Personal assistance becomes a permanent service for people with disabilities in Serbia’s Mačvan district with EU support.
Dragana Marković Matić lives in the town of Šabac, in western Serbia’s Mačvan district. She lives with rheumatoid arthritis, which has led to reduced mobility over time, and the need for support to perform daily activities. “I can’t function independently, I can’t move. My movements get more and more limited with age,” she says. The deterioration of her disease brought the need for a regular carer who would assist her most of the day. Family and friends were there to support, but in her words “this was a full-time job: being my arms and legs”.
The need for personal assistance is of course not exclusive to Dragana: other people in Šabac with disabilities have a similar problem. Families try to help, but cannot always be there as much as is needed. An alternative solution is to hire a personal assistant, but this is a financial burden that most families cannot really afford. Such personal assistants also need to be professionally trained on moving a person in a wheelchair, transferring them to bed or into a car, as well as helping with dressing and maintaining personal hygiene. “Someone who has never had contact with disabled people has to be trained in assisting them so as not to inadvertently injure themselves or the person they’re caring for,” says Dragana.
“The most important thing was to create a framework for training and train the first people who were interested in providing personal assistance services for people with disabilities.”
A ten-year journey
Dragana is a member of the Mačvan District Association of Paraplegics, which took the initiative to solve this problem through local institutions a decade ago. Back then, the association managed to include the need for an independent life for disabled people into the Šabac social policy strategy. Policymakers’ acknowledgement of disabled people’s needs was an important achievement but as there was no financial or other support, it took almost ten more years of struggle to see a tangible result of the policy.
The light at the end of the tunnel became visible in 2018 when an EU-funded ReLOaD (Regional Programme on Local Democracy) programme stepped in with support. “The most important thing was to create a framework for training and train the first people who were interested in providing personal assistance services for people with disabilities,” says Slaviša Savić who heads up the Mačvan District Association of Paraplegics.
With the support of the EU, and in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs, the Association identified people who were interested in providing a personal assistance service and trained and licensed them. As part of the same programme they also managed to initiate a pilot support project where five people with disabilities were provided with personal assistance for eight hours a day and four others with four hours a day of support.
“Getting the cost of personal assistants for people with disabilities included in the municipal budget was a huge leap and great success for us and we could not have done it without the support of the EU-funded ReLOaD programme,”
About the programme
The Regional Programme for Local Democracy in the Western Balkans (ReLOaD) is funded by the European Union and implemented by the United National Development Programme. The programme’s aims include strengthening participatory democracies and EU integration in the Western Balkans by improving the legal, financial and wider environment to empower civil society.
The implementation of the pilot programme gave the association a stronger case to convince the municipal authorities of how crucial the personal assistance service is for people with disabilities. As the result of continuing lobbying efforts, the municipal assembly finally included this support in the list of regular services that the municipality provides. The service is already included in the budget for 2021 and the salaries of personal assistants are now covered, and will be covered in the future, by the municipality.
“Getting the cost of personal assistants for people with disabilities included in the municipal budget was a huge leap and great success for us and we could not have done it without the support of the EU-funded ReLOaD programme,” says Slaviša.
Dragana and other people from Šabac living with disabilities feel more relaxed as they have secured a personal assistance service for a lifetime. “The quality of my life has visibly improved. With a personal assistant, you are independent,” says Dragana.
The EU-Balkan “What is Europe?” forum, funded by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, gathered 88 young people and mentors from each of the 27 EU Member states and the six Western Balkans economies. Participants came together for five days in Rome to discuss common issues, meet with policymakers and mobilise for new initiatives and fresh perspectives on both the EU and Balkan integration.
Following a welcome speech from Nicola Minasi from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Italian Minister for Youth Policies,Fabiana Dadone, five working groups worked for three full days to prepare statements and conclusions on topics related to issues that policymakers face on both the EU and Balkan integration.
The working groups were facilitated also by Young European Ambassadors Teodora Cekić, Suhel Ahmeti and Dona Srdikj Lazarevska. Participants also had the opportunity to hear from Adrienn Kiraly of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR), and Elina Hakonen-Medding of the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (REGIO) on EU enlargement policy, foreign policy and internal integration. Finally, for the closing day of the conference, the participants had the opportunity to present the results of their three-day work to the European Commisson’s Vice President Dubravka Šuicaand Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio.
