Supporting Civic Society in Serbia

The European Movement in Serbia and the Expert Network, joined together as a Consortium with financial support from the European Agency for Reconstruction, have begun implementing the project "Supporting Civil Society in Serbia"

COVERAGE: "Supporting Civil Society in Serbia" is a project encompassing 50 municipalities in eastern and western Serbia and the Sandžak

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Supporting Civil Society in Serbia is a project encompassing 50 municipalities in eastern and western Serbia and the Sandžak, Šid, Sremska Mitrovica, Bogatić, Šabac, Loznica, Vladimirci, Koceljeva, Ub, Krupanj, Mali Zvornik, Osečina, Lajkovac, Valjevo, Ljubovija, Ljig, Mionica, Kosjerić, Bajina Bašta, Požega, Užice, Čajetina, Arilje, Priboj, Nova Varoš, Prijepolje, Sjenica, Raška, Novi Pazar, Tutin, Brus, Blace, Prokuplje, Kuršumlija, Žitorađa, Bojnik, Trgovište, Bosilegrad, Surdulica, Crna Trava, Dimitrovgrad, Babušnica, Pirot, Bela Palnka, Knjaževac, Sokobanja, Boljevac, Zaječar, Bor, Negotin, Majdanpek and Kladovo.

PLAN: The Consortium will direct the resources at its disposal towards the development of civil society in the aforementioned municipalities. Bearing in mind that cooperation between NGOs and local authorities is currently poor or unsatisfactory, the Consortium will help local government to get better acquainted with the work of NGOs, their role in society and their importance at the local level, in order to establish the best possible form of cooperation between NGOs and local communities, as one of the preconditions for successfully implementing democratic processes. What is of exceptional importance is that open dialogue between the civil sector and local administration begin as soon as possible, including joint activities for identifying and resolving the key problems of local communities.

PEOPLE: The target groups to be included in the program are the unemployed, social risk groups, elderly persons, national minorities, women, people with special needs and children

Making use of its network of offices (103 local offices of the Expert Network and 31 Local Councils of the European Movement in Serbia), the Consortium, in cooperation with the European Agency for Reconstruction, has selected 12 candidates who will attend a Trainer Training Program. Following successful conclusion of training, the course participants will in turn train selected candidates from non-government organizations in the 50 municipalities contained in the program.

PHASES: The project will be implemented in the following four phases: a "Training Program" consisting of trainer training and the training of non-government activists; distribution of equipment (computers, printers, etc.) through selected non-government organizations and/or the main Consortium offices; preparation and organization of seminars and workshops for non-government organizations and local administration; securing grants for non-government organizations and joint projects by non-government organizations and local government, for which purpose a special Fund will be registered with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Serbia.

Office Network

The Expert Network's network of offices and the Local Councils of the European Movement in Serbia have specified the main and auxiliary offices for providing logistical support in the field. Thus the main offices of the European Movement in Serbia are in Majdanpek and Pirot, while the Expert Network's are in Užice, Kuršumlija and Šabac. The Expert Network's auxiliary offices are located in Valjevo, Novi Pazar, Prokuplje, Surdulica and Zaječar.

The main offices, in cooperation with the central office in Belgrade, will organize seminars and workshops as part of the training program, provide assistance in assessing the technical capacities of local non-government organizations, as well as all other types of logistical support.

TARGET GROUPS: The target groups to be included in the program are as follows: the unemployed, social risk groups, elderly persons, national minorities, women, people with special needs and children. Our belief is that educating people from these groups and involving them in the life of society is of key importance for the development of that society. And mutual tolerance, respect for human rights and ethnic, gender and religious differences – these are the preconditions for development of a democratic society, especially in a multi-ethnic environment. To this end, the program will support joint projects aimed at contributing to the development of local areas.

Unofficial data indicate that the majority of unemployed people in Serbia are women. Over the past 12 years destructive economic and social policies were conducted in this country, so that today Serbia is faced with an unemployment rate of more than 30 percent. Non-government organizations, in cooperation with the Institute for the Labor Market, need to find a way of reducing this percentage to an acceptable level. Bearing in mind the fact that the municipalities in question are facing poverty and a high percentage of unemployment, it is clearly necessary to deal with these target groups and their problems on the national level as well. However, the local community is certainly the most competent to recognize and solve such problems.