Belgium

European Citizen Action Service
Brussels, Belgium
Contact: www.ecas.org

The European Citizen Action Service (ECAS) is an international non-profit organization, based in Brussels, with a pan-European membership and 24 years of experience. It provides services to a network of about 120 civil society organizations and to numerous citizens on EU citizens’ rights enforcement and civic participation in the EU decision-making process. It has a team of 9 full-time staff.

ECAS’s Mission is to:

• strengthen the European strategy of NGOs in member and applicant countries of the European Union (EU);
• defend peoples’ free movement rights and promote a more inclusive European citizenship; and
• campaign for transparency and institutional reforms to bring the EU closer to the citizen

ECAS’s Strategic Plan for the period 2014-2017 is organized along three thematic pillars:

Pillar I – “EU Resource Centre Services”

Objective: Strengthen European citizenship and the enforcement of free movement rights and enhance civic participation in the EU decision-making process by continuing to provide quality services to both CSOs and citizens throughout Europe.

Pillar II – “Open EU Decision-Making”

Objective: Contribute to developing an “engaged EU citizenship” by ensuring transparency of EU decision-making and citizens’ participation and collaboration in EU policy formulation.

Pillar III – “Engaging the Unengaged”

Objective: Diversify approaches to outreach and engagement in the Central and Eastern European member states and among citizens and youth.

ECAS has extensive experience in developing, delivering and contributing to projects pertaining to European cititzenship and participation. Through its Your Europe Advice service, ECAS provides advice directly to citizens regarding their implementation of the right most strongly assocated with European citizenship, that of free movement of persons. ECAS deals with over 20 000 such enquiries each year. Additionally, ECAS hosts the “EU Rights Clinic” which takes on difficult cases again pertaining to freedom of movement and provides clients with legal advice and assistance.

ECAS also hosts two “knowledge centres”, on EU migration and the ECI respectively, which host over 200 publications in various formats on these topics. This provides citizens and organisations with resources that enable them to educate and inform themselves on these important issues.