Enhancing consumer rights through strengthening competition policy

The Enhancing Consumer Rights through Strengthening Competition Policy project commenced on December 1, 2024, and will run until September 2025. The project is implemented under the EU National Resource Centre for Civil Society in Serbia programme, conducted by the Belgrade Open School with the support of the European Union, represented by the EU Delegation to Serbia.

The project’s overall objective is to empower active citizen and civil society participation in the inclusive and transparent development of public policies in the areas of consumer rights and competition policy, in alignment with Serbia’s EU accession process. The first specific objective focuses on engaging citizens and civil society in the processes of developing and advocating for ongoing regulatory reforms in the areas of consumer rights and competition policy, while the second specific objective pertains to involving citizens and civil society in the implementation and monitoring of key reforms in these areas.

The project is designed to enhance the legal and institutional framework for consumer protection and competition policy while raising public awareness about the importance of these topics for a functional and fair market. The project will focus on identifying key challenges in practice, providing concrete recommendations for improvement, and empowering relevant stakeholders through education and collaboration.

The project aims to achieve its objectives through the following activities:

1. Developing a methodology and conducting citizen consultations
2. Conducting research and preparing policy documents with concrete public policy proposals
3. Advocacy targeting decision-makers and policymakers
4. Gathering citizen proposals, suggestions, and comments through an innovative online platform
5. Conducting consumer rights training for citizens and civil society representatives
6. Hosting three thematic discussions for citizens and stakeholders
7. Launching a media campaign through print and online media

In addition to its primary goals, the project will have a significant impact by disseminating its results. Concrete proposals for normative and strategic solutions in the areas of consumer rights and competition policy will be developed based on feedback and suggestions from citizens and civil society. Advocacy towards relevant stakeholders has the potential to drive reform processes in these two areas even further.

Contact Person: Stefan Radojčić, Project Coordinator, stefan.radojcic@cep.org.rs