Projects

Strategies and development programmes,

Technical Assistance to the South East Europe regional Rural Development Standing Working Group

Croatia

European Commission

SWG was founded on the basis of a common wish to establish an informal organisation for sustainable rural development in South East Europe. SWG aims to ensure close permanent cooperation in order to accomplish the common policy of integration with the EU, stimulate and organise initiatives and activities on national, regional and global. With the International Agreement signed in March 2009, SWG was registered as an International Intergovernmental Organisation, with its managing and coordinating body based in Skopje, Macedonia. On September 7th 2009, the Law on Ratification of the SWG Agreement was completed by the Parliament of Macedonia. Until the end of 2009, the SWG operational costs were covered by GTZ Technical Assistance. Having now become an International Organisation, SWG should become self-financing, drawing the main source of income from the membership fee and project overheads Global objectives The overall objective of this assignment is to facilitate and enhance cooperation of candidate countries and potential candidates in the Western Balkans in the area of agriculture and rural development. This is to be done by assessing capacities of the only existing international body in the region in the field of agriculture and rural development - SWG – and assisting it in kick-starting a new phase of operation as an international organisation. Specific objectives This assignment consists of two specific objectives: Objective 1: Assessment of capacities and development needs of the organisation, proposing an organisational design, performing mid-term strategic planning and setting up a work plan, as well as outreach and communication strategy, Objective 2: Assisting the organisation in project preparation.

Start date: 2010-09-01

End date: 2011-01-31