The Forum was organised by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, in partnership with the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO), the Centro Studi Politica Internazionale (Rome) and Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa (Trento), while the representatives of the Young European Ambassadors initiative from DG NEAR supported the youth engagement process.
Eris Çunaku is a Young European Ambassador from Kosovo. Eris grew with YEA into a bright, enthusiastic young game-changer interested in a broad range of topics. With a diploma in Management of Web and Mobile Development and a minor in Public Policy, Eris is passionate about youth activism and the protection of our environment, as he believes these two topics are crucial towards ensuring an active civil society and a safe world to live in. He also hosted an inspiring talk on creative expression and activism through photography with Meeri Koutaniemi during the Power of the Hashtag WeBalkans event in April 2021. Eris, we are confident that the best is yet to come – so we are looking forward to your future initiatives and creative ideas. Well done!
On your bike! How an NGO from Montenegro is pushing pedal power into the mainstream, with EU support.
Situated on a plain, with an area of around 100 square kilometres and a borderline Mediterranean climate, Podgorica – the capital of Montenegro – has all the ingredients needed for making an urban cycling haven. However, the city lacked even the most basic of infrastructure for proper cycling until grassroots civil society organisation Biciklo.me introduced cycling as a mainstream culture in the city in 2013. “We really wanted to turn Podgorica into a city that is good for cycling, and safe for cycling, and we want to make that visible also for people who do not use bikes – yet” says Sonja Dragović, one of the members of the organisation.
In the spring of 2012, the first Bike-Up was organised: people were invited via social media to get together and celebrate Earth Day by going for a bike ride. The turnout inspired new initiatives and soon the small group of cycling enthusiasts started organising regular monthly Critical Mass rides in Podgorica. On a sunny day, these would attract several hundred cyclists of all ages and background. In a city of around 200,000 inhabitants, with almost no cycling infrastructure, that was already a positive start.
“Back in Vienna and Copenhagen I learned how to cycle in urban settings, thanks to the amazing cycling infrastructure these cities have developed. When I came back to Podgorica, I thought “OK, now I need to get a bike and I also need to get together with these people from Biciklo.me”
Having a say in urban mobility
Sonja Dragović became part of Biciklo.me after she got her master’s degree in urban studies, which included periods of study in Vienna and Copenhagen. Before that, she used to cycle occasionally, but during her studies she started to use her bike as a regular means of transport. In the meantime, she had been following Biciklo.me on social media. “Back in Vienna and Copenhagen I learned how to cycle in urban settings, thanks to the amazing cycling infrastructure these cities have developed. When I came back to Podgorica, I thought “OK, now I need to get a bike and I also need to get together with these people from Biciklo.me” says Sonja.
Biciklo.me started as a free association initiative, involved only in organising the mass cycling rides to contribute to the visibility of cyclists in Podgorica. In 2013, an opportunity to obtain some funding for improving cycling conditions presented itself, so the initiative registered as an NGO, and successfully implemented its first project – installing the first proper bike racks for bicycles to be parked in 18 locations in Podgorica.
Since then, they have developed and managed numerous small projects that have improved the city’s cycling environment. “Basically, we are working along several different but interconnected paths: improving infrastructure, traffic and mobility-related policies, and educating the public on the benefits of sustainable urban mobility,” says Sonja.
Fuelled by the success of the bike racks, other projects swiftly followed either run by or advocated for by the NGO – from the introduction of the first bike lanes in the capital and the first sustainable urban mobility plan by the city council, to research studies on improving transport and the cycling environment and creation of educational material for primary and secondary school students.
“This and future support from the EU are very important. Not only for the money, but more the fact that when the EU supports an action, it becomes easier to convince local authorities to do so too.”
About the project Biciklo.me has been supported by the EU through the Regional Programme on Local Democracy in the Western Balkans (ReLOaD) which aims to strengthen participatory democracies and the EU integration process in the Western Balkans by empowering civil society to take an active part in decision making. Other EU-funded projects that supported Biciklo.me are “CSOs in Montenegro – from basic services to policy shaping – M’BASE” which is funded under the instrument for pre-accession assistance (IPA), the “Better traffic, better city” project and a project called “Enhancing capacities for better living environment in Montenegro”.
