The European Union and Swiss Government will allocate 320,100 Euros via the European PROGRES Programme to fund 24 new projects that will be implemented in the partnership of civil society organisations and local self-governments. The projects primarily aim at contributing to the economic empowerment and greater employability of vulnerable groups of the population in South East and South West Serbia, as well as at advancing their social inclusion.
Forty-eight applications were submitted within the second round of the Citizens Involvement Fund Call for Proposals published in March 2016. The best projects, for which funding has been approved, will be implemented in 20 municipalities in the Programme Area of Responsibility. The partner organisations have ensured co-funding amounting to 44,300 Euro.
“Citizens Involvement Fund projects best demonstrate the European character of the European PROGRES, because they encourage partnerships between local self-governments and non-government organisations, partnerships which underpin good governance. It is precisely the local citizens who can help their local government recognise the needs and invest their knowledge and energy into addressing community problems together,” said Ana Nedeljković, Manager of the European PROGRES Good Governance and Social Inclusion Sector. Projects like these bring Europe closer to Serbia’s citizens because they help make concrete changes in the everyday lives of the people, said Nedeljković.
“Through our new projects, we will continue our concerted efforts to economically empower vulnerable and marginalised groups, initiate employment through the establishment of a new social enterprise, and we will work on the improvement and equality of access of our most vulnerable fellow citizens to welfare and health care by launching innovative methods, such as, e.g. Neurofeedback therapy. Furthermore, we will promote inter-cultural cooperation among youth and work on improving the procedures for allocating local budget funding to the civil sector,” said Social Inclusion Programme Associate Biljana Kerić.
She also recalled the good results achieved thanks to the implementation of 19 projects that were funded with 400,000 Euro through the first Citizens Involvement Fund Call for Proposals, noting that two social enterprises were established in Lebane and Bosilegrad, that over 30 women from difficult-to-employ categories started permanent jobs, that 23 persons with disabilities found temporary jobs, with the possibility of continuing their employment. The projects also contributed to the economic empowerment of 30 of the most vulnerable families in rural areas, which launched honey and vegetable production.
“Thanks to the support of the European Union and the Swiss Government, we opened the first social enterprise in the Jablanica District, thus ensuring permanent employment for five women, who were particularly vulnerable in the labour market,” said Slobodanka Pavlović, the Chairwoman of the Management Board of the Women’s Association “Ruža”, which successfully implemented the project in partnership with the Lebane Municipality. This project was supported within the first Call for Proposals. “The women in Lebane have been making preserves, earning income for themselves and their families. Their self-confidence has grown and, through our work together, we have helped address the issues of gender equality, unemployment and discrimination,” Slobodanka Pavlović concluded.
The list of projects granted funding within the second Call for Proposals is available on European PROGRES’ website: http://www.europeanprogres.org/konten/en/491/.
