COORDINATION BODY’S SCHOLARSHIP HOLDERS PAY A VISIT TO BELGRADE

The Coordination Body of the Government of the Republic of Serbia for the Municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja organized a visit to Belgrade for 206 secondary school students from these three municipalities, who are the Coordination Body’s scholarship holders. This is the second time that the Coordination Body awards scholarships to secondary school students from Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja. At a reception held at the Palace of Serbia, which was attended by the Serbian government’s officials and representatives of the international community, the students from South Serbia were officially given scholarship contracts by Minister Milan Markovic, President of the Coordination Body, Zarko Obradovic, Minister of Education, and by MP Riza Halimi.   

Goran Ciric, Director General of the Public Enterprise of PTT Traffic Serbia, provided appropriate gifts to the Coordination Body’s scholarship holders, while Srdjan Cekic, the Head of the Executive Committee of the Postal Savings Bank, provided each secondary school student with the saving bank’s deposit of 5,000 dinars.  

During the event of awarding scholarship contracts, Minister Markovic pointed out that the government tried to devote most of its energy to the young, so that they could acquire knowledge, which would enable them to be useful to the municipalities from which they come.  He told them that they had a chance to make their lives better, as well as to be a bridge of reconciliation and cooperation between two peoples whose relations hadn’t been so good in the previous period. 

“You are young and you mustn’t be slaves of the past. What the future is going to be like depends on you, while we’ll try to make it as wonderful for you as we can,” Minister Markovic said. 

As an additional reward, the Coordination Body organized a study visit to Belgrade for these students. Scholarship holders firstly visited the National Assembly, where they talked to Slavica Djukic Dejanovic, the Head of the National Assembly. She said that she was confident that they would, upon using the scholarships, be able to invest in themselves even more, thereby helping the regions from which they come. She also said that she believed that some of the secondary school students, with whom she had talked, would one day have seats in the National Assembly. 

Upon paying a visit to the National Assembly, the secondary school students were received by Boris Tadic, the President of the Republic of Serbia. During a reception held at the building of the Serbian Presidency, the President told them that during the hard times in which they live, they should first meet their obligations, but they should also have the time to play. President Tadic said to young scholarship holders that it was extremely important for them to be educated and to constantly advance their knowledge. While talking to the students of the Albanian, Romany and Serbian ethnic background, the President voiced satisfaction with the fact that the government’s entire program of support to their education went off rather well. Boris Tadic also added that he was glad that the children who wished to receive education had the possibility to get it.

”We are going to live in the region without any further conflicts. That is my dream, and I’m confident that it’s yours, too,” said President of the Republic to the children from South Serbia. 

The Coordination Body’s scholarship holders also met with Dragan Djilas, the Mayor of Belgrade, who received them at the Old Court’s building. In addition to presenting them with welcome gifts and organizing for them a visit to the landmarks of the city together with the guides of the Tourist Organization of Belgrade, the Mayor also promised them that he would bring them to Belgrade for one of the coming concerts that are given by big music stars at the Belgrade Arena. Their coming to Belgrade once again will provide them with a chance to associate with and to get to know their peers from Belgrade.

”We are really glad that we could host you. Belgrade is a city with a big heart and it is willing to receive all those that wish to visit it, to study or live in it. Be optimistic and positive, because you’re too young to be anxious about what the future would be like, as we, who are older than you, would think about it,” Mr. Djilas said. 

The reception was attended by Vladimir Todic, the city’s Secretary for Education, and by Dragica Moro, his deputy. 

A nineteen - year old Dafina Aliju from Bujanovac presented to the President of the Republic of Serbia and to the Mayor of Belgrade the first edition of a multiethnic magazine “VIVA BU” of the “You and I are We” Youth Center, which was done by the Serbian, Albanian and Romany children.