General Director
National Authority for Electronic Certification and Cyber Security of Albania
Director General
Directorate for Electronic Administration and Information Security in Montenegro
Cyber threats arising from Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine underline the need to apply a culture of sharing information and expertise between the EU and across the cybersecurity communities to prevent, discourage, deter and respond to malicious behaviour in cyberspace. Perspective EU member states remain particularly vulnerable to this kind of malicious behaviours: their EU integration is dependent on their ability to keep developing democracy and rule of law, while also adopting innovative, more effective, digital-based ways of managing public affairs and enhancing the quality of service for the people.
EU-financed project “Cybersecurity Rapid Response for Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia” implemented by the e-Governance Academy aims to help enhance cyber resilience of these Western Balkan partners in compliance with EU acquis and best practice. Repeated high-profile cyberattacks over the course of past year across the Western Balkans highlight the need for an organized approach to cybersecurity.
Spotlighting the EU-supported cybersecurity rapid response measures in Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia, where it is clear that cyber resilience has become important focus of crisis response in the Western Balkans and an aspect to be strengthened in international cooperation. We will explore some of the major achievements of EU funded support in this field thus far, the pressing challenges and priorities and discuss how to further strengthen democracy through technology.
15:30 – 15:35 Opening and Introduction by Hannes Astok, Executive Director of eGA
15:35 – 15:45 Keynote by Peter Wagner, Director, Service for Foreign Policy Instruments, European Commission
15:45 – 15:55 A view from Albania: Keynote address by Belinda Balluku, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Energy of Albania
15:55 – 16:05 Scene Setting Keynote by Marash Dukaj, Minister of Public Administration of Montenegro
16:05 – 17:00 Panel discussion moderated by eGA Programme Director of Cybersecurity Merle Maigre