{"id":3159568,"date":"2021-10-25T08:08:57","date_gmt":"2021-10-25T08:08:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/webalkans.eu\/coming-back-home-after-20-years\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T11:08:49","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T11:08:49","slug":"coming-back-home-after-20-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webalkans.eu\/en\/coming-back-home-after-20-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Coming back home after 20 years"},"content":{"rendered":"\nAn EU co-funded programme has supported a refugee from Bosnia and Herzegovina to start a new life in his native village\r\n\r\nThe war in Bosnia and Herzegovina brought tragedy for hundreds of thousands of families. Many lost their loved ones or their jobs and had to leave their hometowns and villages, never to come back. Davorin Savi\u0107 from the village of Ba\u010devi\u0107i, near Mostar, is one of those who had to leave his house overnight and find refuge elsewhere. However, Davorin is also one of the lucky ones who has managed to come back to his village and start a new life there.\r\n\r\nThe city of Mostar was one of the many multi-ethnic towns in Bosnia and Herzegovina where Croats, Bosniaks and Serbs lived in harmony. However, this harmony was ruined with the start in 1992 of the war which lasted until 1995. Thousands of people were killed and it is estimated that over a million people were displaced,\u00a0making it the most devastating conflict in Europe since the end of the Second World War.\r\n\r\n<h2><strong>\u201cIt was difficult to live as a refugee but we managed to survive somehow. We rented somewhere to live, and I mostly worked at the local market with low pay.\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n<strong>Finally, back home<\/strong>\n\nThe conflict in Mostar started and developed swiftly, and along with his family, Davorin had to move fast, leaving their house and belongings back in the village. As they were ethnic Serbs, they moved to Serbia. The memories are still fresh for Davorin of how in 1992 he left his family home, together with his brother and mother, to flee to Belgrade. \u201cIt was difficult to live as refugees,\u201d he recalls. \u201cBut we managed to survive somehow. We rented somewhere to live, and I mostly worked at the local market with low pay.\u201d\n\nHe lived in Belgrade for 18 years but in 2010 the family finally returned to Ba\u010devi\u0107i, where they were distraught to find that their home had been completely demolished. However, their luck was about to change. \u201cWe met some neighbours who told us about programme that reconstructed houses for returnees,\u201d Davorin says. \u201cWe quickly submitted an application to the Regional Housing Programme.\u201d\n\nDavorin admits that life in Bosnia and Herzegovina is not easy, especially for returnees and internally displacedpeople. Though he had worked in the power plant company before the war, he was unable to find a job in thecompany on his return to BiH. He still does not have a job with a secure salary or health insurance.\r\n\r\n<div>\n<h2><strong>\u00a0\u201cI never imagined that I would <span lang=\"EN-GB\">come back to my village and <\/span>produce vegetables in a greenhouse and cultivate land<span lang=\"EN-GB\">.<\/span>\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n<strong>About the project <\/strong>\n\nAround 1,800 housing units have been delivered to date in Bosnia and Herzegovina as part of the Regional Housing Programme. The final target is for more than 3,000 housing units to be constructed by June 2023. \u00a0Almost \u20ac291million has been allocated so far to the Regional Housing Programme, of which more than \u20ac76 million is for projects in BiH. With \u20ac235 million, the European Union is the main donor to the Programme.\r\n\r\nNevertheless, despite the odds, Davorin manages to ensure a dignified life for himself, his mother and the family of his brother, who passed away last year. This is in large part thanks to the house rebuilt with the support of the Regional Housing Programme and the greenhouse and small tractor provided with the support of Catholic Relief Services. \u201cI never imagined that I would come back to my village and produce vegetables in a greenhouse and cultivate land,\u201d he laughs. \u201cBut it\u2019s great. I sell my products at the market in Mostar.\u201d\n\nReflecting on his life today, Davorin is also quick to comment on the friendliness of his neighbours from different ethnic groups. In contrast to the situation when he had to flee Ba\u010devi\u0107i, now he says, \u201cWe live together, help each other and celebrate all holidays.\u201d\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An EU co-funded programme has supported a refugee from Bosnia and Herzegovina to start a new life in his native village<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3159569,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[694],"tags":[],"area-of-cooperation":[410],"country":[246],"opportunity-type":[],"class_list":["post-3159568","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","area-of-cooperation-employment-and-inclusion","country-bosnia-and-herzegovina"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Coming back home after 20 years - 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