(ANSA) - TRIESTE - "Regional cooperation for the development of dynamic civil societies is a pivotal aspect of the EU enlargement process", said the Alternate Secretary General of the Central European Initiative (CEI), Ambassador Margit Waestfelt, on the sidelines of the Third Annual Forum on the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (Eusdr), the largest official event organized by the European Commission on Eusdr, held in Vienna on 26 and 27 June. The intergovernmental organization with headquarters in Trieste presented its perspectives and experiences during a workshop dedicated to the role of civil society organizations (CSOs) in the development of democracy, and in the process of European integration. The support to the development of CSOs in Central and Eastern Europe is amongst the priorities of the CEI, which offers them co-funding opportunities through its programs for supporting the transfer of know-how from EU to non-EU countries (KEP Italy and KEP Austria), and through the CEI Cooperation Fund, which supports mobility within the Cei region, which largely overlaps with the area of interest covered by the Eusdr. (Out of the 14 countries that are part of Eusdr, 13 are also members of the CEI). (ANSA).