24Dec
Since its informal establishment in March 2011, the Balkan Rural Development Network – BRDN, with the joint efforts of its members, has started to become recognizable among many relevant international organizations and public institutions, at regional but also at EU level, as a potential leading actor in the rural development in the Western Balkan region. The BRDN members have worked hard during the past 8 years and dedicated a lot of their time and energy to lay solid pillars, upon which they can build eminent figure among all rural stakeholders in the region and wider. With formalization of BRDN, they are now moving a step forward towards becoming a stronger social asset for the Balkan rural communities that will significantly contribute to development of sustainable rural areas in the region. The founding assembly of BRDN was held in Skopje, on December 6th, when the rural development networks of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, signed the registration documents as founders of the Network. The other two BRDN partners, the rural development networks of Serbia and Albania are joining later as full-fledged members. This way BRDN will continue to represent more than 200 rural development associations from the region and will advocate for the interests of more than 9 million rural people from the Western Balkan countries: Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.
“I expect that BRDN will prove to be a social asset for the Balkan rural communities, that will be able to utilise the opportunities and strengths of today, in order to annul the challenges of tomorrow and contribute to innovative and sustainable solutions to the current and future social and rural development issues,” said Petar Gjorgievski, the newly elected President of the Balkan Rural Development Network – BRDN.
Thanks to the support of the Swedish Development Organization We Effect in the past 2 years, BRDN managed to lay dawn firm basis of the organization and prepare all crucial documents that give directions and goals in the future work.
