Western Balkan countries play a valuable role in partnering with EEA to tackle environmental and climate challenges

The European Environment Agency cooperates with a large number of countries, including those in the Western Balkans. How does this cooperation further the EU’s work on the environment and how does it benefit Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Kosovo? We sat down with Luc Bas, head of Coordination, Networks and Strategy Programme, to discuss how the EEA is working with these countries to improve the environment.

Why are Western Balkan countries so important for the EEA? What is the added value of cooperating?

These countries are EU accession or pre-accession countries. In order to become a full EU member, a number of policies need to be put in place and the environmental field is one of the largest policy areas with a substantial package of legislation.

Moreover, the Western Balkans are our neighbors and we all know the environment doesn’t stop at the border, so close cooperation on environmental issues is also in the EU’s interest.

Lastly, as cooperating countries in the European Environmental Information and Observation Network (Eionet), the Western Balkans have access to a large pool of experts, helping them with the  environmental challenges they face. In return, experts from these countries contribute to the network with their know-how.

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