Forum theater performance ''School for All'' was held on 25 February 2010 at the high school ''Laza Kostić" before 90 representatives of Novi Sad elementary and secondary schools, institutions of provincial and city authorities, and civil society organizations. The performance was prepared with Roma girls and boys within the project "Chances and Choices for Roma girls". Some of the most important problems that Roma children face in education were presented, as well as possible solutions, and the audience had an opportunity to actively participate in the process. This project is implemented by NSHC and CARE Serbia with support from Patsy Collins Foundation.
See the report of the Radio Television of Vojvodina>>>

NSHC became an accredited test center for EBC*L - European Business Competence License. For all those who haven't studied economics and finance, and who have responsible positions in the economy and other areas of business, as well as for all the entrepreneurs who start their own business, NSHC organizes trainings, exams and certification. The goal of the training is to gain crucial knowledge in the field of economics and finance, as well as skills that are necessary in a business environment. Read more

Within the program "Healthy Style, My Style," implemented by the Group Process, Youth of JAZAS and Novi Sad Humanitarian Center  with the support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, a concert will be held on Friday, 8 December, in the gymnasium "Laza Kostić". Young unknown bands which participated in the competition designed and led by Dejan Cukic will play their music: Charlie B, Alpha Pop, Magma and other bands. On the same day a street action will be organized at the Cathedral square where the activists and volunteers of NSHC and Youth of JAZAS will promote healthy lifestyles. The concert and the local action are both part of the program implemented in more than 80 cities with the support of the Office for Youth, youth organizations and local governments. NSHC has organized local actions in Vrbas, Backa Palanka, Backa Topola, Mali Losinj, Coka, Odzaci Temerin and Srpska Crnja.

Within the project "Gender Policy to Fight HIV/AIDS" focus groups were held in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Nis and Kragujevac, in order to examine the knowledge and attitudes about gender issues and their impact on HIV vulnerability among the actors of the national response to HIV epidemic. After the research trainings will be organized for institutions, organizations and the media on gender, and then a series of round tables to define and adopt a common gender policy. The project is funded by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, round 8, through the Youth of JAZAS as a primary recipient.

NSHC has marked the World AIDS Day in Novi Sad, Subotica, Backi Monostor,  and Apatin by distributing promotional material and condoms in Roma settlements. NSHC also participated in the street action "Zone without Discrimination", organized in Novi Sad by Red Line Center, where we talked with people passing by on HIV and the importance of voluntary confidential counseling and testing, as well as on discrimination against persons living with HIV. As a partner organization of the Youth of JAZAS within the project "Strengthening HIV Prevention and Care for Vulnerable Groups, NSHC took active participation in the street action in Belgrade.

On the occasion of the World Day against Child Labor NSHC has organized a street action. T-shirts and leaflets with information were given to citizens. This year's motto is ''Give Girls a Chance''. Hundreds of millions of boys and girls around the world are involved in child labor that is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to them. It interferes with their schooling, deprives them from their right to play and other children rights. More than half of these children are exposed to the most harmful forms of forced labor such as work in conditions that are dangerous, slavery, trafficking, drug distribution, begging, prostitution, etc. The most common type of child labor in Serbia is begging. Roma children, children from poor families, from rural areas and from foster families are the most vulnerable ones.

NSHC has completed the second phase of the project „Prevention of HIV in Roma Communities“, implemented in Novi Sad and in Subotica. The aims of the project are to increase the level of knowledge among young Roma on HIV/AIDS, and to establish long-term mechanisms for HIV prevention in Roma communities. A total number of young people who participated in workshops since the beginning of the project is 3,431. Thirty field associates and twenty peer educators were trained. The project has been supported by the Ministry of Health, by means of Global Fund.

NSHC has organized a media conference on the subject of volunteerism development in Serbia. The conference was held in Media Centre Belgrade on 27 May. The speakers were: Ivana Kovacevic, state's secretary in charge for youth issues, Dragan Golubović, legal counselor of the European Center for Non-Profit Law, Marko Stojanović from Citizens' Initiatives' Youth Program, Srđan Staletović, ISC representative, and Mira Novaković from NSHC. Special emphasis was put on necessary conditions for volunteerism development, and the importance of passing of the adequate Law on volunteerism. Activities of the Ministry for Youth and Sport were presented with aim to promote volunteerism in Serbia. The conference was organized as part of activities within the project ''Volunteer! Promotion and Improvement of Conditions for Volunteer Work in Serbia''.

USAID Mission Director, Mr. Michael Harvey, has visited NSHC and got acquainted with our work and the results of the project "Education

Against Poverty: Advocacy Initiative for Roma Inclusion in Education System". The current project "Volunteer!  Improvement of Conditions for Volunteer Work in Serbia" was also discussed during the visit. Both projects are being supported by the Institute for Sustainable

Communities, with means from USAID. Also, participation of NSHC's representative in the International Visitor Leadership Program, which is going to take place later this year, was mentioned.

NSHC has marked this year's World Roma Day in Adice settlement, with its beneficiaries. Part of the action was promotion of education as a key solution against poverty. NSHC's volunteers and 'Putujući Ćututuci' from the Druid organization have participated in the event. Apart from creative and fun activities with Roma children, a poll was

made among Roma parents on the subject: what must be provided in order for Roma kids to attend school? Among the answers, besides textbooks, hygienic products, and financial assistance, Roma parents said that the society has to change its attitude towards Roma. Most of all, discrimination and rejection of Roma children should not

be happening in schools, from the side of other pupils and from the side of certain teachers as well.

