Nataša Vučković at the RE-SET the Economy conference
Nataša Vučković, Executive Director of the Center for Democracy Foundation announced during the RE-SET the Economy conference that this issue of poverty is a pressing issue in Serbia and that its eradication should be one of the priorities of the Government. Recalling that the Government of Serbia adopted the Action Plan for Chapter 19 – Social Policy and Employment in May 2020, she stressed that it is now vital to see what we will do next, that is, how the Government sees its implementation. It is necessary to adopt a range of laws required in order for us to gain…
Seasonal Work in Serbia – Debate
Labour Rights Are Our Rights On 16 April 2021, the Center for Democracy Foundation organised a debate on the topic: Seasonal Work in Serbia, as part of the Labour Rights Are Our Rights project. A working group formed within the Ministry of Labour is currently working on amendments to the Law on Simplified Work Engagement on Seasonal Jobs in Selected Areas. By adopting the proposed amendments, the effect of the Law would be extended to include the following sectors: construction, hospitality, tourism, household support and creative industries. What effect has the application of this Law had thus far? What is…
New Quality in Education for Gender Equality
LAWGEM project New Ways for Gender Equality is the name of the conference held 13 April 2021 via the LAWGEM – LAW AND GENDER project in Saarbrücken, Germany, organised by the Europa-Institut of Saarland University. The conference included talks on the improvement of curricula in the education of lawyers, the position of women in judicial practice, the importance of gender-sensitive legal education, gender quota for political participation through the comparative practice of many European universities participating in this project which is coordinated by the Faculty of Law, University of Belgrade. This conference is part of the New Quality in Education…
Applications are open for Politeia Western Balkans School for Youth Participation
Politeia Goes Digital! The Center for Democracy Foundation continues to hold the traditional POLITEIA school, this year in a new online format. After POLITEIA was expanded to the region in 2019 through the project Regional Youth Compact for Europe, it received the slogan Politeia Goes Regional, which this year becomes Politeia Goes Digital. "POLITEIA Western Balkans School for Youth Participation" will be held from 7 to 29 May 2021 through the new digital educational POLITEIA platform. The first POLITEIA school for civil society took place in 1997 during the large civic and student protests where youth gained knowledge of democratic…
Speech by Nataša Vučković on the Talks Between the NCEU and the Prime Minister of Serbia Concerning Sustainable Development
Your Excellency Prime Minister, Ms. Čomić, Ms. Đukić Dejanović, Please allow me to thank you for the initiative and the invitation to speak here today on the topic of sustainable development, a strategic approach to social economic development. I agree with the proposals brought forth by Nataša Dragojlović and Kori Udovički to first discuss how we see this planning process – that is, are we discussing Serbia’s development plan which includes sustainability or do we view the sustainable development strategy as just of many strategies. The nationalisation of the Sustainable Development Goals is surely a priority. My task is to…
Balkan Youth for Europe – Second Regional Thematic Network Forum
The second Regional Thematic Network Forum, under the Balkan Youth for Europe project was held on 25 and 26 March 2021, organised by our partner the LDA Subotica. This second Regional Thematic Network Forum gathered together regional networks of CSOs, experts, NGO activists, youth groups and relevant decision-makers to discuss key challenges in improving the European integration process in the Western Balkans. As was pointed out by many young participants of various project activities within this project from local communities throughout the region, structured dialogue and evidence-based advocacy at the regional, national and local levels are needed to support democratic…
Availability of Healthcare, Prevention and the Treatment of other Illnesses During the COVID-19 Era
The Center for Democracy Foundation and the Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation organised the following Webinar entitled: Availability of Healthcare, Prevention and the Treatment of other Illnesses During the COVID-19 Era was held on 11 March 2021. Topics of discussion included: Standards and the Quality of Serbia’s Healthcare System General Healthcare Under Pandemic Conditions Draft Plan for Optimising the Network of Healthcare Institutions in the Republic of Serbia Employment, the Employment Process and Work Conditions in Healthcare Our panellists were: Dr. Simo Vuković, healthcare consultant, Prof. Dušan Milisavljević, PhD at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Niš, Prof. Dr. Snežana…
Half a million Serbians living in absolute poverty, researcher says
The Center for Democracy Foundation said on Tuesday that half a million people in Serbia live in absolute poverty and more than two million people live in risk of poverty or social exclusion. The organization’s researcher Sarita Bradas told the Beta news agency that those people don’t have the money to meet basic needs, adding that increasingly fewer people have social security. She said that 226,897 Serbian citizens were recipients of social security payments in 2019 which is 10 percent less than in 2012. She said the number of people receiving child care payments was 28 percent lower than in…
New ‘SMELT’ Project
Improving the position of vulnerable groups and providing the skills necessary to join the labour market The Center for Democracy Foundation has begun the implementation of the new two-year Erazumus+project SMELT – Skilled Marginalised People to Enter the Labour Market. The project is being implemented in collaboration with 8 partners – Samarcanda società cooperativa sociale Onlus, Italija, Italy, Mosha Pijade Vocational Secondary School, Tetovo, Northern Macedonia, SYNTHESIS CENTER FOR RESEARCH AND EDUCATION LIMITED, Cyprus, ASOCIACION MAR VIOLETA, Spain, SDRUZHENIE YUNI PARTNERS, Bulgaria, ASSOCIATION DES AGENCES DE LA DEMOCRATIE LOCALE (ALDA), France, Ecor International S.p.A., Italy and the Center for Democracy…
Nataša Vučković at the meeting of CSO representatives and the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue
The Executive Director of the Center for Democracy Foundation, Nataša Vučković participated in the meeting of CSOs representatives and the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue, Collaboration with CSOs Division. The meeting was held 25 February 2021 at the Palace of Serbia (SIV), with the participation of Minister Gordana Čomić and approximately 20 CSO representatives most active in terms of social protection. The aim of the meeting was to introduce the Ministry’s key objectives and plans to the CSOs, and also to review the current situation and to encourage dialogue on issues of mutual interest and potential…
Final Conference of the Year: ‘Is there Socioeconomic Development Without Rule of Law?’
„Connecting the Dots“ On 24 February 2021, the Center for Democracy Foundation organised a final conference of the year entitled ‘Is there Socioeconomic Development Without Rule of Law?’, through the Connecting the Dots project, with the support of the Balkan Trust for Democracy (GMF/BTD) and the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Belgrade. For the most part, our public discusses rule of law within the context of EU political criteria. We wanted to emphasise the impact rule of law has on economic and social development with this conference. We talked about the impact of rule of law on commercial markets, the position…
Center for Democracy Foundation Founders Assembly
A Center for Democracy Foundation Founders Assembly was held on 22 February 2021. The Assembly adopted the 2020 Report on the Work of the Foundation, as well as the 2021 Action Plan, within the context of the current political, economic and social environment. The founders discussed possible future directions the Foundation's activities may take and the need for new educational programmes in the areas of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. Center for Democracy Foundation
