On 10 December 2025, a regional forum was held under the theme: “From Policy to Impact: Advancing Integrity and Institutional Reforms in the Western Balkans.”
The forum brought together representatives of institutions, international and civil society organizations, and ambassadors from across the region to discuss regional perspectives, opportunities and the actions needed to advance the fight against corruption not only at the national but also at the regional level.
Among the topics discussed were:
- the role of coordinated regional and international support in strengthening good governance values;
- accountability in public institutions and the transformation of policies into traceable and measurable outcomes;
- smart governance through the use of digital tools and artificial intelligence to combat corruption;
- coordination mechanisms among accountability institutions;
- the role of civil society and investigative media in promoting open public finances.
The President of Transparency International – Macedonia, Mr. Blagoja Pandovski, was a speaker on the panel dedicated to smart governance and the use of digital tools and artificial intelligence in the fight against corruption. He participated in a discussion alongside Mr. Radoslav Nastasijevikj Vardziski, Deputy Minister for Digitalization of North Macedonia; Mr. Yll Buleshkaj, Director of the Agency for Prevention of Corruption of Kosovo; Mr. Serhii Hupiak, Deputy Head of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention of Ukraine; Ms. Marie Mallard, Senior Compliance and Regulatory Expert at the French Anticorruption Agency; and Mr. Robert Scot Heaslet, Senior Resident Country Director at the National Democratic Institute (NDI). Moderator of the discussion was Mr. Misha Popovikj from the Institute for Democracy “Societas Civilis“ Skopje (IDSCS).
The panel explored examples of digital tools that enhance transparency and the use of open data; how robust public infrastructure for transparency can support prevention, law enforcement and prosecution; the use of AI for anticorruption proofing of legislation and applying data analytics, pattern recognition and anomaly detection to identify high-risk behaviors and support investigations.
Mr. Pandovski spoke about the overall positive and negative impacts that AI can have on the fight against corruption. He also gave overview of the new TI- Macedonia Integrity Watch Platform- https://integritywatch.mk/, demonstrating how public information and open data can be analyzed to provide the public with insights into integrity risks and how such insights can inform future policy initiatives and help address systemic gaps.
All participating representatives agreed to become signatory parties to the Declaration on commitments to integrity, anti-corruption efforts, and regional cooperation in the Western Balkans (“Skopje Declaration”). The purpose of the Declaration is to turn policy commitments into concrete, measurable reforms that strengthen institutions, integrity, gender equality, regional cooperation, and responsible AI and advance toward EU accession with clear ownership, robust monitoring and a learning approach that respects each country’s negotiation status.
