Marta Becerra, co-secretary of the Steering Committee on Democracy (CDDEM) of the Council of Europe, led a training session presenting the Committee’s mandate and ongoing work. She outlined its mission to strengthen democratic participation at all levels while promoting equality, safeguarding fundamental freedoms, combating corruption, ensuring effective and independent judiciary systems, and fostering long-term democratic resilience across member states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The CDDEM was established following the Reykjav\u00edk Summit, reflecting a renewed political commitment to place democracy at the centre of the Council of Europe’s priorities. For the current two-year cycle, the Committee is structured around two dedicated working groups. The first, the Working Group on Democratic Principles (GT-P2), builds on the work of its predecessor and focuses on developing practical parameters for implementing the Reykjav\u00edk Principles. The second, the Working Group on Multilevel Governance (GT-GPN), formerly the Civil Participation Working Group (GT-CS), concentrates on strengthening democratic governance across local, regional, national and European levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
L'une des missions principales du GT-P2 consiste \u00e0 \u00e9laborer un cadre capable de refl\u00e9ter la diversit\u00e9 des r\u00e9alit\u00e9s d\u00e9mocratiques dans les \u00c9tats membres. La mesure de la d\u00e9mocratie pose deux d\u00e9fis majeurs : d'une part, d\u00e9finir la d\u00e9mocratie elle-m\u00eame n\u00e9cessite d'aller au-del\u00e0 des structures institutionnelles pour inclure la participation, l'\u00e9galit\u00e9, la non-discrimination, la confiance du public et l'\u00e9volution des mod\u00e8les de gouvernance ; d'autre part, le Comit\u00e9 s'efforce de concevoir des outils concrets que les pays peuvent utiliser pour identifier les risques et mettre en \u0153uvre des politiques qui renforcent la r\u00e9silience d\u00e9mocratique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The CDDEM cooperates closely with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), the Congress and other intergovernmental committees to ensure that an intersectional perspective on democracy is integrated across all governance levels, transversally representing the needs and aspirations of all citizens regardless of their background. The 50th session of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, held from 31 March to 2 April, stood as a clear expression of the Council of Europe’s continued commitment to multilevel democratic dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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La discussion a \u00e9galement mis en \u00e9vidence la position particuli\u00e8rement vuln\u00e9rable des organisations de la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 civile dans le contexte d\u00e9mocratique actuel. Les soci\u00e9t\u00e9s europ\u00e9ennes sont confront\u00e9es \u00e0 un d\u00e9ficit de confiance croissant \u00e0 l'\u00e9gard de la participation politique, les citoyens remettant de plus en plus en question l'efficacit\u00e9 des canaux d\u00e9mocratiques traditionnels. Parall\u00e8lement, les institutions publiques, tant au niveau local qu'europ\u00e9en, privil\u00e9gient souvent des r\u00e9ponses imm\u00e9diates ou op\u00e9rationnelles face au m\u00e9contentement politique, n'impliquant les acteurs de la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 civile que de mani\u00e8re superficielle et limitant ainsi leur capacit\u00e9 \u00e0 contribuer de mani\u00e8re significative au processus d\u00e9cisionnel d\u00e9mocratique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Le renforcement de la d\u00e9mocratie passe donc par le passage d'une consultation purement symbolique \u00e0 une participation r\u00e9elle et durable. Les organisations de la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 civile sont reconnues par le Conseil de l'Europe pour le r\u00f4le d\u00e9mocratique fondamental qu'elles jouent en tant que gardiennes et d\u00e9fenseuses des droits de l'homme et des valeurs d\u00e9mocratiques. Le renforcement de leur r\u00f4le contribue non seulement \u00e0 r\u00e9tablir la confiance du public, mais aussi \u00e0 renforcer la l\u00e9gitimit\u00e9, le caract\u00e8re inclusif et la r\u00e9silience des institutions d\u00e9mocratiques.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The CDDEM’s ongoing work seeks to address this challenge by promoting participatory governance models that recognise civil society as a fundamental partner, rather than a peripheral stakeholder, in democratic renewal. An example of this collaborative approach is the public consultation conducted by the former GT-CS during the summer of 2025 concerning Recommendation CM\/Rec(2007)14 of the Committee of Ministers on the legal status of non-governmental organisations in Europe. The consultation engaged a wide range of civil society stakeholders, including NGOs, universities and other institutional actors, resulting in a set of final amendments adopted in September 2025 which illustrates the Committee’s commitment to participatory and inclusive democratic dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Les ONG jouent un r\u00f4le crucial en tant qu\u2019\u00ab yeux et oreilles \u00bb du Comit\u00e9, compte tenu de leur proximit\u00e9 avec les citoyens et les r\u00e9alit\u00e9s locales. Elles sont souvent les premi\u00e8res \u00e0 d\u00e9tecter les premiers signes d\u2019un recul d\u00e9mocratique, tels que la baisse de la participation, l\u2019exclusion sociale ou la m\u00e9fiance envers les institutions. De nombreuses ONG participent aux travaux du CDDEM en tant qu\u2019observateurs, un r\u00f4le qui devrait leur permettre de mettre activement en lumi\u00e8re les principaux enjeux affectant la gouvernance d\u00e9mocratique. Cette coop\u00e9ration ne doit pas \u00eatre passive : l\u2019apport doit provenir des ONG elles-m\u00eames, car la Commission compte sur la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 civile pour fournir des informations en temps opportun, des id\u00e9es novatrices et des retours d\u2019exp\u00e9rience concrets sur la mani\u00e8re dont les normes d\u00e9mocratiques sont mises en \u0153uvre sur le terrain. Ce n\u2019est qu\u2019\u00e0 partir d\u2019informations recueillies \u00e0 la