The 1st Networking Conference and Review Workshop of the project Strengthening and Energizing EU-Central Asia Relations (SEnECA) took place in Riga, Latvia, 17 – 19 April 2018. WiseEuropa is one of the project partners.
The SEnECA consortium partners came together in the capital of Latvia to discuss the methodology of the stakeholder analysis and the methodology of the mapping of European and Central Asian researchers as well. The participants discussed also the conceptual and analytical toolkit and ways to promote networking with policy-makers and stakeholders for the further network and policy analysis.
The high-level panel discussion “Strengthening and Energizing EU-Central Asia Relations” (2nd day of the event) assessed the status and prospects of the cooperation between the EU and the Central Asian countries, how successful had the EU engagement in the region been so far, how did the activities of the EU align among activities of other external powers and how could the EU further strengthen and energize the relations with the Central Asian countries. The event was hosted by Latvian Institute of International Affairs.
The SEnECA project is founded under Horizon 2020, the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme. The coordinators of the SEnECA consortium are University of Duisburg-Essen, and Institut für Europäische Politik, Germany. WiseEuropa is one of the project partners.
The main objectives of SEnECA are to strengthen and energize EU-Central Asia relations. The goal includes establishment of a sustainable, transdisciplinary SEnECA Research Network and the SEnECA Stakeholder Network to link European and Central Asian researchers, policy makers and stakeholders in order to improve research cooperation to develop a common SEnECA Agenda for Future Research Cooperation and EU’s Central Asia policy.
The relations to Central Asia are an important element of the changing transatlantic and geopolitical setting the EU is currently facing. They are influenced by the role the rest of Asia and other world powers play in the region, which the EU has to take into consideration while focusing on its comparative advantages.