Radio Television Vojvodina's report on the event >>>

On the occasion of the World Health Day, NSHC has organized a street action in the student campus in Novi

Sad. The focus this year was reproductive health of students. The poll has been conducted among 99

students with the following results:

- 20% of students has been tested on HIV, hepatitis or some other sexually transmitted infection;

- 38% of students always use condoms, while 4% never uses them;

- Regarding contraception methods, 85% uses condom, 15% uses pills, and 12% uses interrupted intercourse method;

- 55% of men has never visited an urologists, and on the other side, 58% of women visits a gynecologist at least once a year.

Along with the poll informative material and condoms have been given to students who have visited our stand.

NSHC has published a Policy Paper on efficient implementation and monitoring of Local Action Plans (LAPs) for improvement of Roma education. By March 2009 there have been only 10 municipalities in Vojvodina which made LAPs, out of which NSHC has facilitated the processes in 8 municipalities. LAP was adopted as strategic document in 6 municipalities, but even there many advantages of this useful instrument are not being used completely. There has not been any clear indicators or information about the effects of LAP implementation.

This Policy Paper was made in order to improve creation and implementation of LAPs.

It was made within the project "Education Against Poverty", implemented by NSHC in partnership with URS, supported by the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) with USAID means.

NSHC has joined the initiative for improvement of cooperation between the government and Serbian civil society organizations. The initiative was started by the ''Association for Protection and Improvement of Children and Youth Mental Health'' from Nis, being a contact civil society organization in charge for communication with the government related to children issues. The initiative has been supported by 55 NGOs from Serbia, with goal to improve availability and quality of education for all children. To that end, a letter was sent to the Ministry for Education and signing of a Memorandum of Understanding was proposed.

This year, the Novi Sad Spring Festival was held from 10 to 14 March in Spens centre, Novi Sad. NSHC participated in the manifestation together with the Citizens' Association «Bella» and Green Movement. Contributions were collected for stray animals shelter «Bella». People giving contributions received T-shirts and mugs as presents. NSHC has been helping the shelter for some time now, providing food for animals and occasional assistance of its volunteers. On Friday, 13 March, a workshop was held with Roma children (beneficiaries of NSHC's project ''Roma Children Center'') on a subject ''What can I do to help stray animals?'', with other visitors joining as well. All the activities were held thanks to the Nature Conservation Movement and Volunteers Center of Vojvodina.

With the support from Unidea Foundation, in collaboration with Humanitarian Organization Divac (HOD), NSHC has started implementation of a two-year project ''Rural and Agricutural Integration in Supportive Environment'' (RAISE). The project offers services to enhance economic and social integration of 100 refugee and internally displaced households from refugee collective centers in Serbia. They were assisted with permanent housing solutions through HOD's action ''You can too'.

With ''Vision'' agency as sub-implementor of the project, NSHC is going to implement a number of activities and provide services of psycho-social assistance and assistance in economic integration.

The four-month project for Roma children, which has been financially supported by the Provincial Secretariar for Education, has come to its end. The aim was to provide support in education to Roma children who are attending school, to assist those who are not attending school, and to contribute to social integration of all Roma children. Volunteers have been working with children from Adice settlement in Novi Sad. Each saturday additional classes were held in the premises of Jozef Atila Elementary School. Apart from that other activities took place, such as new year's party, home visits, group visits to a cinema, ice skating, etc.

NSHC is going to continue providing support to these children, using its own means and with engagement of volunteers. NSHC has been implementing these activities continuosly since 2004.

Together with the Foundation Partnerships in Health, with means from SIDA (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency), NSHC has been implementing the project ''Dialogue in Roma Community on Gender and HIV Vulnerability''. The aim is to initiate dialogue within a Roma community in order to discuss gender issues and HIV vulnerability, as well as to start the proces of gender transformation in a long term. There have been 113 members of Roma population involved in project activities so far. The project is being implemented in Novi Sad, Beocin and Backi Monostor.

The project ''Inclusion of Elderly Roma through Social Integration'' is continuation of the previously sucessfully implemented ''Roma Humanitarian Assistance Project'' which NSHC realized in 2007 and 2008. It was done with the support from IOM with means of German Foundation ''Remembrance, Responsibility, Future''. The new project is going to last 12 months, with aim to contribute to integration of elderly Roma in 5 Vojvodinian municipalities: Beocin, Backa Palanka (Tovarisevo), Backi Monostor, Zitište (Torak) and Vrsac. Main project activities are going to take place in social clubs established during the previous project. Direct beneficiaires are elderly Roma born before 9 May 1945, victims of Nazi regime during the 2nd World War. Indirect beneficiaires are other members of both Roma and non-Roma community. 

In the municipalities of Bac, Opovo, Secanj, Titel, and Zrenjanin the process of making Local Action Plans (LAPs) for the advancement of Roma education is coming to an end. The measures marked as a priority in majority of municipalities are: informing Roma parents on the importance of education; early inclusion of Roma children into the preschool education system; a free, whole-day stay in preschool institutions; providing school snacks, textbooks, and supplies; introducing Roma assistants into the educational institutions; providing tutors and other personnel with advanced training; enhancing remedial instruction for children; granting secondary-school and university scholarships to Roma students.

Since August last year, NSHC has started the process of creating LAPs in two more Vojvodinian municipalities (Novi Sad and Nova Crnja) within the project Local Action Plan for Improving the Approach to Roma Education: Public Advocacy for Poverty Reduction. This project is supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and it will continue until June 2009.

Sixty children from the Roma Children Center, NSHC's project aiming to support Roma children in education, enjoyed a New Year's party and received gift parcels. A puppet show was played, and actors and animators performed songs for kids; at the end, Santa Claus (played by our volunteer and poet Stojan Simic Krpica) came in and gave the gifts to delighted children. The action was supported by the Club Ritmo Latino, which collected candies and other sweets in a humanitarian party 'A Candy for a Child'. Generous support was also given by Mr. Gordan Basic's donations which provide premises in Vojvodjanskih brigada Street 28, where activities of the Roma Children Center are performed. Also, this initiative is supported through engagement of volunteers, and cooperation with the elementary school 'Jozef Atila' and local community center 'Adice'.

