From alignment to participation in the Western Balkans: the POLICY ANSWERS eBook is now available
The POLICY ANSWERS eBook, From alignment to participation in the Western Balkans: Highlights from the POLICY ANSWERS project (2022–2026), presents the main achievements of the project over four years of implementation across the Western Balkans. It brings together key results, lessons and legacy elements from work on policy dialogue, monitoring, capacity building, priority alignment, pilot activities, communication and project management.
The publication shows how POLICY ANSWERS supported a gradual shift from formal alignment with European frameworks towards more active and structured participation in the European Research Area. Across the region, the project contributed to strengthening cooperation mechanisms, stakeholder engagement, implementation capacities and evidence-based policymaking.
Structured around the seven work packages of the project, the eBook highlights a broad range of outputs and achievements. These include ministerial meetings and Steering Platform meetings, monitoring tools and ERA-related reporting, tailored capacity-building activities in the six Western Balkans economies, policy reports and briefs on key thematic priorities, and regional pilot actions such as innovation vouchers, mobility support, youth awards, research infrastructure promotion, the Regional Innovation Academy and the Fellowship Programme.
The publication also reflects the broader legacy of POLICY ANSWERS. Beyond individual activities, it documents how the project helped connect institutions, policymakers, researchers, businesses and civil society actors, while supporting a more connected and implementation-oriented research and innovation ecosystem in the Western Balkans. It also points to continuity through follow-up initiatives and the further development of the Western Balkans Info Hub services.
The eBook is intended as a legacy output of the project and as a resource for everyone interested in research and innovation cooperation, policy development and European integration in the Western Balkans.
