In 2017, the SCN launched an innovative and radical experiment in the Middle East – to bring local community actors together to drive efforts to help prevent violent extremism. This novel approach proved enormously successful, with six Local Prevention Networks (LPNs) launched across Lebanon and Jordan.
Today, we are proud to announce that this model is being expanded to the Western Balkans in the North Macedonian city of Kumanovo.
Marijeta Mojašević is a Youth Advisor for the Municipality of Berane, a town in the north of Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992, the region was rocked by armed conflict throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. Montenegro gained independence in 2006, and while the country has remained peaceful, the aftermath of the Balkan…
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We are delighted to welcome two new managers to the Strong Cities Network team. Patricia Crosby and Simeon Dukic joined last month and will be leading the SCN’s work in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, and the Western Balkans and Central Asia, respectively. Together they bring a tremendous amount of regional expertise and insight that…
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To lay the groundwork for its programmatic expansion into Central Asia, the SCN attended the 2019 OSCE-wide Counter-Terrorism Conference hosted by Slovakia in Bratislava, held on 25-26 March. Focusing on region-wide efforts to prevent and counter violent extremism (P/CVE) and radicalisation, the high-level conference gathered state representatives from OSCE member and partner states. Also in…
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In November 2018, the Strong Cities Network convened over 40 representatives from the SCN’s Western Balkan cities, including ten mayors and deputy mayors at the Western Balkans Resiliency Forum in Budva, Montenegro. The forum was hosted by the International Republican Institute (IRI) in partnership with SCN and supported by the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization…
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Authors: Daniel Hooton and Marta Lopes With little over a third of eligible voters taking part a fortnight ago in Macedonia’s controversial referendum on changing its name, the country’s future hangs in the balance. In an attempt to bury a three-decade-long dispute with Greece over the country’s name, the referendum has thrown open as many issues…
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After East and West Africa, our second regional web page is now live, this time presenting our work in the Western Balkans! Click here to find out more about our engagement to date in the region, our partners, as well as to access our reports. During the city consultations held in Kosovo and Macedonia in…
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Last week, the SCN team led consultation activities with member cities and local stakeholders in Kosovo and Macedonia. Following an engagement and training phase that led more than 40 municipalities across the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia) to join the SCN, we are now seeking to deepen our engagement and…
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