On the occasion of 1 December, World AIDS Day, NSHC organized distribution of informative printed material and condoms in two Roma settlements in Novi Sad, Adice and Veliki rit. Together with elementary schools ”Jozef Atila’’ and ’’Dositej Obradovic’’ art workshops and art exhibitions on the subject of HIV were organized. In cooperation with other members of Vojvodinian HIV network, NSHC participated in a street action ''Zone without Discrimination' organized in the city by the Center Red Line. Also, NSHC joined street action organized in Subotica by representatives of local NGOs and institutions dealing with HIV issues. All activities were organized within a project ''Field Work Prevention of HIV Infection in Roma Communities'', funded by the Ministry of Health, with means from the Global Fund.

Members of the Green Patrol have spent the second weekend in November mapping trees in NSHC's botanical garden in Banostor. The Green Patrol is a group of young enthusiasts, mainly students of ecology and environmental protection. Mapping is a first step in establishing an educational eco-center of NSHC. More than 50 different kinds of trees were recognized in this 6,000 sqm arboretum, among which are some of the rare kinds for this area: sequoia, atlantic cedar and Pancic's spruce. Almost all trees are more than 30 years old.

October 10, 2008 >>> World Mental Health Day

NSHC and Center 'Srce' have marked the World Mental Health Day by a street action in Dositej Obradovic Square in Novi Sad. On that occasion promotion material and printed information on mental health of the youth has been distributed, and the work of Psychological Counseling Centre was promoted. People visiting the stand were taking their photos, showing various feelings, and an "exhibition of emotions" was presented afterwards. The action was logistically supported by "Copy Print"; overall support was given through the project 'Prevention of Substance Abuse and Destructive Behaviour among Youth', supported by the Ministry of Youth and Sport of the Republic of Serbia.

The process of making local action plans (LAPs) was started in the municipalities of Zrenjanin, Opovo, Secanj, Titel and Bac in order to advance the education of Roma people. The actions are conducted by NSHC as a part of the project “Education against Poverty - Advocacy Initiative for Roma Inclusion in Educational System”. Project is supported by the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) with USAID means. This initiative is taking place within the “Decade of Roma inclusion” as an international effort to use coordinated, open, and clear methods to advance the status and life of Roma people in areas of education, health, employment and accommodation.

Within the project 'Prevention of Substance Abuse and Destructive Behaviour among Youth', supported by the Ministry of Youth and Sport of the Republic of Serbia, NSHC's Psychological Counseling Centre for Youth has started to work. Young people can get psychological counselling, psychotherapy and emotional support there. The address is  Vojvođanskih brigada street 28/1, Novi Sad; working hours are 1 - 5 PM on working days. Appointments are made by phone (021/524 184, 524 134) and by email (savetovaliste.nshc@gmail.com).

October 2, 2008 >>> NSHC on The Employment Fair

On the Employment Fair held in Novi Sad NSHC promoted its free education programmes for the unemployed, refugees and IDPs. Visitors of the Fair were informed about the trainings planned in the following period within the 'Employed, Empowered' project: web designer course and administrative assistant training, as well as entrepreneurship and life skills trainings. Those who are interested for these trainings can get more information by calling 021/524 184 and 524 134.

Citizens association 'Friend of Animals in Serbia' (in establishing), with support from NSHC, has organized a street action in Novi Sad with aim to point out the problem of inhumane  treatment of animals in our country. A stand was set up in Zmaj Jovina Street with information about the association's goals. At noon, the activists made a performance in which they depicted cruelty of experiments which are unnecessarily performed on animals during testing of cosmetic and cleaning products. In most European countries such experiments are banned. On the same day a public lecture was held in NSHC along with the projection of 'Animal Rights' film and discussion on vivisection. Mr. Luka Oman, president of Friends of Animals in Croatia, addressed the audience and thanked NSHC for its support. He emphasized that Friends of Animals in Serbia are going to work for the same goals and use similar methods as the association he is leading.

CARE International North West Balkans - office in Serbia, in partnership with NSHC and Roma Student Union, has marked a A World Day against Child Labor on 12 June 2008. Activists in T-shirts with sign 'Stop Child Labor!' were washing car windshields  and talking to drivers on how to fight child labor. A tree was planted in the elementary school 'Dusan Radovic' yard. Volunteers were distributing leaflets, ribbons and T-shirts to citizens at a stand in the centre of the city. A photo exhibition on child labor was opened, followed by a Jazz Trio Osa concert.

Dr. Vladimir Aleksic, PhD, who lives in London for the last seven years has initiated a donor humanitarian action dedicated to the project 'Support to Education of Roma Children''. He is going to participate in Belgrade marathon on 19 April 2008 and collect donor funds for the mentioned project that NSHC implements voluntarily for four years. Andrej Jonovic and Graeme Semon from London have joined Vladimir in this initiative. About his motives Vladimir says: ''Through participation in Belgrade marathon and through initiation of this humanitarian action I want to contribute to awareness raising in our society about the need for this kind of individual activities. Various humanitarian projects can be supported through similar actions, which is already a common thing abroad. I also believe that making a connection between large sport manifestations, such as Belgrade marathon, and donor humanitarian actions, is an ideal opportunity to collect donations and to inform people about current problems in a society and ways for their solving. With this initiative I want to contribute to the efforts of NSHC volunteers to give a chance to poor Roma children so they could gain a minimum of knowledge and skills needed for their independent living in the future.'

If you want to support this initiative, please contact us.

