The conference Support to Citizens and Citizen Engagement – Current EU Practices took place in Zadar, Croatia, on 26th – 27th May. During these two days the participants had the opportunity to focus on instruments of citizen engagement and support mechanisms at different levels: national, regional and European.
The conference was attended by local actors implementing participatory projects, representatives of Croatian government and providers of information, advice and legal aid to citizens.
On the first day, the conference focused on the mechanisms of citizen participation at European and national level. In the morning, the Europe for Citizens Programme, the European Citizen Initiative (ECI) and Your Europe Advice (YEA) were presented. In the afternoon, the panel focused more on national perspectives, presenting the past and current citizens’ initiatives in Croatia such as the Good Initiative.
On the second day, the mechanisms of participation at regional level were explored. The Triple A for Citizens project was presented, and the panel analysed the relation between citizen information & advice and free legal aid. Thanks to the presence of regional partners of the Triple A project, the state of play of Citizen information, advice and active help services in the SEE countries was also discussed.
The conference ended with a debate on the implementation and limitations of the legal framework for citizen participation and engagement in Croatia.