Strengthening freedom of information in North Macedonia

Details
Published: May 27, 2025
The EU Twinning project team after the Kick-off-Meeting (from left to right): Plamenka Bojceva (Project Leader North Macedonia), Tanja Kovachev (Component Leader 2), Matina Schloegel (Project Leader Germany), Katharina Tegeder (IRZ Project Coordinator) Petar Gajdov (Component Leader 1), Tim Fellmann (German Component Leader 1) and Gereon Müller-Chorus (Project Manager IRZ)
The EU Twinning project team after the Kick-off-Meeting (from left to right): Plamenka Bojceva (Project Leader North Macedonia), Tanja Kovachev (Component Leader 2), Matina Schloegel (Project Leader Germany), Katharina Tegeder (IRZ Project Coordinator) Petar Gajdov (Component Leader 1), Tim Fellmann (German Component Leader 1) and Gereon Müller-Chorus (Project Manager IRZ)
North Macedonia

IRZ has been awarded the contract for the EU Twinning Light Project ‘Supporting free access to information’. Through its Twinning Projects, the European Union supports partnerships between authorities in EU member states and their partner states to build public structures in line with European values and standards.

As part of this new project, IRZ will support its North Macedonian partners in the coming months in bringing the Law on Free Access to Public Information (LFAPI) into line with EU regulations and best practices. In addition, the institutional capacities of the staff of the Agency for Protection of the Right to Free Access to Public Information (ASPI) and selected other pilot institutions will be strengthened. In up to 16 missions on site and during two study trips to EU countries, German and European experts will work closely with their Macedonian colleagues to bring freedom of information in North Macedonia into line with European requirements and standards.

To kick off the project, the project partners met with the EU delegation in Skopje for the first time on 19 and 20 May 2025 to discuss the concrete implementation of the project over the next ten months. Under the leadership of Dr Martina Schlögel from the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI) and Mr Tim Fellmann from the Thuringian State Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (TLfDI), they specified the work plan with the ASPI.

During this two-day start-up mission, the responsible project and component managers from both sides – also in exchange with the EU delegation – were able to clearly define priorities, determine concrete steps and begin direct cooperation.

Are you also interested in Twinning Projects, in which IRZ has been involved as a so-called ‘mandated body’ in more than 90 projects since 1998? Here you will find further information about their partnership approach to building public structures in line with EU administrative practice.

The Twinning Project is the responsibility of Ms Tegeder, who manages and coordinates the EU Twinning and Action Grants project area.