The problem with civil society’s involvement in EU integration: Experts discuss interaction with authorities
Civil society organizations (CSOs) in Ukraine say their participation in the country’s EU integration reforms often remains largely formal, with limited meaningful engagement from government authorities. This dynamic was discussed during a coordination meeting of civil society organizations on cooperation with government authorities, a ZMINA correspondent reported.
Representatives of NGOs and think tanks participate in working groups on the development of European integration measures across various fields, according to their expertise. Experts point out that interactions with government authorities regarding their work on policy changes often leave much to be desired. In particular, during the meeting, representatives of CSOs voiced the following problematic points:
- State government authorities take into account the proposals and demands of civil society after European partners start to apply pressure on the government regarding the mentioned issues;
- Among government officials, there is sometimes a lack of understanding of concepts such as strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs). This shortfall is a challenge for the advocacy and implementation of draft laws;
- Institutional interaction is often lacking – usually, only personal contacts with officials help the public achieve a response to proposed initiatives;
- It happens that after CSOs start to criticize a department, they may be excluded from decision-making processes;
- Open dialogue with the public is ensured by government representatives who also have experience in the activities of CSOs – such an example is Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, the chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Freedom of Speech;
- not all negotiating working groups cooperate equally with civil society; with some, the interaction is successful, but some meetings are formal, where ministries only report on performed work without discussion;
- When a ministry turns to a CSO or a think tank for analytical support, the CSO seeks donor funding to perform the work.
Analysts from the Center for Democracy and Rule of Law (CEDEM) have noted that in August–September 2025, draft laws No. 13653 and No. 13653-1, regarding an accelerated procedure for the consideration of EU integration bills, were registered in the Verkhovna Rada. They are currently under review by the lead Rules of Procedure Committee.
Both documents define the powers of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine in the field of legislative adaptation. They also clearly establish the procedure for interaction between the government and parliament in the preparation of EU integration bills.
However, neither the primary nor the alternative draft law provides a mechanism for involving civil society organizations in the process of preparing such bills for adaptation to EU law, noted Nataliya Povtar, a lawyer for the “Civil Society” direction at CEDEM.
“Such an approach may not be very productive, as the lack of a procedure for involving CSOs at the initial stage of bill drafting could delay the subsequent adoption of effective decisions. Alternatively, we might overlook certain ineffective decisions, necessitating a struggle later on to return to an adequate situation at the legislative level,” she said.
Experts from the think tank have had the opportunity to participate in working meetings organized by the Ministry of Justice to discuss the implementation results of roadmap measures with the public, particularly those regarding the functioning of democratic institutions.
“We raised the issue of how CSOs could be involved in working on European integration draft laws at the procedural level. The most obvious solution seems to be joining the work of the lead committee, which oversees the bills regarding the consideration of Euro-integration legislation, and proposing a solution whereby CSOs can be integrated into the drafting process carried out by the Cabinet of Ministers,” Povtar noted.
CEDEM proposes that, during the preparation for the second reading of draft laws No. 13653 and No. 13653-1, a procedure for developing Euro-integration acts should be formalized, providing for joint pre-registration work among the government, Verkhovna Rada committees, and the public.
Anastasia Datsiv, Euro-integration Advocacy Manager at Human Rights Centre ZMINA, discussed how human rights defenders collaborate with the government and parliament, as well as the challenges they have encountered in their interactions.
“In general, the topic of human rights — especially ‘uncomfortable’ topics for the government, such as non-discrimination and the protection of LGBTIQ+ rights — is very often deprioritized by our officials. When it comes to the rights of internally displaced persons, or Ukrainians who have fled the war, and the reintegration of occupied territories, this is even more the case,” noted the ZMINA expert.
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According to Datsiv, a challenging aspect for human rights organizations is that the general human rights framework is always grouped in the same block (negotiating chapter) as anti-corruption and judicial reforms, which are typically considered more critical topics:
“Therefore, even when discussions take place — for example, regarding recommendations from shadow reports by NGOs — the general human rights framework is usually bypassed or allocated very little time. This is because discussing the judicial and anti-corruption systems is seen as more important, and their improvement is perceived as having more weight in the context of Ukraine’s European integration,” Datsiv said.
She spoke about the organization’s interaction formats in various European integration processes: participation in government working groups, engagement with international donors, and collaboration with the parliament.
“We participated in working groups for Chapters 23 and 24 and on the functioning of democratic institutions. The published roadmaps demonstrated the extent to which the work and meetings of these groups were meaningful,” she noted.
At the same time, discussions with other human rights organizations revealed a generally unsatisfactory format for these working groups — ranging from invitations that typically arrived too late to the manner in which public recommendations were considered. Specifically, information was provided only partially, and many recommendations and meeting discussions were not reflected in the final developments.
“Based on this, we published several position papers alongside other human rights organizations. One concerned government consultations within working groups, and the second focused on the roadmaps and our recommendations regarding their content,” Anastasia Datsiv said.
The expert also discussed interactions with the parliament. At the end of last year, laws were signed granting the public greater access to the work of Verkhovna Rada committees.
“We have reached out to various specialized committees regarding our issues. Their willingness to cooperate with civil society does not match the level we would like to see — specifically concerning the development of high-quality recommendations for various bills on the agenda, or those that remain stalled in parliament due to officials’ reluctance to process them further,” Datsiv emphasized.
The best interaction occurs with the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union: they send invitations, meeting agendas, and allow for remarks on relevant topics during sessions. With other committees, such as Law Enforcement or Legal Policy, the situation is worse. The specialized Human Rights Committee is also not particularly open to cooperation with civil society.
According to Datsiv, overall, public involvement in the work of government bodies regarding European integration is sufficient and open, but only at the level established by government officials and parliamentarians.
To provide background, in October 2025, a coalition of human rights organizations, including Human Rights Centre ZMINA, presented a shadow report to Chapter 23 “Judiciary and Fundamental Rights” and Chapter 24 “Justice, Freedom, and Security” of the European Commission’s Report on Ukraine’s Progress within the 2024 European Union Enlargement Package.
Representatives of the government and the Office of the President positively assessed the Shadow Report on Ukraine’s progress toward the EU, prepared by the coalition of NGOs. Iryna Mudra, Deputy Head of the Presidential Office, noted at the time that civil society’s work in promoting Ukraine’s rapid accession to the EU is highly valuable.
