Non-governmental organizations are among the key partners of the Polish government regarding the preparation and execution of the Polish Presidency of the EU Council. The time allocated for the preparations and the time of the Presidency itself must be used favourably, not only for the benefit of a wise European policy, but also for the sake of the attitudes of responsible, mature and pro-European civic society.
CONSULTATION
A meeting of the Government Plenipotentiary for the Presidency, Mikołaj Dowgielewicz, and Polish NGO representatives was held on July 6, 2009. The aim of the meeting was to start working with the third sector on information campaigns concerning the Polish Presidency of the EU Council. The meeting focused on the communication strategy framework related to the Polish Presidency.
On December 16, 2009, the Third sector in the context of challenges related to Poland’s membership in the European Union conference was held in Warsaw. The main goal of the conference was to establish the framework for permanent cooperation with NGOs in relation to the upcoming Presidency.
In October 2010, the Chancellery of the Prime Minister held consultations with NGOs concerning the programme of the Presidency, which Poland is to hold in the second half of the year. The conference was organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the ministries engaged in the preparations for the Polish Presidency of the EU Council. Issues such as the Eastern Partnership, energy security, economic matters (innovation, internal market), intellectual capital and volunteering were discussed.
On March 23, 2011, 100 days before the commencement of the Polish Presidency, the University of Warsaw hosted the Pro100 to Presidency forum discussion, during which representatives of the government, NGOs and universities discussed the EU’s Eastern policy and the European Year of Volunteering, issues directly related to the Polish Presidency.
EXPERT ANALYSES
One of the crucial elements of the cooperation between government and non-government bodies in the period of preparations for the Polish Presidency are the analyses prepared by NGO experts concerning the selection of topics related to providing society with information about the Polish Presidency.
An expert analysis entitled “A proposal of constant cooperation between the government and the non-profit sector in Poland related to providing society with information about the Polish Presidency of the EU Council”, which was prepared by the Institute for Public Affairs, included, among other things, an analysis of the communication needs of Polish NGOs and recommendations regarding the establishment of constant information and consultation channels.
An analysis carried out by the Centre for European Strategy, DemosEUROPA, entitled “The activities of Polish NGOs at the European level” focuses, among other things, on the cooperation of NGOs with Community and sector-specific bodies, as well as their activity related to the priorities of the Polish Presidency. At the request of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Institute has also prepared a campaign that aims to increase the interest in volunteering in opinion-forming circles in relation to the Polish Presidency and the European Year of Volunteering.
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
Followingthe decision of Minister Mikołaj Dowgielewicz, the Government Plenipotentiary for the Polish Presidency, the External Experts Team for the Planning of the Presidency of the EU Council was established in 2009. The Team includes representatives of European think tanks and university centres: Mr Laurent Cohen-Tanugi (Chairman of the Europe and Globalization Task Force), Mr Dieter Helm (Professor of the University of Oxford), Mr Paul Hofheinz (President of the Lisbon Council), Mr Alan Mayhew (Professor of the University of Sussex), Mr Antonio Missiroli (Director of the European Policy Centre studies), Mr Jean Pisani-Ferry (Director of the Bruegel Institute), Ms Gaëtane Ricard-Nihoul (Secretary General of Notre Europe) and Mr Paweł Świeboda (President of demosEUROPA).
The Team serves as an advisory body to the Plenipotentiary and its main tasks include: delivering opinions on documents drafted by the Plenipotentiary on the planning and priorities of the Polish Presidency and drawing-up analyses related to the planning of the Presidency. The Team met three times in 2009 and 2010.
COOPERATION IN THE REGIONS
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs cooperates with a network of Regional Centres for European Information. These areinformation desks in Poland open for local communities and run by non-governmental organizations under cooperation agreements.
The aim of the Regional Centres for European Information is to provide information about the European Union, including information about the Polish Presidency of the EU Council through making information materials, analyses, descriptions and publications available to the public and also by giving advice. The staff of the Regional Centres for European Information answer questions related to European matters and concerning the Presidency. Questions may be submitted by telephone, fax, post or email. Regional Centres for European Information organize open lectures for local communities and meetings for groups. For example, European lessons for groups are held in their offices and in other places in the region. They also arrange training sessions, workshops, conferences, competitions etc. Information about the events organized by the Regional Centres for European Information is available on their websites.
At the beginning of 2011, Regional Centres for European Information organized around 690 various activities as part of the initiatives related to the Polish Presidency of the EU Council.
The activities are organized in cooperation with various regional partners, such as schools, universities, municipal institutions, non-governmental organizations, other information networks and the mass media.
FUNDING PROJECTS
From November 2010 to May 2011, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made several calls for proposals of projects related to the Polish Presidency to be organized by non-governmental organisations:
- November 2010: The tender for completing the task “Polish Presidency of the EU Council”. The total amount of funding to be allocated was 1,090,000 PLN.
- December 2010: The tender for completing the task “Regional European Information-2011”. The total amount of funding to be allocated was 1,900,000 PLN.
- January 2011: The tender for completing the task “Promoting Knowledge of Poland”. The total amount of funding to be allocated was 4,000,000 PLN.
- March 2011: The tender for completing the task “Communication Priorities”. The Total amount of funding to be allocated was 200,000 EUR. (The call for tender was announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on behalf of the European Commission.)
- May 2011: The tender for completing the task “Strengthening the Position of Polish Non-governmental Organisations in the European Dialogue on the Policy and Developmental Cooperation During the Polish Presidency of the EU Council”. The total amount of funding in the project reached 100,000 PLN.
- May 2011: tender for completing the task “Information on the Polish Presidency of the EU Council”. The total amount of funding reached 826,000 PLN.
TRAINING COURSES
In October and December 2010, training courses for the consultants of the Regional Centres for European Information were organised; they were related to the issues of the Polish Presidency of the EU Council. During the courses, the representatives of the organisations had a chance to familiarise themselves with the cultural programme of the Polish Presidency and its priorities; they also took part in workshops on contact with the press during the Polish Presidency.
From February to June 2011, a series of free training courses was conducted all around Poland. Representatives of non-governmental organisations and the media participating in the event were to learn about the institutional reform introduced by the Treaty of Lisbon. As a part of the programme, the representatives of the voluntary sector had an opportunity to become familiar with the institution of the Presidency of the EU Council itself and the concerns and priorities of the Polish Presidency. The training courses were held in cooperation with the European Commission Representation and the European Parliament Information Office in Poland.
DIALOGUE PLATFORM
As a result of cooperation with non-governmental organizations at the beginning of 2011, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs launched an interactive site devoted to the Polish Presidency at the ngo.pl web portal. The initiative was aimed at making information exchange between the governmental administration and the non-profit sector more efficient. The information in question was supposed to be related to the programme of the Presidency and awareness projects related to the exercising of the Presidency by Poland. On the website you can also learn about: exercising the Presidency by a Member State, the role of the EU Council in the process, opportunities of cooperation for NGOs, and the European Year of Volunteering 2011.
