Agricultural Policy Dialogue Germany – South East Europe, Phase 2

The project supports the EU accession and reform processes of the Southeast European countries Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, as well as Moldova, in the areas of agriculture, food, rural development, and forestry. Building on the results of the previous project phase, the new phase responds to the increasing demands associated with EU harmonization, adaptation to climate change, strengthening competitiveness, sustainable forest management, and regional economic integration.

The overarching development goal is to strengthen agriculture, food, and forestry as strategic sectors and to promote their competitiveness, resilience, and long-term growth on the path to EU integration. The project makes a significant contribution to a more effective and better coordinated EU accession process in the relevant policy areas, particularly in negotiation chapters 11, 12, 13, and 27.

The project is divided into five result areas:

• EU enlargement and agricultural policy reform process, incl. harmonization monitoring, policy and strategy analysis, and structured political and technical dialogue
• Competitive and resilient agricultural and food systems with a strong focus on climate adaptation, sustainable production systems, and alignment with EU standards
• Forest policy and forest management to support modern, climate-resilient, and EU-compliant governance structures, monitoring systems, and risk prevention measures
• Deepening socioeconomic integration by promoting regional cooperation, private sector engagement, and trade relations and investments along agricultural and forestry value chains
• Methodology, communication, and public relations to strengthen planning, monitoring, visibility, and knowledge management

The local project implementer is the Regional Rural Development Standing Working Group (SWG) of South Eastern Europe. The international consulting contribution is implemented by IAK Agrar Consulting GmbH.