The EU supported four of these projects – studies on traffic and mobility conditions in Podgorica, drafting proposals for legislation improvements, awareness-raising campaigns in Podgorica high schools on the benefits of cycling, and the introduction of bike racks in three towns in the northern part of the country. “This and future support from the EU are very important. Not only for the money, but more the fact that when the EU supports an action, it becomes easier to convince local authorities to do so too,” says Sonja.
Several kilometres of cycling paths have been built in Podgorica, and even though the quality of both the design and the maintenance could have been better, it is evident that this safe cycling space has attracted new users and encouraged people to get out and cycle.
For Sonja, what’s important now is for the city to establish proper procedures for planning and building cycle paths, and to invest in educating city planners on the most recent trends and best practices concerning cycling infrastructure. “The more people cycling in the street, the better it is for everyone. As people who cycle are not using cars, they are also not producing pollution and noise. This makes the city a better environment for everyone,” says Sonja
Ten instructors for training the trainers for demining received internationally recognised certificates on 19 November at the premises of the Demining Center in Grocka Serbia . The certificates were handed to them by the Ambassador of the European Union to Serbia, Emanuele Giaufret, and Predrag Bandić, general and acting Assistant Minister for Defense Policy.
Ambassador Giaufret stated that Serbia is a major and reliable contributor to the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) missions. “Thanks to this EU funded project, ten students from the Serbian armed forces and the Mine Action Centre will be awarded for upgrading their capacities in humanitarian demining. This project strengthens our effective cooperation in the CSDP and Serbia’s alignment with international standards in the demining field. Serbia is the EU’s valuable partner in the area of security and defence policies,” said the Ambassador.
The training was provided as part of the EU funded project “Strengthening the capacity of the Republic of Serbia in the field of demining and destruction of unexploded ordnance” which is being implemented within the cooperation of the Demining Center with the Ministry of Defense.
The €600,000 project contributes to strengthening the capacity of the Republic of Serbia in the field of humanitarian demining. With this project, the Republic of Serbia and the European Union continue to intensify cooperation in the field of Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP).
The municipality of Gjakova becomes the first municipality in Kosovo with a biomass heating plant. The plant is built with funding from the European Union. In addition to improving the city heating system, this will also have a positive impact on the environment, as it will enable better air quality in the city. The plant will also provide more efficient operation of the district heating system, and sustainable heating for the citizens.
The district heating plant in Gjakova, established in 1980, has generated thermal energy by burning heavy oil, a process that is extremely harmful to the environment and financially costly. In addition, outdated and poorly maintained heavy oil boilers were not able to provide energy supply for more than six hours a day. Consequently, the EU financed the construction of a new biomass heating plant, with a total cost of €15 million.
The plant with a modern biomass heating technology, built with EU funding, is expected to reduce pollution in the municipality by up to 90%, and reduce annual heating costs up to 50%.
A new reception centre in Lipa, catering to the needs of up to 1,500 stranded migrants, opened on 19 November in Una-Sana Canton, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The establishment of the new reception centre Lipa, financially supported by the European Union, will replace the former emergency tent shelter which was destroyed by fire in December 2020, when about 1,400 migrants were left without shelter and protection.
At the opening of the reception centre Lipa, the Head of EU Delegation and EU Special Representative Ambassador Johann Sattler said: “Eleven months ago, we were standing here in the same location but in very different circumstances. Today, we are here in the middle of this state of the art migration reception centre. This Centre is proof that cooperation at all levels can work and can produce results. This is a good reminder for all of us that crises can be solved, and the only way to resolve crises is through dialogue and a willingness to compromise.”
The new Lipa reception facility was constructed from the ground up with the financial support of the European Union as the main contributor with €1.7 million, within the project “EU Support to Migration and Border Management in Bosnia and Herzegovina implemented by the IOM in partnership with UNHCR, UNICEF, UNFPA and the Danish Refugee Council (DRC).
Additional support was provided by the German Federal Agency for Technical Relief (Techniches Hilfswerk), the Austrian Federal Ministry of Interior, the Austrian Development Agency, the Swiss Government, the Holy See, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Council of Europe Development Bank.
The European Investment Bank (EIB), the lending arm of the European Union, will lend €50 million to the Investment and Development Fund of Montenegro (IDF) to support the faster recovery of the local economy from COVID-19 and help introduce energy-efficient practices among small businesses in the country. The EIB loan creates a new source of more affordable financing for Montenegrin companies operating in infrastructure, industry, transport, innovation, agriculture and tourism, some of the hardest-hit sectors.