base que les politiques peuvent \u00eatre non seulement solides sur le plan th\u00e9orique, mais aussi efficaces dans la pratique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A key area of collaboration in this regard is youth participation: NGOs working with young people contribute by promoting civic engagement and supporting participatory initiatives such as youth councils and assemblies, helping make democracy more inclusive and reinforcing the overall future impact of the CDDEM’s work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Toutefois, contrairement \u00e0 d'autres organes du Conseil de l'Europe, le Comit\u00e9 ne dispose pas de m\u00e9canismes de suivi formels et s'appuie principalement sur des projets pilotes et un dialogue coop\u00e9ratif pour mener \u00e0 bien ses activit\u00e9s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cette approche refl\u00e8te un \u00e9quilibre d\u00e9licat : l'ambition d'\u00e9valuer la d\u00e9mocratie \u00e0 l'aide d'un cadre global englobant plus de 200 param\u00e8tres de gouvernance doit \u00eatre concili\u00e9e avec la n\u00e9cessit\u00e9 de concevoir un mod\u00e8le qui reste pratique, inclusif et acceptable pour l'ensemble des 46 \u00c9tats membres. La souverainet\u00e9 nationale est toujours un sujet complexe \u00e0 aborder, et surtout \u00e0 \u00e9quilibrer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
States normally do wish to be part of international and intergovernmental bodies, but when it comes to the concept of “internal affairs” \u2013 strictly linked to sovereignty \u2013 they get defensive and reluctant to be held accountable to a common standard or practices. The notion of internal affairs, rooted in the principle of non-interference, has long served as a shield against external scrutiny, even within consensual institutional frameworks. Member states may formally subscribe to shared democratic values while simultaneously resisting any mechanism that could translate those values into binding assessments of their domestic governance. National peculiarities and cultural nuances are among the most common defensive techniques \u2014invoked not merely as legitimate expressions of diversity, but often as strategic objections to deflect comparative evaluation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On constate, sans que cela soit surprenant, une certaine r\u00e9ticence de la part de certains pays \u00e0 se soumettre \u00e0 une \u00e9valuation au regard des normes d\u00e9mocratiques europ\u00e9ennes communes. Le CDDEM reste conscient de ces sensibilit\u00e9s ; le maintien d'un dialogue ouvert est donc jug\u00e9 essentiel pour garantir une participation continue et une appropriation commune des normes d\u00e9mocratiques.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00c0 l'issue de la session de formation, le message central transmis par Marta Becerra portait sur la possibilit\u00e9 de red\u00e9finir la d\u00e9mocratie en r\u00e9tablissant la confiance dans ses institutions. Ce processus implique d'approfondir l'apprentissage et la pratique de la d\u00e9mocratie, mais aussi de la prot\u00e9ger et de la faire \u00e9voluer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Modern democracies must go beyond periodic voting to enable continuous citizen engagement: mechanisms such as citizens’ assemblies, participatory budgeting and community consultations allow individuals to directly influence policymaking, strengthening democratic legitimacy and fostering a sense of ownership among citizens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
La confiance du public dans les institutions d\u00e9mocratiques d\u00e9pend de leur transparence et de leur r\u00e9activit\u00e9. Il est donc essentiel de renforcer les m\u00e9canismes de responsabilit\u00e9, notamment les organismes de contr\u00f4le ind\u00e9pendants, les dispositifs de lutte contre la corruption et la libert\u00e9 des m\u00e9dias. Les initiatives en faveur de la transparence, telles que les politiques de donn\u00e9es ouvertes, permettent en outre aux citoyens et aux organisations de la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 civile de suivre efficacement l'action du gouvernement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Les plateformes num\u00e9riques ont transform\u00e9 la communication et la participation politiques, offrant de nouvelles possibilit\u00e9s d'engagement et de mobilisation tout en pr\u00e9sentant des risques tels que la d\u00e9sinformation et la manipulation. Parmi les avantages potentiels de la d\u00e9mocratie \u00e9lectronique, on peut citer une transparence accrue des processus politiques, la promotion de la participation civique en ligne et une contribution \u00e0 une formation plus \u00e9clair\u00e9e de l'opinion publique. L'enrichissement d\u00e9mocratique n\u00e9cessite donc des cadres r\u00e9glementaires et des initiatives en faveur de la culture num\u00e9rique afin de garantir que la technologie soutienne les valeurs d\u00e9mocratiques plut\u00f4t que de les compromettre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Les d\u00e9fis actuels, tels que le changement climatique, les soul\u00e8vements populistes et l'int\u00e9r\u00eat renouvel\u00e9 pour les migrations de masse, renforcent la n\u00e9cessit\u00e9 d'une coop\u00e9ration internationale et d'une participation aux instances internationales, mais soul\u00e8vent \u00e9galement des questions quant \u00e0 la mani\u00e8re dont les d\u00e9mocraties doivent s'adapter \u00e0 ces changements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ce n'est qu'en mettant en place une approche de la d\u00e9mocratie qui tienne compte de la participation citoyenne, des in\u00e9galit\u00e9s sociales et des droits et libert\u00e9s fondamentaux qu'il devient possible de cr\u00e9er une v\u00e9ritable dynamique politique, d'entretenir un dialogue public sur la confiance institutionnelle et de traduire la consultation en r\u00e9sultats politiques concrets.
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Council of Europe. (2014, October 30). Guidance Note on Civil Society Participation in the
Interngovernmental Work of the Council of Europe.CDDEM(2024)14, accessible online at:
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Trechsel, A. H., Kies, R., Mendez, F., & Schmitter, P. C. (2003). Evaluation of the use of new
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