"In 2018, the National Democratic Institute (NDI), within its Central and Eastern Europe "Program for Strengthening Interethnic Dialogue and Inclusion of Minorities" returned to democratic governance programming at the subnational level in North Macedonia.

To foster meaningful channels of political discourse among divided communities and foster access points for marginalized groups, NDI partnered with the OSCE Mission in Skopje to work with the municipalities of Gazi Baba, Gostivar, Kichevo, Kumanovo, Struga, Shuto Orizari, and Tetovo.

The Diversity of these municipalities challenged NDI and OSCE Mission to Skopje to develop a curriculum that was both engaging and relevant. With financial support from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), we successfully trained over 150 municipal councilors and administrative servants.

The COVID-19 pandemic allowed NDI and OSCE Mission to Skopje to reprogram funding and share our direct experience engaging municipal councilors in the preparation of this Handbook for Successful Mediation in the Work of the Municipal Councils. The handbook can serve as a resource for civil society organizations (CSOs), civic engagement experts, the donor community and others who work with subnational commissions for inter-ethnic relations and municipal councilors. To better understand the importance of collaboration to achieve mutually-agreed goals, elected officials may also benefit from the handbook as they work to represent the communities for which they serve.

Included are topics centered on mediation and effective communication, challenging the reader to understand their cultural biases and those of others, how to cultivate and build on relationships with elected officials from different backgrounds, tips on engaging inter-community dialogue, the importance of develop a team spirit, and reaching consensus on challenging issues.

Tailored for local self-governments where communities are perceived as divided and where groups at-risk of social exclusion feel marginalized, this manual well-documents the training series.

We hope you find the content both relevant and useful."

 

Robert Scott Heaslet

Senior Resident Director

NDI North Macedonia