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New Youth Development Center Educates and Engages
Young Serbs and Romas in Gracanica find trainings and discussions on employment and life skills
Photo from a class attended by young Serbs
and Romas at the Youth Development Center
in Gracanica
Challenges abound for the young people of Gracanica, Kosovo. A lack of adequate education, employment and social activities in their community continue to affect both Serb and Roma youth. Such issues threaten to cause a cycle of poverty and hardship as the underserved youth of today may become the underemployed and undereducated adults of tomorrow.
Local Gracanica NGO Communication for Social Development (CSD) established the Youth Development Center with the help of IREX through the USAID-funded Kosovo Civil Society Project (KCSP). The center is home to training sessions and discussions intended to educate Serb and Roma youth. Its first docket of activities included classes in English, computer science and journalism, along with seven roundtables dedicated to important youth topics such as education, employment, health, and NGOs. The center also offered hands-on activities including camping, cleaning, art, and free computer and internet access.
CSD strategically utilized local media through seven radio shows, informing community members about the significance of education and social integration. Such media outreach led to a direct increase in program participation among young people. CSD believes that their efforts will help 20 young people find jobs in the near future and inspire the broader youth community to become more active in local institutions and community decision-making. One CSD event, ECO Camp, taught 200 youth participants about the importance of environmental protection. The daily services of the Youth Development Center were utilized by over 1,200 young people, especially for information and skills concerning future employment.
