contribute to the design and credible implementation of reforms related to the EU Growth Plan. While significant financial investments are poised to reshape the region through the Reform and Growth Facility (RGF), civil society and the public have largely been sidelined in the drafting and oversight of these processes. This project addresses this gap by fostering transparent, inclusive oversight to ensure the credible implementation of the Growth Plan, maximizing the socio-economic benefits of EU investments while holding governments accountable to their democratic and reform commitments.

Local impact

At the national level, the project introduces robust, evidence-based methodologies for monitoring the implementation of the national Reform Agendas (RAs) and strategic infrastructure projects funded by the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF). Through the “Re-form for Growth” re-granting scheme, local CSOs are financially supported and trained to further contribute to these processes and provide concrete input and recommendations on specific aspects of the GPWB.
The findings from this continuous monitoring are directly fed into the National Consultation Mechanisms for Economic Reforms (N-CoMERs). These platforms facilitate a genuine CSO-led policy dialogue, bringing together civil society, business associations, social partners, and academia to discuss reform progress. Crucially, this dialogue is conducted in direct cooperation with the national RA coordinating institutions, some of which act as official associates on this project. This approach ensures that CSO involvement is not just a formal box-ticking exercise, but a structured, participatory process that actively shapes policies and holds governments accountable for their reform commitments.

Regional impact

Regionally, the project ensures that the monitoring of RAs and WBIF-funded projects is conducted using a uniform methodology across all six Western Balkan countries, allowing for direct cross-border comparability of reform progress. This comparative data fuels several comprehensive regional analyses, including in-depth regional reports and a specialized analytical report evaluating the effectiveness of EU conditionality mechanisms deployed in the Growth Plan.

To centralize this wealth of data, the project launched the Reform and Growth Monitor website (www.reform-monitor.org) – a unique, first-of-its-kind interactive platform providing transparent, real-time updates on reform progress across the entire region. Furthermore, the regional monitoring findings and analyses are debated within the Regional Consultation Mechanism for Economic Reforms (R-CoMER), by engaging regional institutions like the RCC and CEFTA. Ultimately, the lessons learned and best practices gathered from these cross-country consultations will be consolidated into comprehensive “Guidance Notes”. This capstone publication will serve as a sustainable blueprint for meaningful civil society engagement in future EU accession processes across the region and beyond.