To combat evolving cyber threats, cybersecurity agencies from the Western Balkans, Georgia, and Moldova convened for the first Networking and Technical Workshop in Tirana.
Cybersecurity concerns have escalated significantly over the past couple of years. Human error accounts for 68% of cybersecurity breaches, highlighting the need for robust training and awareness programs. Despite a global cybersecurity workforce of 4.7 million, a shortfall of 3.4 million professionals underscores the importance of capacity-building.
In an era of increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, regional cooperation is vital to securing digital infrastructures. The UNDP and Albania’s Cybersecurity Authority (AKSK), in collaboration with Slovak-UNDP and Czech-UNDP Partnerships, hosted the first Networking and Technical Workshop for Cybersecurity Agencies from the Western Balkans, Georgia, and Moldova to address challenges posed by cybersecurity.
These countries all faced cyber-attacks in the past. Their cybersecurity authorities gathered in Tirana to share knowledge on recent cybersecurity studies, trends, issues, insights and their priorities. One commonality among these eight economies is their respective EU accession aspiration. Besides fostering regional collaboration, therefore, the event focused on, aligning with EU cybersecurity standards.
Key Voices
H.E. Albín Otruba the Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to Albania, stressed the importance of international collaboration in his opening remarks: “Due to the cross-border nature of cybercrime, international and regional cooperation in cybersecurity is essential. Institutions and member states of the EU are supporting projects in cybersecurity also in the Western Balkans countries.”
He also emphasized the Slovak-UNDP partnership’s role in fostering digitalization efforts: “In recent years this cooperation has expanded also to promote the role of the private sector in development cooperation. Slovakia, through the Resource Mobilization Facility, supported several projects focusing on digitalization, including in the Western Balkans countries.”
The panel also included a presentation by Dominik Plávka from the National Security Authority of the Slovak Republic, highlighting the often-overlooked positive and negative impacts of the rapid integration of AI into everyday life and its implications for cybersecurity.
Building a Cybersecurity Cooperation Network
The workshop aimed to foster collaboration, align with EU cybersecurity standards, and address key challenges, such as limited academic research and the lack of frameworks for vulnerability disclosure. It also focused on creating a Cybersecurity Cooperation Network (CCN) for real-time intelligence sharing and coordinated responses to threats.
Participants explored strategies to align regional cybersecurity laws with EU regulations, a critical step for countries pursuing EU accession. The event is part of broader efforts to support the EU’s Digital Strategy, which emphasizes international partnerships and digital transformation by 2030. Technical discussions with cybersecurity experts helped the participants understand and anticipate risks and solutions to cyber threats from a comprehensive, transformative perspective.
The workshop was held in November 2024 and was supported within Public and Private Finance for Development project. Read a press release here: https://www.undp.org/albania/press-releases/strengthening-cybersecurity-cooperation-safer-digital-future