Read the article about the Belgrade marathon runners published on the website of Ministry for Diaspora - Republic of Serbia

Together with Center for Youth Work, NSHC's volunteers have organized street action on the occasion of the World Roma Day. This day was established in 1971 in order to attract public attention to the difficult position of Roma, and to give incentive to fight against segregation and discrimination of this people. Street action was organized in the center of Novi Sad, through creative workshops and game playing, in which both Roma and non-Roma children have participated. With this action we wanted to send out the message that differences between people are not important, and also to promote inclusive approach in everyday wok with children. The action was supported by ''Green House'' and ''BB Minaqua A.D.''.

The second part of IT training, within the project 'Promotion, Development and Improvement of Capacities for Non-Formal Youth Education' starts on April 7, 2008. The best 48 trainees from the first part of the training, including activists of youth NGOs, are going to attend the following modules of IT training in April and May: Information and Communication (Internet Explorer, Outlook Express), Presentation (Power Point) and data Bases (Access).  For the same group three trainings on life skills will be organized: Personal Potential Analysis, Career Planning and Communication Skills. The project is being financed by the Ministry of Youth and Sport of the Republic of Serbia.

With the support from Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) and in partnership with Roma Student Union, NSHC has started a new project 'Education Against Poverty - Advocacy Initiative for Roma Inclusion in Educational System'. The aim of the project is to contribute to inclusion of Roma in educational system and to poverty reduction among this vulnerable population. In five Vojvodinian municipalities - Zrenjanin, Opovo, Titel, Bac and Secanj - local action plans for improvement of Roma educational status will be drafted and finalized. Local authorities and other stakeholders will take active participation in the process. The project will last for 12 months.

In the period from 3 to 12 March 2008, associates of NS Telecentar had visited six lifelong learning centers in Austria, Czeck Republic and Switzerland. All of these centers are providing IT trainings for persons with hearing impairment, and our associates had the opportunity to see modern and innovative training methods that are in use there. The visit was organized within the project 'Regional Network for Lifelong Learning', which NSHC implements in partnership with Telecentars from B&H, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia. The project is financially supported by Fund for an Open Society through the program 'East-East: Partnership Beyond Borders'. Within this project NSHC will develop and provide IT training courses to persons with hearing impairment in Novi Sad.

From November 2007 to March 2008 NSHC has implemented a project 'Improvement of Youth Reproductive Health in Vojvodina', within the Youth Action Plan implementation activities, and with the support from the Provincial Secretariat for Sport and Youth. Trainings were organized for 172 peer educators in 11 Vojvodinian municipalities: Novi Sad, Apatin, Stara Pazova, Sombor, Srbobran, Ruma, Zrenjanin, Beocin, Sid, Odzaci and Vrbas. A Reproductive Health Manual for Peer Educators was prepared and distributed throughout Vojvodina.

During February 2008 NSHC has conducted a research with aim to determine the needs of teachers and other professionals from elementary schools for improvement of knowledge in work with children who have specific educational needs. There were 187 participants in the research from 17 elementary schools in Novi Sad. The research was conducted within the project 'Our School', which NSHC implements in partnership with Special School 'Milan Petrovic' from Novi Sad. Based on the research results, a series of trainings will be organized for teachers and other professionals.

Results of the research (download, Serbian language only)

Within NSHC's Life Long Learning Programme - NS Telecentar, a new  training programme has started. It is aimed for future web designers, both beginners and advanced users. Classes are organized in 7 modules, from web design theory and HTML, to Dreamweaver and PHP. Classes are going to be held in a new IT classroom opened recently in NSHC's new premises, Trg mladenaca 6. If you are interested to attend this training, please contact us.

Since the beginning of December last year, NSHC in cooperation with the school ''Milan Petrovic'' has been implementing a new project ''Our School''. The aim of the project is to contribute to development of inclusive model in education. It will done through capacity building of teachers and other professional staff in Novi Sad for work with children with special needs. The project is financed by Save the Children within the Programme ''Decreasing the Effects of Poverty on Children with Special Needs in Serbia and Montenegro''. A research is going to be implemented on the training needs of teachers for work with this children. A Manual will also be prepared and printed out. The project will last until May 2008.

Thanks to the contributions of volunteers, many citizens, students from elementary school ''Ivan Gundulic'' and ''Stoteks'' company, within the action '''Show Your Heart!'', we were able to gather books, school stationary, toys and sweets for Roma children, beneficiaries of NSHC's learning assistance programme. On 29 December a party was organized in NSHC premises; on that occasion Mala srećna kolonija performed a show ''Ai Romale!'', after which Santa Claus with his assistants gave the parcels to children. Once again we thank all those who had shown their heart and participated in this action.

Starting from 1st of December NSHC starts with implementation of a new nine-month project: ''Promotion, Development and Improvement of Capacities for Non Formal Education of Youth''. The project is being financed by the Serbian Ministry of Youth and Sport, within the programme ''Improving Youth Associations Capacities'', and it will be implemented in partnership with Roma Students Association. With this project 156 young people from marginalized groups, rural areas of Vojvodina, and from youth NGOs, will be directly supported. They will be given free trainings from IT skills and life skills, in order to gain qualifications needed for employment.

November 5, 2007 >>> The Second Issue of “A Word More”

The first of three round tables dedicated to the issue of unemployment of vulnerable groups in Serbia - refugees, internally displaced persons, Roma and other socially vulnerable populations - was held in Belgrade. The title of this round table was ''Identifying the Employment Gap: Vulnerable Groups in the Labour Market''. It gathered more than 40 representatives of public, non-profit and business sector. Results of recent researches on vulnerable groups in the labour market, their capacities and incentives needed for access to sustainable income, were presented. Representatives of the Serbian government spoke about the current support programmes and employment and poverty reduction policies. In the following round table, in October, participants are going to discuss niches to build up sustainable livelihoods among vulnerable groups.

