The beginning of the twinning project “Support in the implementation of the modernized legal framework for the protection of personal data” was marked.

Today, September 30, 2021, an event was organized at the Double Tree by Hilton hotel to mark the beginning of the twinning project “Support in the implementation of the modernized legal framework for the protection of personal data”, financed by the European Union. The project is implemented by the Personal Data Protection Agency of the Republic of Croatia and the German Foundation for International Legal Cooperation (IRZ), and the beneficiary is the Personal Data Protection Agency of the Republic of North Macedonia.

At the event, the director of the Personal Data Protection Agency, Mr. Imer Aliu, the Minister of Justice, Mr. Bojan Maricic, the head of the cooperation department at the EU Delegation, Mr. Stefan Hudolin, the Croatian ambassador, N. E. Nieves Tiganj, the German deputy ambassador, Mr. Otto Graf as well as Mr. Zdravko Vukić, the director of the Personal Data Protection Agency of the Republic of Croatia.

The working part of the event included two presentations. The permanent twinning advisor, Mrs. Sanja Silay Zeman, presented the three components of the twinning project and emphasized the expected results and foreseen activities. Mrs. Anamaria Mladinić from AZOP presented the results of the online survey conducted among the controllers regarding the awareness of personal data protection and the understanding of the obligations of the new law.

The event was rounded off with a panel discussion on “The new legal framework for personal data protection: challenges and opportunities for organizations”, with the participation of international experts who addressed the challenges of implementing the General Data Protection Regulation (GDRP) in Germany and Croatia as EU member states. On the other hand, the local panelists referred to the implementation of the AZLP from the perspective of the AZLP, but also from the perspective of the public and civil sector in terms of achieving compliance with the law.

The new Personal Data Protection Act, which transposes the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the EU, introduces significant changes, i.e. introduces new definitions and concepts, prescribes new obligations for controllers and processors of personal data, and strengthens the rights of the subjects of personal data. The goal of the project, which will be implemented in a period of 15 months (June 1, 2021 to August 31, 2021), is to improve the protection of basic human rights and the national system for the protection of personal data in the Republic of North Macedonia in accordance with the standards of the legislation of the European Union, and to improve the work of the Personal Data Protection Agency for the implementation of the modernized framework for the protection of personal data.

The event was organized in compliance with all protocols for protection against Covid-19.