Stronger measures to protect our democracy and civil society

Our democracies are under threat in today’s world of international conflicts and growing technological disruption. Authoritarian regimes seek to undermine our trust in democratic institutions, free and fair elections and the values on which the European Union is founded. To counter this threat, the European Commission has presented the ‘European Democracy Shield’ that provides concrete measures to empower, protect, and promote strong and resilient democracies, while also supporting and safeguarding civil society organisations that play an essential role in fostering democratic life.

The Democracy Shield’s measures will focus on three key areas: 

safeguarding the integrity of the information space 

• by preparing an incidents and crisis protocol under the Digital Services Act to facilitate coordination and to ensure swift reactions   
• setting up an independent European Network of Fact-Checkers  
• supporting the European Digital Media Observatory. 

strengthening our institutions, fair and free elections, and free and independent media  

• by reinforcing the work under the European Cooperation Network on Elections
• updating the Digital Services Act (DSA) Elections Toolkit
• presenting a Recommendation on the safety of journalists and a guide on the safety of political actors
• boosting financial support for independent and local journalism
• modernising advertising rules to foster the sustainability of EU media
• stepping up action to support the EU's existing framework to combat abusive lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs). 

boosting societal resilience and citizens' engagement 

• by fostering media and digital literacy for all ages
• developing guidelines to strengthen citizenship education in schools
• promoting citizens’ engagement, particularly young people and local levels, in democratic life, through new participatory tools
• setting up a new civic tech hub
• presenting an EU democracy guide. 

The Commission will also set up a new European Centre for Democratic Resilience to withstand evolving common threats, such as disinformation and foreign interference in elections. 

At the same time, the Commission will step up in its engagement with civil society, and will further support and protect civil society organisations in their work through a three-pronged strategy: 

• foster engagement: set up a new Civil Society Platform by 2026 to further facilitate dialogue on the protection and promotion of EU values.
• support and protect: create an online Knowledge Hub on Civic Space to facilitate access to existing projects and tools, including available protection measures.
• sustainable and transparent funding: significantly increase the financial support to CSOs under the EU’s new long-term budget, with €9 billion foreseen for the AgoraEU programme alone.  

For more information 

Protecting our democracy, upholding our values 

Democracy and electoral rights  

A thriving civic space to protect fundamental rights 

Special Eurobarometer 568 “Protecting and promoting democracy” 

Press release: European Democracy Shield and EU Strategy for Civil Society pave the way for stronger and more resilient democracies