Joint Programme

Horizontal Facility

The legal clinics and civil society organisations (CSOs) authorised for the provision of primary legal aid, are instrumental in ensuring access to justice and to effectively apply protection of human rights in line with European standards.

Around 25 participants attended a five-days training of trainers on the “Provision of free legal aid (FLA) in North Macedonia” dedicated to representatives of legal clinics and CSOs authorised for providing Free Legal Aid services in North Macedonia. Supported by the European Union and Council of Europe joint programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” and in close co-operation with the Legal Clinic at the Faculty of Law in Shtip, the participants strengthened their capacities with relevant knowledge and tools to be future trainers in the field of free legal aid.

The importance of preparing  future mentors to support the overall legal aid system in North Macedonia and their role as drivers of change for better implementation of the Law on Free Legal Aid and protection of citizen’s rights, was stressed in the opening remarks by Oleg Soldatov, Head of the Council of Europe Programme Office in Skopje.

Throughout the training, participants strengthened their presentation and communication skills through hands-on exercises and simulated training sessions on various free legal aid topics. Equipped with newfound knowledge and techniques, they are expected to conduct in the future capacity-building activities for students and authorised CSOs representatives.

Maria Marinova Alkalay was the leading consultant to conduct the adult learning part of this training, while the legal aspects of the training were covered by the local consultants Maja Atanasova, Goce Kocevski and Elena Georgievska. Three representatives from the Ministry of Justice's Regional Offices and three practicing attorneys actively participated and made valuable contributions to the training.

This training session is organised with the support of the action “Towards a consolidated and more efficient Free Legal Aid (FLA) system in North Macedonia” which is part of the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”.