The round table was organized as part of the 'Employed, Empowered' project, funded by EU and implemented by CDRSEE, CPDD and NSHC.

August 15, 2007 >>> Roma Humanitarian Assistance Project

July 12-15, 2007 >>> NSHC on EXIT Festival

During this year's EXIT Festival NSHC has presented its programmes of education, entrepreneurship & employment promotion, volunteerism development and youth reproductive health improvement. Leaflets, posters, brochures and NS Telecentar's  baloons were distributed to numerous visitors of this famous music event. Those who were most interested in our work were provided with additional information on our projects and opportunities for volunteer work in NSHC.

July 4, 2007 >>> The First Issue of “A Word More” Bulletin

June 20, 2007 >>> World Refugee Day

On the occasion of 20 June, the World Refugee Day, NSHC presented an award for creative expressions of refugees and displaced people to Cedomir Sunjevic, writer and internally displaced person from Pristina. Mr. Sunjevic received numerous awards for literary work, and his poems were translated and published in anthologies of poetry. Since 1999, he lives in Novi Sad as an internally displaced person from Kosovo and Metohija. With this award NSHC wishes to acknowledge creativity of refugees and internally displaced persons as an important quality and asset which they brought with themselves. ''I am excited and honored because of this award. I have received awards before, but I never felt like this. It is because the award comes from the local Novi Sad Humanitarian Centre, which had accepted us as displaced persons, which fed us and provided us with clothes and shoes, together with the Red Cross, and therefore turned our hopelessness into a possibility of survival'', said Mr. Sunjevic after  the presentation of the award.

May 31, 2007 >>> 'Manual for Entrepreneurs' Promotion

May 28, 2007 >>> Press Conference on the occasion of starting the 'Employed, Empowered' project

Press conference was held in the Media Center Belgrade, on the occasion of a new project 'Employed, Empowered'. Participants were: Mr. Nenad Sebek from CDRSEE (Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in South East Europe) from Thesaloniki, Greece, Ms. Esmeralda Hernandez-Aragones, Political Department of European Commission Delegation in Serbia; Ms. Aleksandra Jovic, Government Team for Implementation of Poverty Reduction Strategy; Prof. Mihail Arandarenko, Center for Peace and Democracy Development, and Ms. Danijela Korac-Mandic, NSHC. Project goals and research activities were presented, and also activities of help desks established within this project in 10 locations in Serbia. Participants spoke about EU programmes and priorities, and about initiatives of the Serbian  Government Team for poverty reduction. More information about 'Employed, Empowered' project >>>

May 22, 2007 >>> Conference ''Roma Education in Vojvodina''

Together with the Provincial Secretariat for Education and Culture, and Roma Student Union, NSHC has organized a one-day conference 'Roma Education in Vojvodina'. Director of the Office for Roma Inclusion, Mr. Dusko Jovanovic, spoke about integration of Roma in Vojvodina. Dr. Tunde Kovacs-Cerovic presented the work of 'Roma Education Fund' programme. Coordinator for education and health in the government's team for implementation of Poverty Reduction Strategy, Tanja Rankovic, spoke about significance of education in poverty reduction process. The programme and scope of work of the Provincial Secretariat for Education and Health were presented by Svetlana Vujovic, deputy secretary for health and education. Representatives of Roma Student Union and NSHC presented the project 'Participatory Research on Needs, Main Problems and Potentials in Roma Education in Vojvodina', which was supported by Roma Education Fund. As an illustration of this project's long-term impact, representatives of municipalities Apatin, Beocin and Senta presented local action plans for improvement of Roma education in their municipalities. The process of making these plans was facilitated by NSHC in cooperation with local community representatives. These plans will be implemented in the following three years in order to improve Roma education.

May 22, 2007 >>> Ambassadors of Slovakia, Austria and Slovenia visited Novi Sad

Ambassadors of EU member countries accredited in Serbia have been visiting cities and municipalities in Serbia for several months now. They are meeting with representatives of local authorities, media, non-governmental sector, representatives of minorities and religious groups, visiting projects financed by EU, etc. During their visit to Novi Sad, ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia, Mr. Miroslav Luci, ambassador of the Republic of Austria, Mr.Gerhard Jandl  and ambassador of the Republic of Slovakia, Mr. Igor Furdik, met with representatives of NGOs in Novi Sad: Center for Regionalism, Charity Association 'Panonija', Consumers' Association, EXIT, Novi Sad Journalist School, Citizens' Pact for Southeast Europe, and Novi Sad Humanitarian Center. NGO representatives briefly presented their work and accomplished result. In the discussion which followed, distinguished guests expressed their appreciation for the efforts of NGOs in the areas of poverty reduction, improvement of minority groups' position in Vojvodina, improvement of media work and other areas in which NGOs are active.

April 27, 2007 >>> International Conference ''Towards an Enabling Framework for Volunteerism: What Needs to be Done?''

Organized by NSHC and IZVoR Initiative, International Conference  'Towards an Enabling Framework for Volunteerism: What Needs to be Done?'' took place in Novi Sad, on April 26 and 27, 2007. The Conference gathered 112 representatives of governmental and non-governmental sector from Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, respectively. Distinguished guests presented their experiences in creating a legal framework for volunteer work in the neighboring countries. Group work was an opportunity for discussion on volunteerism role in the context of legislation, education, social welfare, employment and cross-sector cooperation. Participants agreed that the civil society participation and cross-sector cooperation are essential for successful creation of an enabling framework for volunteerism. The Conference results will be published in the Final Report that is going to be distributed to the Conference participants, and to decision makers who can directly assist in the development of volunteerism in the region.