Funds will be available under favourable conditions to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) address their liquidity issues, support jobs, increase competitiveness and improve energy efficiency practices. The EIB loan is the latest of Team Europe’s support measures to accelerate the COVID-19 recovery of regional economies and effective climate action. It delivers much-needed climate and environmental sustainability financing for the Western Balkans to enable a faster transition to a sustainable, green and circular economy.
This is the second loan signed with the IDF since the start of the pandemic, following a €50 million investment signed in September 2020 to support the COVID-19 recovery of over 150 Montenegrin small and medium enterprises. Including the loan signed today, the EIB and the IDF have signed six operations to date, unlocking €470 million of investments for the Montenegrin economy.
Tenzila*, a 52-year-old from Zenica in the centre of Bosnia and Herzegovina, lived with physical and psychological violence for 15 years. Along with her two children, she decided to report the violence and ask for support from state institutions. Faced with a slow, time-consuming process, she struggled to get the help she needed.
“I was faced with a wall that was too big for me to climb on my own, so I reached out to the Center of Women’s Rights. They offered me the service of a “person of trust.” Even after the first conversation with this person, I felt supported and relieved. That conversation prompted me to get up and move forward. It made me feel like someone wanted to listen to me, while in all other institutions I was not accepted,” Tenzila explains.
At a time when such support to women wasn’t part of national legislation or recognised as a part of international standards and conventions, access to such a “person of trust” was offered by the Center of Women’s Rightsorganisation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The role of a person of trust is to ensure that the rights and interests of women who have reported violence are effectively represented at all proceedings, explains Meliha Sendić, President of the Center of Women’s Rights. Their free legal aid service consists of working on behalf of women who have experienced violence, mediating with the institutions that are part of the system of protection from violence. This and other services were part of the UN Women regional programme on ending violence against women, called“Implementing Norms, Changing Minds” and funded by the European Union.
In the meantime, Bosnia and Herzegovina has taken significant steps towards recognising the position of the “person of trust.” An amendment to the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) prescribing the position of the “person of trust” was unanimously adopted by the House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament at the beginning of this year. In July, the House of Peoples of the FBiH Parliament adopted the amendments to the FBiH Law on Protection from Domestic Violence, guaranteeing the rightsof women who have experienced violence to appoint a “person of trust” to be present in all proceedings and actions related to their case.
The Center of Women’s Rights worked on a draft proposal for amendments to the law, with the support of an expert group. This was also part of the “Implementing Norms, Changing Minds” programme and, thanks to its work, now more victims of violence can benefit from increased legal support.
*Name changed to protect the individual’s identity
The inaugural ceremony of the “Support to the promotion of Civil Society regional actions in the Western Balkans,” a regional project co-funded by the European Union, through IPA – Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance, and implemented by the Western Balkans Fund (WBF), was held today in Tirana.
During the ceremony, the EU Ambassador to Tirana, H.E. Luigi Soreca, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Albania, H.E. Olta Xhaçka, the North Macedonia Ambassador to Albania, H.E. Dancho Markovski, and the WBF Executive Director, Gjergj Murra delivered keynote speeches.
In his remarks, Mr. Soreca emphasized the importance of regional cooperation for the future of the Western Balkans. “The action that we kick off today is indeed designed to increase the participation of grassroots organisations in the regional cooperation, in view of good neighbourly relations and reconciliation. We consider civil society in the region as an essential and reliable partner, and we recognise the multiple roles civil society plays”, underlined Mr. Soreca.
The Western Balkans Fund has currently opened the application through its webpage https://wbfportal.org/applicant/. Eligible subjects from the WB6 can be awarded up to €15,000 in grants.
Civil Society organisations are the primary beneficiaries of EU/WBF joint action, but eligible potential grantees include associations, foundations, not-for-profit organisations, regional networks, local and regional public entities, or business associations. In four years of its existence, the Western Balkans Fund, as a regionally owned body created by the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the region, has become a home for aggregated data and evidence that demonstrate the impact and value of regional cooperation on the communities it assists. In the previous regional calls (2017-2020), the WBF attracted 890 applications from CSOs and other stakeholders, directly including 3,430 organizations, reaching out to more than 10,000 citizens.
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