The Third Phase of Civil Society Dialogue Programme started with the opening ceremony

The implementation of the Civil Society Dialogue Programme started with an opening ceremony on 11 November 2014 with the participation of the representatives of Ministry for EU Affairs, Central Finance and Contracts Unit, EU Delegation to Türkiye, public institutions, media and civil society organizations. The programme forms a part of Türkiye’s New European Union Communication Strategy that was declared to the public on 16 October 2014 by the Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Ambassador Volkan Bozkır.

After Mr. Christian Danielsson, General Director for Enlargement of the European Commission, Deputy Minister for EU Affairs Mr. Dr. Alaattin Büyükkaya, in his speech, said “Civil Society Dialogue has always been a considerable and dynamic platform within the scope of our negotiation process and will continue in this manner. We’ve been implementing the Civil Society Dialogue Programme since 2008 and are proud to regard it as the most concrete and clear reference of our support as Ministry for EU Affairs to civil society.  Within the Civil Society Dialogue Programme various activities between communities in Türkiye and the European Union have been realized. More than 200 projects that have been implemented through the mutual cooperation between the various civil society organizations, benefitting from around 25 million Euros of support. In the upcoming periods, we will continue to provide support for joint works between Türkiye and EU civil society organizations. Next year we intend to announce the 4th phase of the programme, when a further 11 million Euros will be allocated”. The opening ceremony ended with the concert of Karsu Dönmez, who reflects the cultural dialogue between Türkiye and Europe in her songs.

The third phase of Civil Society Dialogue Programme is financed under the Pre-Accession Assistance. In total, 55 dialogue projects will be jointly implemented by 142 civil society organizations that are active in political criteria and media and come from EU member states and Türkiye. Financial support amounting to 7 million Euros will be allocated to the projects. The Programme aspires to ensure and improve sustainable cooperation between civil societies of Türkiye and the EU.