E2E Bulletin
E2E Education to Employment
Creating decent job prospects and career paths for all young women and men in Serbia.
The Call for Employers “Employees to fit your business” extended its deadline for the application until 30th June
On April 20th, 2022 in Ni?, the E2E launched the 4th Call for Employers “Employees to fit your business”, with 3 different funding windows within the Work-Based Learning (WBL) Training Platform. Due to increased interest, the Call will be extended until June 30, 2023, and all interested private sector representatives can apply with the support of our 10 local partners or through 9 JOB INFO centers.
The aim of the E2E is to improve the position of youth on the Serbian labour market through the modernization of youth employment policies and the development of young skilled labour demanded by the private sector.
The E2E creates Work-Based Learning (WBL) opportunities for young jobseekers from selected regions of Central-South Serbia. To better match private sector needs with labour supply, it cooperates with 10 local partners (called “brokers”) from Kragujevac, Knja?evac, Pirot, Kru?evac, Ni?, ?abac, Po?ega, Kraljevo and Smederevo. Brokers facilitate the WBL programs and offer career guidance and matching services for youth and companies through trained CGC counsellors at 9 Job Info Centers.
To date, E2E succeeded through the implementation of the Call for Employers to preliminary approve 69 WBL trainings with a total of 647 trainees. Just in the first quarter of 2023, we effectively conducted 18 work-based learning (WBL) sessions across 14 different companies, with a total of 59 trainees participating. Following the completion of the training, 34 individuals were immediately employed.
At this moment, approved co-financing is as follows: E2E with 60,7 Mio RSD, companies with 67 Mio RSD, and local self-governments are participating with the amount of 1,88 Mio RSD.
The Call is still opened, and companies are invited to apply.
The main purpose of the Call for Employers is to provide technical and financial assistance to private sector employers in need of competent labour force, through the organization of various work-based learning opportunities via the WBL Training Platform for current or future job-seekers, mainly focusing on youth under 35 years of age, but not excluding other potential participants, particularly from vulnerable groups. The E2E promotes decent work and will incentivize particularly employers who offer employment contract to trainees.
E2E-Western Balkan 6 Chamber Investment Forum- CCIS- regional event on Work-Based Learning (WBL) and social inclusion?
Hereby, we invite you to save the 31st of May 2023 between 10 am to 14 pm for our joint regional event "Importance of the WBL and social inclusion for the WB6 Economies Development". The event will be organized in close cooperation with the WB6 Chamber Investment Forum and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia (CCIS). This hybrid event will be held in the premises of CCIS.?
The event will be the opportunity for WB6 Private Sector representatives to exchange experiences regarding both formal and non-formal VET, work-based learning (WBL), and social inclusion. The primary objective of this event is to create awareness about the importance of work-based learning and social inclusion for the economic development of the Western Balkan. Since each of the WB6 economies are facing labour shortages, upskilling/reskilling of current and future employees is perceived as inevitable.
Background
WBL, as a type of Vocational Education and Training (VET) has emerged as an important tool for developing skills and competencies of individuals and for addressing the skills gap in the regional labour market. In the WB6 region, where there is a need to increase the employability and productivity of the workforce, especially youth, WBL can play a vital role in promoting economic growth and social inclusion.
The primary objective of this event is to create awareness about the importance of work-based learning and social inclusion for the economic development of the Western Balkans. It aims to increase the visibility of all stakeholders involved, with focus on the WB6 Private Sector, and to discuss challenges and opportunities related to the WBL implementation and inclusion policies in the WB6 region.
E2E organized two trainings for self-evaluation of the quality of work of JPOA with Qualifications Agency
As part of the support provided by the Education to Employment-E2E project to the Ministry of Education and the Qualifications Agency, two 2-day trainings for self-evaluation of the quality of work of publicly recognized organizers of adult education activities (JPOA) were organized in Belgrade.
Representatives of accredited JPOA, the Ministry of Education and the Qualifications Agency took part in those trainings.
The experts of the E2E project prepared two guides - for external evaluation and for self-evaluation of the quality of JPOA's work, which, along with detailed explanations and instructions, can be found on the website of the Qualifications Agency.
As part of this training, the participants were introduced to the framework for evaluation and self-evaluation of the quality of JPOA's work, quality standards, indicators, instruments, as well as the activities that each JPOA should implement within the self-evaluation procedure.
Third National Dialogue of JPOA with support of E2E
The third national dialogue of publicly recognized organizers of adult education activities (JPOA) is being held in Novi Sad on March 23-24, 2023, in the premises of the Educational Center for training in professional and work skills, with the support of the E2E- Еducation to Employment project.
Representatives of the Government of AP Vojvodina, the city of Novi Sad, the National Employment Service, schools, JPOA and employers from Vojvodina, the Еducation to Employment project, as well as representatives of JPOA from other parts of Serbia, participate in this event.
Through various presentations and panel discussions, novelties in the field of the National Qualifications Framework in Serbia (NQF), non-formal education and Career Guidance and Counseling (CGC) were presented, challenges and opportunities for JPOA accreditation were discussed for various activities such as training, providing CGC services, etc. A promotional video about the submission of the initiative for the development of qualification standards, which was created with the support of E2E, was also presented at the meeting.??
Regional meetings with employment agencies
Two out of three planned regional meetings with employment agencies, organized by the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs with the support of the "Education to Employment - E2E" project, were held in Belgrade and Ni?. The third one will be organized in Novi Sad on June 5.
