THE PROBLEM OF YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF MEDVEDJA

18. March 2013.

Belgrade – Problems of the young in the municipality of Medvedja in South Serbia are the same regardless of their ethnicity, regardless of whether they are Serbs or Albanians, it was said at the forum that was held in the said municipality.

"The economic trends have been changeable over the past ten years", while a big problem is caused by the degradation of plants "that used to be large companies into which the new owners refuse to invest funds and thereby start the production”. The local self-government is trying to change that, but shifts are almost imperceptible, it was said at the event hosted by the Center for Democracy and Development of South Serbia, under the project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC).

“Problems of the young are are identical: they need jobs. As the local self-government, we are trying to provide that to them", said Deputy Mayor of Medvedja Ismet Zeciri.

The Mayor of Medvedja, Slobodan Draskovic, said that the economy in Medvedja didn’t function well, but that the municipality was trying to employ the young and keep them there.

“We hired around fifty young internes last year. This year, we are planning to hire another twenty, so that they could undergo internship, pass the state exam and then get employed in the municipality or in the field of the economy", Mt. Draskovic said, adding that following the opening of the faculties at which lawyers and economists were educated, far more young people remained in Medvedja, while those who went to Belgrade never ever returned.

The Youth Office has been operating in the municipality of Medvedja for ten or so days. It should help young people to get fully involved in local decision-making, said Dejan Simic, the Head of the Local Development Office.

Source: Beta