The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) presented the Western Balkans Actors Platform for the Green and Circular Economy, composed of government representatives, businesses, donors, and CSOs, at a high-level meeting held this Thursday in Pristina.

“Although becoming a hot spot for climate change, our region often tends to use a myopic lens instinctively. This still doesn’t truly grasp the urgency and inclusivity of climate change and neither, for example, the alarmingly low recycling rates and high waste generated at the local level. Our Balkan Barometer says only 30% of business owners see climate change as a problem for their businesses; while 43% believe green transition won’t impact their business and 37% haven’t taken any steps to reduce their business’s environmental impact. Unfortunately, more than a third of businesses don’t undertake any circular economy activities/initiatives,” said RCC Secretary General Majlinda Bregu at the opening of the meeting.

Reasons for this, as cited by Western Balkans businesses, are: additional costs (49%); lack of skills and expertise (30%), lack of a regulatory framework (28%), and lack of government subsidies (29%).

“Most businesses consider producing a new product cheaper than a recycled one. These percentages won’t steer us away from the linear resource use models and seem in stark contrast to the encouraging percentages that I’m sure we’ve all gathered here today: circular economy strategies can reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by 40%; create 700,000 new jobs just in the EU by 2030, or open economic opportunities worth $4.5 trillion. Therefore, we need more action-oriented stances and opportunities among all key actors in the region,” concluded Bregu.

In addition to RCC’s Secretary General, the introductory remarks were delivered by Valentina Superti, Director for the Western Balkans at the Directorate-General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations, and Lulzim Rafuna, Chairman of the Steering Board of the Western Balkans 6 Chamber Investment Forum (WB6CIF). The high-level ministerial panel gathering ministers from the Western Balkans and representatives of ministries responsible for environmental issues, along with Germany as the initiator and key actor of the Berlin Process, discussed the advancement of the implementation of the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans. Later in the day, three other panels will address topics on investment potential, the Western Balkans’ transition towards a circular economy, and further steps.

The aim of the Platform, which will operate within the framework of the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans (GAWB), is to renew the high-level commitments made under the GAWB, to promote a regional center for learning and knowledge exchange on the Circular Economy, and to harmonize green financing and investment pathways.

The meeting, organized by RCC with the support of WB6CIF and the EU4GREEN Project, brought together representatives from the Western Balkans, around 20 donors and international financial institutions, 66 international organizations, companies, and more than 50 representatives of Civil Society Organizations.

/k.s/