More information + Photos from the Conference >>>

April 5, 2007 >>> Presentation of the Active Communities Programme

Balkan Fund for Local Initiatives (BCIF), in cooperation with NSHC, organizes presentation of the Active Communities Programme, supported by the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC). Presentation will be held on April 18th 2007 starting at 12 hrs in NSHC's premises. All NGOs, citizens' associations and non-formal groups from Novi Sad, Sremski Karlovci, Beocin, Irig, Indjija, Backa Palanka, Backi Petrovac, Vrbas, Temerin, Zabalj and Titel are invited to participate.

April 2, 2007 >>> International Conference 'Toward and Enabling Framework for Volunteerism: What Needs to be Done?'

IZVoR Initiative organizes this Conference which will convene governmental officals, academics, and NGO representatives from Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, FYR Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, respectively. Its goal is to provide a platform for creating an enabling environment for volunteersim, which will nurture the volunteer culture in the region. To that end, the conference will discuss issues and share best practices pertinent to volunteerism in the region. The Conference will take place in Novi Sad, on April 26-27, 2007.

February 1, 2007 >>> Support to Refugees in Finding Durable Solutions

At the beginning of this year NSHC started a new regional project, in cooperation with NGOs from Serbia (IAN - International Aid Network) and Croatia (Telecentar Slavonski Brod, CRTA and Youth Peace Group Danube). This project will provide:

• assistance in access to rights and information, and removing of administrative obstacles, with special emphasis on procurement of documents for beneficiaries;

• support for successful social and economic integration of beneficiaries through non-formal education.

In Novi Sad during February and March, 132 beneficiaries (present and former refugees) are going to attend trainings free of charge in Computer School. Afterwards, they will continue with educations within the School of English, Entrepreneurship and Life Skills, according to the achieved results. We hereby invite all interested candidates for participation in this project to apply. The project is financed by European Union through CARDS programme.

January 30, 2007 >>> The First Entrepreneurship Training Cycle Completed 

Within the Entrepreneurship Center project, the first group of 22 beneficiaries completed their two months training (92 hours). Beneficiaries are in the phase of making their business plans and they will continue using services of the Entrepreneurship Club in order to implement their business ideas. NSHC is starting the second cycle of this training on February 9, 2007 after which another two cycles will be organized starting in April and June.

More information >>>

January 15, 2007 >>> Call for Entrepreneurship Training 

NSHC is starting the second cycle of Entrepreneurship training on February 9, 2007. All interested candidates can apply to attend this training every working day from 9 to 5 in NSHC (phone numbers: 422 969, 423 021, 423 024), Vojvodjanskih brigada street No.28. The training is intended for all future entrepreneurs, to those who wish to develop their existing business and all those who see their professional future in entrepreneurship. Trainers are experts in the fields of economy, law, marketing, adult education and pedagogy. The training lasts for 92 hours, and it is held in NSHC's premises. This project is implemented within the ''Support to Enterprise Development and Entrepreneurship Programme'', financed by EU and implemented by European Agency for Reconstruction.

More information about the project >>>

January 15, 2007 >>> Second Part of the HIV/AIDS Education Programme for Refugees, IDPs and Roma in Vojvodina Completed

During the past 10 months, NSHC implemented second phase of the project "HIV/AIDS Education for Refugees, Internally Displaced Persons and Roma in Vojvodina". The project was implemented in 14 municipalities:: Apatin, Bac, Beocin, Sombor, Srbobran, Novi Sad, Stara Pazova, Vrbas, Plandiste, Ruma, Zabalj, Odzaci, Sid and Zrenjanin. From March to December 2006 there were 30 educative workshops implemented with target groups. More than 450 beneficiaries participated in the workshops  (Roma-51.4%, refugees-14.2%, IDPs-0.7% and local vulnerable population-33.7%). In all municipalities local teams for HIV prevention were formed. They remain as a local resource in fighting HIV on a local level. Members of these teams are individuals from institutions and organizations (schools, centers for social welfare, media, NGOs...).

For evaluation purposes 9 focus groups were held with youth, parents, representatives of local institutions, organizations, media... in order to evaluate results and impact of project activities to target group. Also, useful ideals and recommendations for future work were given. The project was financed by "Fondation PH Suisse - Partnerships in Health".

January 8, 2007 >>> Proposal of the Law on Volunteerism submitted to the Vojvodinian government

After months of public discussion about the contents of the Draft Law on Volunteerism, a group of experts prepared a final version of the Law on Voluntary Work. The value of this proposal is in the fact that many Serbian stakeholders, including representatives of public and non-governmental sector and volunteers themselves, participated in finalizing the text of the Law. The document was submitted to the Provincial Secretariat for Labour, Employment and Gender Equality and to the Provincial Secretariat for Youth and Sport on January 8, 2007.

November 7, 2006 >>> NSHC Starts a Home Care Service for the Elderly in Novi Sad: From mid-November a team of home care nurses is going to provide home care services to immobile and semi-mobile elderly persons, and a team of home makers is going to provide help in a house services (cleaning, grocery shopping, meal preparation etc.). Services will be offered to those elderly persons who are in need, and who have difficulties with independent living. Professional team consisting of experienced nurses, medical doctors, social workers and a psychologist is going to organize and supervise service provision. The aim of the Service is to keep an elderly person in her/his own home. NSHC implements this project in coordination with other agencies and institutions which provide services for the elderly in the city, in the first place Center for Social Welfare and Gerontology Center. Home Care Service is financially supported by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs within the programme Support to the Social Policy Reform in Serbia. All services for the elderly will be free of charge. Elderly people in need for this kind of assistance can contact us.

