On 27 February 2024, the OCECCD, together with the Austrian-Hungarian Business Council, organised a new conference entitled Diplomacy & More, with the primary aim of providing a canvas for global relations where art, culture and diplomacy meet. It was an exploration of the dynamic interaction between business, sports, business and international affairs.
Our events aim to promote knowledge and awareness. Therefore, we highly value collaborating with universities and research centres. In 2024, we had the pleasure of partnering with esteemed institutions such as the Hungarian University of Sport Science, Óbuda University, and Hungarian Dance University.
The Secretary-General, together with the members of the Presidium of the OCECCD, held the 2024 meeting with the representatives of the consular and diplomatic missions. During the meeting, it was stressed that there are a large number of honorary consuls who are filling a gap and are doing a valuable job in the region.
Under the title "The Future of Energy", the OCECCD held its Energy Forum in Budapest on 4 May 2023. It brought together government officials, diplomats and experts from Central and South-Eastern Europe. The Forum stressed that we must act for a future worth living, not wait for others to provide solutions.
The Budapest Balkans Forum is the flagship conference of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, bringing together over 100 experts, government officials, policy and decision makers from around the world. The OCECCD was also invited and represented at the highest level.
The Organisation of the Central and South-East European Consular Corps for Co-Operation and Development (OCECCD) was created to bring together foreign relations professionals and experts from Central and Southeast Europe who can represent member countries around the globe to promote the interests and values of the region. The association also operates in compliance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963.
The OCECCD believes that broader regional cooperation can open new doors and effectively contribute to the expansion of economic, scientific, and cultural relations. In the current era, bilateral and multilateral, national and regional, and state and transnational policy processes are all crucial to ensuring mutual prosperity among countries. The promotion of these processes is a key method for strengthening mutual sympathy and cooperation between the people living in the region.
The creation of the OCECCD is also a reflection of the need for a common vision for all the countries of Central and Southeast Europe. Indeed, the OCECCD seeks to strike a balance between objective capabilities and foreign policy objectives. The countries of Central and Southeast Europe play a key role as a “connecting link” between Western and Eastern Europe, Northern and Southern Europe, and even Europe and the globe. This will enable the region to fulfil its role as a shaper rather than an observer of economic, cultural, and political processes.
Our members include foreign affairs professionals, honorary consuls, academics, and researchers, as well as leaders and decision-makers in business and economics.
The OCECCD has also established a research centre called the Central and South-East European Institute for Sustainable Co-Operation and Development (CSEE ISCD). With this centre, the OCECCD intends to grow the academic presence of the organisation by helping its researchers become involved in emerging and internationally significant areas of basic and applied social science research. This research will seek to answer questions and provide guidance on key economic, cultural, and social issues facing Central and Southeast Europe, which will help to increase prosperity, improve social well-being, and deepen regional cooperation.
