A focus on corruption and informal practices in the Western Balkans
With its focus on corruption, the TRAIN Programme 2017 addresses a fundamental problem of states in the Western Balkans and seeks to offer approaches relevant to current crises and to the ongoing EU integration processes in the region.
Corruption in state institutions, political parties, and educational institutions are some of the concrete topics that the participants are examining in their policy research. So is societal acceptance of informal practices in the Western Balkans.
During the three-day seminar, participants adopted methods and strategies on how to turn their research results into concrete policy recommendations and place them in the political decision-making process. Aside from sharing experiences with each other, the junior scholars were given the chance to discuss current challenges in the EU enlargement process with the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Serbia.
TRAIN stands for “Think Tanks Providing Research and Advice through Interaction and Networking” and offers training and networking opportunities to independent think tanks in the Western Balkans. Its aim is to support civil society and to strengthen the national and European policy dialogue on topics relevant the countries’ EU integration processes. The participating think tanks will present their results and recommendations in the countries of the region as well as in Brussels in the autumn of 2017 and seek exchange with policy makers at the national and EU level.
