COORDINATION MECHANISMS FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF EUROPEAN INTEGRATION OBLIGATIONS IN THE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION OF THE WESTERN BALKANS

Abstract

The article substantiates coordination mechanisms for implementing European integration obligations in the public administration of the Western Balkan states. The relevance of the study stems from the transformation of EU enlargement policy into a model in which accession negotiations are linked with the internal capacity of the state to plan, allocate responsibility, provide resources, implement, report and adjust reforms. The methodology combines systemic, institutional, comparative, content-analytical and logical-analytical approaches; the empirical framework is based on the Reform and Growth Facility, the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, the Reform Agendas of the regional administrations, European Commission decisions and Reform Monitor materials. The theoretical framework combines the external incentives model, EU conditionality management, gradual integration and access to the Single Market as an interim goal. The article shows that coordination is not limited to inter-ministerial correspondence or diplomatic support for accession negotiations, but includes the source of obligation, responsible authority, co-implementers, resources, indicators, evidence-based reporting, external assessment and policy adjustment. The Reform Agendas of Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are compared; different coordination risks of compact, politically blocked and multi-level administrative systems are identified. Based on the indicative allocation of the Reform and Growth Facility, the article demonstrates the financial and economic importance of coordination capacity. The article proposes a coordination cycle and a risk matrix that identifies typical coordination failures, control safeguards and managerial implications for Ukraine.