GGP’s Research Infrastructure Manager, Vytenis Juozas Deimantas, has been on a United Nations Population Fund mission to the Western Balkans from end of November to early December 2022. The goal of the mission was to promote a Pan-Balkan GGS as a tool to monitor population dynamics and future trends in this region. The mission, which was led by UNFPA Programme Analyst Željko Blagojević, visited Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.
Along their journey delegates had 25 meetings with representatives of governments, ministries, statistical offices, academia, NGOs and UN agencies. The initiative to conduct a Pan-Balkan GGS simultaneously in all countries of the Western Balkans was met with a warm welcome. Stakeholders perceived it as an opportunity to consolidate scientific links to the EU. To facilitate the preparatory process for a Pan-Balkan GGS, representatives from the Western Balkan countries, the UNFPA and GGP will meet in 2023 to discuss the budget and an implementation roadmap.
