Dubrovnik, 15 October 2025 – The Donor Coordination Meeting on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans (GAWB) opened this morning in Dubrovnik, bringing together representatives of international financial institutions, development partners, and Western Balkans authorities.

The meeting, organised by the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) in cooperation with the European Commission, follows yesterday’s Second Ministerial Meeting on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, where regional ministers of environment endorsed the Dubrovnik Declaration, the Revised Green Agenda Action Plan 2025–2030, the WB6 Climate Adaptation Roadmap, and other key regional documents defining priorities for a fair, inclusive, and sustainable green transition.

In her opening remarks, Danijela Gačević, Head of the RCC’s Programme Department, underlined that political commitments made now have to translate into coordinated actions and investments. She highlighted the RCC’s comprehensive mapping of donor support, covering 88 regional projects funded by 32 international partners, which identified progress but also gaps and overlaps.

“This meeting marks an important step in turning political pledges into concrete investments. Coordination is key to ensuring that every euro invested delivers maximum impact and supports a fair, inclusive, and sustainable green transition,” said Gačević.

The meeting focuses on improving alignment and coordination among donors and financial institutions to accelerate the region’s green transition and ensure that financial support effectively meets the priorities defined under the Dubrovnik Declaration and the Revised Green Agenda Action Plan 2025–2030.

Speaking on behalf of the European Commission, Holger Schroeder underlined that the European Union will continue to support the Western Balkans in implementing the Green Agenda, viewing the region as a key partner in achieving shared climate goals. He emphasised that the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans is closely aligned with the EU Green Deal, which is crucial for ensuring coherence and progress in the region’s green transition. Schroeder noted that the Western Balkans are not alone in facing these challenges and that the implementation of the Green Agenda requires commitment and engagement from all actors involved. He also highlighted the importance of effective donor coordination to avoid overlap and duplication of efforts, commending the RCC’s development of the Green Agenda implementation monitoring tool and the regional donor mapping exercise as practical instruments that enhance transparency and cooperation.

In continuation of the meeting, Western Balkans ministers of environment will present the priority investment needs and identified funding gaps, which is a crucial step in finding potential donors.

Later on, the participants will have the opportunity to see the outline of the GAWB Observatory, a digital platform the RCC is working on that will enable better donor coordination, data tracking, and transparency in the implementation of regional green transition projects.

Regional Donor Mapping, developed by the RCC, will also be presented as a model for coordinating existing and planned donor activities across the region.

Participants will discuss investment needs, funding gaps, and opportunities for joint interventions, reaffirming the commitment to closer donor cooperation and to supporting the Western Balkans’ alignment with the European Green Deal.

The Green Agenda for the Western Balkans (GAWB) was launched at the 2020 Berlin Process Summit in Sofia. It aligns the region with the European Union’s Green Deal and sets a joint path toward climate neutrality, sustainable growth, and environmental protection.

More info on the Second Ministerial Meeting on GAWB:

https://www.rcc.int/news/972/western-balkan-ministers-of-environment-endorse-dubrovnik-declaration-moving-from-plans-to-action