On 8th October 2026, the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of North Macedonia, with the support of the Civic Resource Centre, organised an online consultation meeting with civil society organisations regarding the upcoming call for financial support to combat gender-based and domestic violence. The call is funded under the IPA 2024 National Programme.
Irena Ivanova, a Programme Manager at the EU Delegation, presented the key planned characteristics of the call, which has a total budget of €3 million. The call builds upon support provided under IPA 2022. Its objective is to ensure the availability of at least three fully functional shelter centres for victims of domestic violence and human trafficking. These centres are expected to provide 24/7 accommodation, psychosocial, legal, and medical assistance, as well as support for reintegration and employment. Activities aimed at raising awareness among communities, institutions, health and educational facilities, and the media are also envisaged.
The discussion involved approximately 30 representatives from civil society organisations working with victims of violence, other interested organisations, and international bodies. The strongest message to emerge was that support for victims must not end when they leave the shelter centre. Without solutions for housing, economic empowerment, and employment, many women are forced to return to their abusers.
The organisations also put forward the following recommendations:
- making the call accessible to experienced organisations, even if they are not licensed social service providers;
- ensuring greater coverage of rural areas and regions outside Skopje;
- including qualitative indicators that measure the actual impact on the victims' lives;
- adopting an intersectional approach and providing support for LGBTI individuals, for whom there is currently no shelter centre in the country;
- offering flexible forms of crisis accommodation;
- addressing digital and technology-facilitated gender-based violence.
The EU Delegation confirmed that reintegration is a crucial element and that the proposals would be considered during the finalization of the call. In addition to this online consultation meeting, organisations may submit written proposals no later than 15th October, 2026.
The consultation was organised within the project "EU Support to the Civil Society Resource Centre – Phase II," funded by the European Union and implemented by the Civic Resource Centre, the Macedonian Center for International Cooperation, the Association for Democratic Initiatives (ADI), and Media Plus (Štip).