December 1, 2006 >>> Grand Opening of NSHC's School for Entrepreneurs

The first cycle of NSHC's School for Entrepreneurs, which is a part of the Entrepreneurship Center project, has started with presentation of the project goals and activities. Guests were welcomed by Mr. Milan Vemic, expert for small and medium sized enterprises (Ecorys, Research and Consulting) who presented the ''Enterprise Development and Entrepreneurship Programme'', Ms. Sonja Buncic, PhD, law expert, and Mr. Miroslav Vasin, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Secretariat for Labour, Employment and Gender Equality. (photos from the event) The media - TV Novi Sad and Radio 021 - informed the public about this event.

The first training cycle for 22 beneficiaries has started on December 1st and it will last until the end of January 2007.

Training curriculum >>>

October 17, 2006 >>> World Poverty Day: Poverty reduction through support and empowerment of vulnerable groups is one of  priorities in NSHC's work. We believe that the main way out of poverty is education, on all levels and during entire life. That is why we have worked, during the past five years, on development of a non-formal educational programme aiming at marginalized groups. More that 6,000 children and adults were trained and educated within NSHC: from alphabetisation and vocational trainings to IT trainings, English language courses, entrepre-neurship trainings and life skills trainings which are now countinuously implemented in NS Telecentar.

It is of enormous importance to provide access to a right to education for all vulnerable and poor people, as well as an equal access to both formal and non-formal education. That is the only way to break the vicious circle of poverty and ensure better life for future generations.

A regional meeting of the projects supported by the Fund for Social Innovations and implemented in Vojvodina was held in NSHC. The subject of the meeting was 'Connecting Local Initiatives and their Sustainability iwithin the Social Protection Projects'.  After the introduction given by 'Hi Neighbour' and Fund for Social Innovations, representatives of centers for social welfare and NGOs represented their projects. Special emhapsis was made on the issue of sustainability and connections with local sources of funding. The event was organized by 'Hi Neighbour' and NSHC.

NSHC is one of ten NGOs in Serbia which was chosen by the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Policy of the Republic of Serbia to be a unit for monitoring and support to the projects financed by the Ministry. In the following 11 months, NSHC will monitor and support 17 projects in Novi Sad, Backa Palanka and Backi Petrovac. All the projects are aimed to help persons with disability. They are being implemented by 11 citizens' associations. During the fourth Call for Proposals published by the Ministry (Department for Protection of Persons with Dissability), a total of 159 projects have been approved.

During the past 15 years, more than 700,000 refugees and internally displaced persons came to Serbia. Most of them decided to stay here, and chose local integration as their durable solution. Today, there are 106, 931 officially registered refugees from Croatia and Bosnia Herzegovina,  and 208,391 internally displaced persons (IDPs) from Kosovo and Metohija. On the occasion of the World Refugee Day, June 20, NSHC is going to organize several events in Novi Sad, Apatin, Vrsac, Stara Pazova and Backa Palanka. All the events are part of the broader campaign conducted by the Serbian Refugee Council, whose member and a founder is NSHC. Also, part of the activities is supported by UNHCR. On Tuesday, June 20, NSHC will host a round table on the subject 'Intergration of Refugees in Serbia'. Representatives of organizations and institutions working with refugees are invited, and also representatives of refugees and IDPs. During the same day, our volunteers will distribute info material in the center of the city (Spens) and promote NS Telecentar as NSHC's educational programme for employment and self-employment. During the following couple of days, our field associates are going to mark the World Refugee Day in Apatin, Vrsac, Stara Pazova and Backa Palanka, by organizing various events such as poetry readings, book promootions, art exhibitions, etc.

The manifestation „Women make wonders“ was organized by Radio 021 in the hall of the Serbian National Theatre in Novi Sad from 6. to 8. april 2006. The third day of the manifestation was dedicated to the economic strengthening of women and their education. The activities which NS Telecentar conducts with aim to promote and develop entreperenership and reduce unemployment through education have been represented on this manifestation. On the NS Telecentar stand all the information, as well as the info leaflets on the concept of lifelong learning and the courses, were given. Also, all interested visitors could get advices and written materials concerning the writing of the Curriculum Vitae (CV).

The World Roma Day, April the 8th, was marked in NSHC by several events. Representatives of NGOs and public institutions which work on Roma issues were gathered at a coordination meeting. This was a useful opportunity for information exchange and making cooperation agreements. NSHC presented its new research project approved by the Roma Education Fund (as part of the Decade of Roma Inclusion). Within this research, in the following 9 months, NSHC and Roma Students Union are going to conduct participatory research on the problems, needs and potentials needed for improvement of Roma education status in Vojvodina. A photo exhibition was opened in NSHC Club, and all the exhibited photos were made during NSHC Roma programmes from 1999 to 2006. A street distribution of promotional material was also organized, with messages of solidarity and anti-discrimination.

National Employment Service, Branch Office Novi Sad, organized Career Days in Novi Sad on 15 March 2006, were the unemployed, employers and educational organizations for unemployed had an opportunity to make direct contact with each other. NS Telecentar presented its educational program for unemployed.  NS Telecentar's stand was visited by more than 700 unemployed persons who were given information and informative material about our lifelong learning program. Career Days, as a successful form of mediation in the process of employing, was created according to the new model of working with employers, which includes daily communication with them, individual approach to clients, orientation on their needs, etc.

We are proud to announce that the first 14 ECDL Skill Cards were

issued in NS Telecentar. Among them was the 2000^th ECDL Skill Card issued in Serbia and Montenegro! The first ECDL exams in NS Telecentar have been passed on the 27 ^th and 28 ^th of February. During the past five months, 352 people went through different NS Telecentar courses, out of which 201 participated in IT trainings and 151 in English language trainings. A total of 1.550 school hours were held. We have a waiting list of more than 200 people who are going to be enrolled in future IT, English language and Life Skills courses.

