After more than 20 years of wars in the Balkans, there are still about 1000 children in 30 collective centers in Serbia. Many of these children have to drop out of school to help parents earn money for basic necessities like food. Targeted support will provide for school lunch, winter clothes, textbooks and tutoring for 750 of these children to stay and complete elementary and higher education. This will help them get qualification, find regular jobs and help their families rebuild their lives.

Challenge

Children living in the collective centers in Serbia drop out of school even at the elementary school level either because they don't have what to wear, eat, or cannot afford textbooks so they go to help parents earn money in the street. The drop-out rate among this population is 67 percent in elementary school and only 30 percent of them enroll into secondary school. Without education, they cannot find any regular job and move out of the collective centers to start their own lives and families.

Long-Term Impact

Children will complete elementary or secondary school and with their diplomas will be eligible to register with the National Employment Agency, will be in a position to find a regular full-time job or start their own business and become independent active members of the society. This will assist their integration and help the integration of their parents into local communities so that different generations of refugees and displaced people in Serbia can start rebuilding their lives.

References

1. http://www.pomocdeci.org
2. http://www.facebook.com/pomocdeci1
3. http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCegLkM8iVVHO6F0eeSuS1TQ

Additional Documentation

https://www.globalgiving.org//pfil/14610/projdoc.docx

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