The illusion of inclusion: Access by NGOs to the structural funds in the new Member States of eastern and central Europe

The author has produced a case study of how NGOs were, or rather, were not consulted in the run-up to the enlargement of the structural funds to new Member States.

This publication is required reading for people concerned about the sustainability of NGOs in Central and Eastern Europe and the participation of civil society in EU cohesion policy. Many funders are reducing their commitments on the grounds that the eight countries are now members of the EU, and that NGOs will become eligible for mainstream European structural funds.

But to what extent will this happen? The study is full of factual detail and gives some valuable insights into a picture which is not entirely black or white, country by country.

European Citizen Action Service: Press Release, 30.6.04: ECAS publishes a new report on enargement. 'The illusion of inclusion' http://www.ecas.org/product/91/default.aspx?id=323

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