The EU is investing five million euros for cyber security in the Western Balkans
At the beginning of 2023, the European Union will launch a project to build capacities in the field of cyber security in the Western Balkans, which will be financed under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA III).
The EU Delegation in Bosnia and Herzegovina told Fena that the project is planned as a four-year program with a budget of five million euros and that it will be implemented by the Estonian e-Governance Academy.
“The global cyber threat environment has been further exacerbated by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, which directly affects the European Union and its neighbors. “Cybernetic threats as a result of the war emphasize the need to strengthen the exchange of information and expertise between the EU and the Western Balkans, and among the cyber security communities, including in terms of hybrid threats,” the EU Delegation in BiH emphasized.
The general goal of the project, as they state, is to improve the cyber resistance of the Western Balkans through the realization of regional cooperation and the implementation of specific activities on building capacities aimed at users, due to the strengthening of functional and responsible institutions that can respond to cyber attacks.
“It will target direct institutional and operational deficiencies in cyber preparedness and response. The project will also facilitate the European Union’s engagement in the region in the field of cyber security. The European Union’s approach to building capacities for cyber security in the Western Balkans is based on the rights and involvement of the entire government in order to improve prevention, preparedness and resistance to cyber threats with a strong focus on institution building,” explained the EU Delegation.
The project was designed after an analysis of the needs for capacity building in the field of cyber security, which was carried out in 2022 by the Academy for e-Governance in the beneficiary countries of the IPA III program in the Western Balkans.
“Study to determine and formulate needs in the field of cyber security in the Western Balkans” very precisely defines the shortcomings and needs of each of the six countries of the Western Balkans, including the institutional framework and governance, legal framework, risk management in national cyber security, critical infrastructure and operators of necessary services , education and awareness raising.
The European Union, it was emphasized, is committed to providing support for strengthening the resistance of the Western Balkans to cyber threats as a strategic geopolitical investment, among other things, due to the European perspective of the region. Investing in the region’s cyber resilience and supporting alignment with the European Union are key to ensuring the stability of IPA III beneficiaries and ensuring reliable services and digital tools for citizens and businesses.
The head of the Political Department at the EU office in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elisabet Tomašinec, previously assessed that cybercrime knows no borders and that for this reason there should be no borders even in cooperation in the fight against cybercrime.
She reminded that BiH has signed a series of international agreements and conventions concerning cyber security, and that the Stabilization and Association Agreement explicitly mentions that type of security that must be implemented immediately.