After a successful completion of a 12-month project 'HIV/AIDS Education Programme for Refugees, IDPs and Roma in Vojvodina', which ended in June 2005, NSHC continues with education and advocacy activities in 15 munici-palities in Vojvodina. 30 mobile field educators and 150 peer educators from the target groups will be engaged on comprehensive and quality outreach activities and advocacy work with local key stakeholders. The project will be implemented from March to December 2006 with the support of Fondation PH Suisse - Partnerships in Health.

As part of promotional and educational activities based on HAP-I  reccommendations(Humanitarian Accountability Partnership International), a workshop was held in NSHC with field associates, psychologists and social workers, engaged on a project 'Network of Mobile Teams for Support of the Most Vulnerable Individuals'. The Network project was analysed and suggestions were given in order to make the project activities more accountable towards project beneficiaries - most vulnerable refugees and IDPs in Vojvodina. Workshops have been also held with members of NSHC's Programme Team, and with a group of beneficiaries. These activities are part of the efforts to introduce HAP-I standards to members of the Serbian Refugee Council.

NSHC has become one of the partner organizations of the Provincial Secretariat for Sport and Youth in promotion of the Policy Action Plan for Youth in Vojvodina. As part of the promotion activities organized in all areas of Vojvodina, NSHC will conduct various activities in municipalities of Novi Sad, Sremski Karlovci, Beocin, Vrbas, Backa Palanka and Backi Petrovac. The second meeting of all organizations engaged in this action was held in NSHC on February 11th. The aim was to present the Policy Action Plan by the Secretariat and also by coordinators who have been involved in creation of the Plan.

A theatre play for children ''The Magic Potion Quest" was given on Friday, in NSHC's premises, for more than 80 children from refugee families who live in Novi Sad. Actors from the theatre group "Mini Club" made their audience very happy with singing and dancing, but most of the joy was brought by Santa Claus and colorfull Christmas packages. This is a sixth year in a row since NSHC, in cooperation with humanitarian organization "Rainbow", distributes Christmas gifts to poor children in Novi Sad. The gifts are sent from all over the world, by the people of good will, within the project 'Operation Christmas Child' organized by Samaritan's Purse. Distribution of Christmas packages will be continued in the following days. Other photos from the event  >>>

Almost a quarter of the entire number of the poor in Serbia are elderly people over 65. In order to recognize and better understand their problems and problems of their families, Philanthropy, Caritas and Novi Sad Humanitarian Center (NSHC), with the support from Catholic Relief Services (CRS), conducted a participatory research of needs and potentials of the elderly  in Serbia, along with comparative analysis of best models of protection of elderly persons. The results of this research are published as part of our activities for marking the October 1st, International Day of the Elderly, in a publication ''At this age...'', which can be downoloaded here (.pdf, 460KB).  Apart from that, NSHC in cooperation with NGOs Amity from Belgrade, Sunce from Kragujevac and Horizonti from Cacak is one of organizers and participants of a round table «Living in Collective Refugee Centers – problems and prospects for the tenants», with a special emphasis on self-supporting elderly refugees. The round table will be held on September 30, 2005 in Belgrade, Serbian Red Cross office, Simina 19, from 9AM to 1PM.

Prospective candidates for the new three-month cycle of NSHC's School for Entrepreneurs, that is going to start on September 23, should apply to NSHC every working day from 9AM to 5PM. This education is aimed for unemployed people from Novi Sad who want to start and successfully develop their small business; to entrepreneurs who want to improve their work; to agriculture producers and to all other people who see their professional future in entrepreneurship. Education is held by eminent experts from the areas of economy, law, psychology and ICT. Education will last for 80 classes and it will be realized in the premises of NSHC. This year's project is supported by USAID and America's Development Foundation (ADF).

Jaša Tomić village, with 1200 houses in middle Banat county, Serbia, has been destroyed by the river Tamiš. Flood has destroyed over 200 houses., while 600 houses are under water. More than 2000 people has been evacuated and they are situated in the neighbouring villages Krajišnik, Sečanj, Sutjeska and Boka. Hospital for lung diseases situated in the village has also been evacuated, and 100 patients have been accomodated in Zrenjanin hospital. More than 3500 pigs and other animals have been drowned.  There is no electricity and gas. Water  is not drinkable. Emergency aid is needed in drinkable water, food, clothes, blankets, hygienic products, medicines, sanitary material, waterproof clothes and shoes, underwear, money... NSHC has been collecting humanita-rian aid since April 24th in the premises of Psychosocial Counselling Center in Novi Sad, Temerinska 54. On May 1st we sent the first shipment of clothes, shoes, toys and hygienic products to village Boka, where a number of people from the flooded areas are situated. This action is still ongoing, and we are inviting all citizens to help out the most vulnerable.   

NSHC has organized  distribution of Christmas gift packages to children from socially vulnerable refugee families. On that occasion we had a Santa Claus (actor Dragan Dzankic from the ''Sterija'' theatre in Vršac) and his assistant, poet Stojan Simić Krpica, as guests who cheered 150 kids with songs and dancing.  On December 24th NSHC distributed Christams gifts to Roma and Ashkali children in the premises of our Psychosocial Counseling Center. The gifts were donated by ''Operation Christmas Child'' through humanitarian organization «Duga» from Novi Sad.

NSHC participated in the South East European NGO Festival which took place in Novi Sad from December 1st - 5th 2004. The Festival, first of such kind in Novi Sad, was organized by NGOs Youth Council of  Vojvodina, Pokret gorana Vojvodine and Volunteer Center of  Vojvodina in cooperation with  Ecumenical humanitarian organization, South East European Youth Network, USAID  and Secretariat for Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development of  the Vojvodina's Executive Council. 

(The news from the previous period are not available in English at the moment.)

NOVI SAD HUMANITARIAN CENTER 2004 - 2006