These regional meetings are organized to provide information on the role of employment agencies within the legislative and strategic framework of employment policy, on initiatives that may be of importance to agencies, as well as to provide support to agencies in solving the challenges they face in their work.
The Education to Employment project (E2E) continued to support the National Employment Service of the Republic of Serbia (NES) in its endeavors to provide quality assistance to its beneficiaries. In the previous period, we worked on improved measures to support self-employment.
Representatives of the expert organization IPMA engaged by the E2E, together with colleagues from the NES, worked to improve the quality and transparency of the process of evaluating business plans submitted by unemployed people who want to start their own businesses. Special instructions for evaluators of business plans were prepared, and during February, 6 workshops were held throughout Serbia for over 150 NES associates, who were introduced to the new model of higher-quality implementation of the subsidy program for self-employment.
JPOA accreditation for five E2E brokers - quality assurance
Educational Centar Kru?evac, BIPS and RBC from Kragujevac, Timok Club Knjazevac, Association “Osvezenje” Pirot recently received the official accreditation from the Qualification Agency, so that since the first quarter of this year they have become a publicly recognized organizers of adult education activities (JPOA) for providing career guidance and counselling services, which means that state institutions have confirmed the quality of the career guidance and counselling program (CGC), which our brokers are implementing through recently opened JOB INFO Centers as part of the "Education to Employment" project.
"Taking care of data protection and personal integrity of users, we provide support through an individual as well as a collective approach. We always strive to be up to date, we consider the needs of the market, and we actively report on trends in the field of human resources and employment. We help unemployed young people to identify their talents and aspirations, and write CV, but we also provide them with maximum support in the process of looking for their first internship or job. The existence of a career center that will guide and empower our young people professionally is more than important so that we can all jointly raise the economy of our city and the entire ?umadija, of which Kragujevac is the center", explains Lazar ?okovi?, career practitioner within JOB INFO center Kragujevac.
Regional promotions of the Education to Employment project’s career guidance and counselling (CGC) services
Within the “Education to Employment“ project, primary and secondary schools from Ni?avski, Topli?ki, Zaje?arski, Ma?vanski and Kolubarski counties were presented the career guidance and counselling (CGC) services with the aim to support schools in improving both youth career management skills and youth employment environment. The response of school representatives was very large. They got acquainted with the project, CGC services as well as the developed tools and instruments. CGC services within E2E are intended for youth between 15 and 30 years of age, and to those older than 30 if they belong to a hard-to-employ category, and the goal is to prepare them for labour market and responsible career management.
Thanks to the project, in an innovative, interesting and concrete way, we improve the conditions for faster employment of young people and increase their chances to find the desired job. At the same time, with a holistic package of services and activities, we want to promote a more humane and inclusive society that cares not only for the future of young people, but also for the less employable categories of society.
A two-day workshop organized by the Swiss-Serbian project "Education to Employment" on the topic "FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS IN ICT SECTOR - EUROPEAN & SWITZERLAND EXPERIENCE" was held at the Zira Hotel in Belgrade on 27th and 28th January. The workshop is held by Dietmar (Didi) Eglseder, Deputy CEO and Head of Higher VET in ICT Berufsbildung, Switzerland's leading institution for ICT skills in vocational education and a Competence center for ICT education in vocational training and in digitization projects.
During these two days, participants had the opportunity to hear more about the development of qualifications needed in the ICT sector in Switzerland and European countries, which can be applied and adapted to the domestic market. In a dynamic environment that followed practical work with representatives of relevant institutions of the ICT sector in Serbia, expert Didi Eglseder conveyed his knowledge and concrete experiences when it comes to the further development of qualifications in the ICT sector, conveyed the concrete needs of the labour market in the ICT sector of Switzerland, as well as the priority areas for the development of ICT qualifications in the National Qualification Framework and brought closer to the attendees the approach to the development of the profile of ICT qualifications in Switzerland and Europe through the implementation of the e- competency framework (e-CF) and the EQF.
The participants of the workshop were representatives of: Ministry of Education, Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs,?Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry of Information and Telecommunications, Office for Dual Education and NQF, Council for Vocational Education and Adult Education, Sector Skills Council for ICT, Qualifications Agency, the Confederation of Free Trade Unions, the Institute for Improvement of Education, the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia and representative associations of employers, the National Employment Service, the Institute for the Evaluation of the Quality of Education and Training, the Swiss Development Cooperation, the Digital Serbia Initiative, the ICT Network Cluster, the ICT Cluster of Central Serbia and others.
As part of continuous learning and improvement of specific competencies of E2E career practitioners, a three-day training was held from the 1st until the 3rd of February, in Belgrade. The training was held by an international expert in the field of career guidance and counselling - Emad Helmy. This time the topics of the training were: theories of career development, working value systems, and communication models. The training was attended by 17 career practitioners, who had the opportunity to learn new concepts in the field of career development and planning through practical exercises and exchanges and to expand their work with new knowledge that will help youngsters to responsibly and actively manage their careers.
E2E organized quarterly broker’s meeting
Recently E2E organized a regular quarterly two-day workshop with representatives of all local partner organizations – brokers. In a lively constructive discussion during the World Café format, we reviewed each organization’s challenges/obstacles but also solutions they encountered during the implementation of their annual agreements in terms of CGC and WBL Call.
At the workshop, attendees had the opportunity to discuss the current status, challenges, observations, and lessons learned from the WBL Call. Additionally, the workshop covered the implementation of CGC services, as well as strategies for monitoring, evaluation, and communication progress.