Being appointed to a position in a national body is not only a prestigious matter but above all an honour. It is an unquestionable proof of expertise and competence. We are very pleased that in January two of our colleagues achieved this success. Daniel Němec is the new Vice President of the Czech Economic Society and David Póč has been appointed a member of the European Union Committee of the Government Council for Non-Profit Organisations.
On 19 January 2022, the Board of the Czech Economic Society (CES) elected its new leadership. Associate Professor Daniel Němec from the Department of Economics of FEA MU became the Vice President.
"For me personally, this means accepting greater responsibility for the functioning of the Czech Economic Society (CES) and becoming much more involved in its activities," says the newly elected Vice President Daniel Němec. The main mission of the CES is to help the development and popularisation of economics in the Czech Republic. In his new position, he would therefore like to continue to support and promote the long-term successful key activities. These include, for example, the implementation of the traditional Biennial Conference.
"Another important activity is the organisation of Czech Economic Society professional seminars. The Experts to Schools project is also very popular, thanks to which hundreds of excellent lectures by top economists have been held for secondary school students in the past. These two activities have unfortunately experienced a certain decline in the last two years due to the pandemic situation, as personal contact is almost irreplaceable here. However, I firmly believe that this year we will at least approach a normal, pre-pandemic state in these areas."
When asked what is expected of him as the new Vice President, the Associate Professor replies that, in addition to formally representing the CES President, the Vice President is, of course, a member of the Board of Directors, which, like each of its members, is actively involved in selected agendas. Some of the prestigious and important activities of the Society include awarding prizes and organizing competitions.
"One of them, where the already high bar of quality is raised year after year, is the Young Economist competition for economists under 30 years of age for the best work in the field of economics. The CES also awards the Karel Engliš Prize for the best work on Czech economic policy. The CES Award for Long-Term Contribution to the Development of Economic Learning recognizes outstanding representatives of Czech economic science who have made a significant contribution to the professional growth of a new generation of successful Czech economists. Professor Osvald Vašíček from our faculty is one of their laureates," explains Associate Professor Němec.
From his new position, he should act as a guarantor and member of the committee for the awarding of the Kateřina Šmídková Prize. This is an award for women economists of Czech and foreign origin working in the Czech Republic with exceptionally high-quality publications.
"I am looking forward to the opportunity to contribute to the public debate on the topics I have been working on for a long time. It is also a great honour for me." This is how David Póč, Head of the Strategy and Project Support Department of the FEA MU, described his feelings on his appointment to the European Union Committee of the Government Council for Non-State Non-Profit Organisations (NGOs).
Considering his many years of practice in the field, this is a wonderful opportunity to contribute to the discussion influencing the functioning of NGO support from European funds.
He has set three goals for his new position. "First of all, I would like to initiate steps that will lead to simplifying the access of NGOs to development and support instruments under European programmes. For example, I see some administrative steps in the current set-up that can be an obstacle for smaller organisations."
He also wants to focus on how the different instruments are channeled and their interconnectedness at the national level. To see if all available options are being used sufficiently and effectively.
"As a third task, I will focus on further promoting cooperation with line ministries in the position of so-called managing authorities, which are coordinators of, for example, sectoral operational programmes from the European Structural and Investment Funds in the Czech Republic. Above all, I would like to see more harmonisation of implementation processes with beneficiaries in the form of non-profit organisations, but also partnership projects with universities," he says with determination.
The meeting of the Committee, which took place on 18 January 2022, confirmed David Póč's conviction that he can contribute to the discussion not only as an expert on the issue of European funds, but also from the position of a person who has been working with NGOs on specific projects for many years. "Thanks to this, I can apply my ability to look at the matter both from the point of view of the system setup and from the point of view of the beneficiaries of support," Póč concludes.
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