Civil society is a key component of Europe’s fundamental rights architecture. From supporting people affected by the pandemic to helping those fleeing the war in Ukraine, civil society plays a crucial role in upholding people’s rights. In so doing, it contributes to a healthy rule of law culture. FRA’s civic space report provides an overview of the many ways in which civil society contributes to the checks and balances that underpin the rule of law. This report showcases good practice examples from across the EU. But, despite positive developments, the report also highlights persisting challenges civil society continues to face across the EU. The report also presents national, international and EU tools and guidelines supporting civil society organisations.

The country reports from EU Member States constitute the background material for a comparative analysis for the project ‘Fundamental Rights Platform and cooperation with civil society’. The country studies were prepared by FRA’s research network, FRANET. 

CSD contributed to the report by carrying out the research in Bulgaria and producing a country report as background material for the comparative analysis.

The full report and all national background studies are available on the FRA website here.