The 22nd meeting of the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) between Macedonia and the European Union (EU), represented by the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), is being hosted by the Association of Units of Local Self-Government (ZELS).

Key speakers at the event include Orce Gjorgjievski, the President of ZELS and Mayor of Kiselа Voda municipality, Risto Penov, the Minister of Local Self-Government, and Danela Arsovska, the Mayor of the City of Skopje.

The first topic of discussion centers around “Developments in the Process of Macedonia’s Accession to the EU,” with insights to be shared by notable figures such as Ben Nupnau, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation in Macedonia, and Anna Magyar, the CoR rapporteur for enlargement strategy at the Committee of the Regions, among other CoR representatives.

The second theme of the meeting is focused on “Rule of Law and the Role of Local Communities in Combating Hate Speech, Hate Crimes, Fake News, and Foreign Influence.”

Danela Arsovska, the Mayor of the City of Skopje, is the current co-chair of the Macedonian side, while Jasna Gabrič, a member of the Municipality Council of Trbovlje in the Republic of Slovenia, serves as the co-chair of the Committee of Regions.

The CoR Joint EU -Macedonia Consultative Committee was established in 2008 to oversee internal reforms in Macedonia and foster political dialogue with local and regional authorities. The JCC consists of 11 members from the EU and 11 from Macedonia, as stated in ZELS’ press release.