23rd Symi Symposium in Athens on the Establishment of a Sustainable Development Solutions Network and the “3P Paper” for the Western Balkans

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Athens, Greece July 2021

Invited by George Papandreou, President of the Socialist International and former Prime Minister of Greece, Dr. Zlatko Lagumdzija, participating in Athens at the 23rd Symi Symposium entitled “Revolutions and Evolutions in the Post-Pandemic Era.”


At the panel “The Future of Europe and the Western Balkans“, Dr. Lagumdzija presented the results of a joint project of the Shared Societies and Values Foundation (SSVS), the National Committee for American Foreign Policy (NCAFP) and Nizami Ganjavi International Center (NGIC) entitled “It’s high time for action in the Western Balkans” which in a joint report entitled“ 3P Paper ”for the Western Balkans set out the principles, policies and recommendations for the countries of the region and key international actors.


Special emphasis was placed on the need for leadership and joint action of the countries in the region, as well as on three specific recommendations. The first refers to the formation of the EU Single Market (EU Single Market), in the next 5 years, which would include all 6 countries of the Western Balkans; the second on the integration of the region into the European Green Deal as well as on the exit energy strategy with the transition from coal to renewable energy sources; and the third on the infrastructural and digital connection of the capitals of 6 countries in the region.

In addition to George Papandreou and Jeffrey Sachs, UN Secretary General’s Special Adviser on the 2030 Agenda, Dr. Lagumdzija also discussed these proposals in separate meetings with regional leaders present at the Symi Symposium, Albanian and Kosovo Prime Ministers Edi Rama and Albin Kurti, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister. of Foreign Affairs of Northern Macedonia Nikola Dimitrov and Minister of Defense Rado Sekerinski.


At the panel “From Global to Local Development Models and the Challenges of Fair and Inclusive Green Transition”, Dr. Lagumdzija presented a proposal to establish a Sustainable Development Solutions Network of the Western Balkans (SDSN WB) in cooperation with the Global and European Sustainable Development Solution Network (SDSN).
Talks with global and European network leaders Jeffrey Sachs and Phoebe Koundori agreed on further steps to establish the SDSN network of the Western Balkans. Among other things, this network would aim to promote and work on integrating the Western Balkans Green Deal, already proposed by the European Commission, into the existing single project of the European Union’s transition from a traditional to a self-sustaining and green economy.
At the closing ceremony of the Symi Symposium, hosted by the Mayor of Athens Costas Bakoyannis, Dr. Lagumdzija spoke about the activities of the Club de Madrid in preparation for the Second Summit on Social Development and global promotion and the importance of building societies of common values ​​in response to growing divisions, inequality and strengthening. populist and nationalist policies.