I Specific Outline for the Roundtables

A series of three roundtables will be organised within the framework of the project “Employed, Empowered” with short plenary sessions and subject groups.
“Identifying the employment gap: vulnerable groups in the labour market” 14-15 September 2007
“Identifying niches to build up sustainable livelihoods” 19-20 October 2007.
“Tactics of penetrating the market niche and supportive training programmes” 23-24 November 2007.
The project focuses on Serbia and addresses the reintegration of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), refugees and returnees into society. The project consists of four broad strands that complement each other towards the goal of enabling refugees, IDPs and returnees to build up sustainable livelihoods for themselves; thus supporting the national strategy of the Government of Serbia with regard to resolving the problems of refugees and IDPs.
The roundtables have the specific aim of engaging a multi-disciplinary circle of experts in the field of economy, labour markets, human resource management, entrepreneurship, relevant governmental initiatives and refugee issues in the project to develop a targeted set of support tools for disadvantaged groups. Key to the events is the aim to build on existing initiatives, link them with each other and investigate synergies to develop new innovative approaches.

The first roundtable “Identifying the employment gap: vulnerable groups in the labour market” is planned for 14-15 September 2007 and will introduce the methodology of the project and will present the following to the team of experts:

-A comprehensive survey of the Serbian Labour Market highlighting opportunities and trends in Serbia, conducted and presented by the economist Prof. dr. Mihail Arandarenko
-An inclusive survey of capacities, constraints and future expectations of the refugees and IDPs living in Serbia, conducted and presented by the psychologist Dr. Goran Opacic
-A discussion paper, providing an initial analysis of how to define the gap, prepared by the project team, which will be discussed in the roundtable
-The policies and directions developed in the European Union regarding vocational training and the concept of life long learning, presented by CEDEFOP (to be confirmed) The first event will serve to get acquainted, to build up relations and to gain an understanding of each others’ aims and capacities. The purpose of the roundtable is to discuss the surveys and the identified gap so as to clearly define it.
The event will establish subject-specific expert groups, which will be moderated and coordinated by experienced facilitators. In the first subject-groups session the expectation is to clearly define the gap and share initial ideas on how to close it. Conclusions will be compiled by the moderators for each subject group, as well as issues to be looked into and developed at the next meeting.

The second roundtable “Identifying niches to build up sustainable livelihoods” will be held 19-20 October 2007.
Guest speakers will present successful initiatives from the field, relevant trends in international Human Resource Management and Micro Grant Schemes.
The moderators will give an overview of the ideas developed by the subject-groups during the last session and will allow all participants to respond to and contribute to each others’ work, before the subject-groups continue.
The aim of the following subject-groups session is to develop a set of workable model solutions, which would give a perspective to the target groups to build up a sustainable durable livelihood for themselves. This also includes giving hints on existing or future initiatives, such as business incubators, agricultural cooperatives, access to micro finance schemes or any other relevant networks. The moderators will be responsible for summarising the input and compiling a presentation for the next roundtable.

The third roundtable “Tactics of penetrating the market niche and supportive training programmes” will be held 23-24 November 2007.
Guest speakers will introduce existing informal vocational training initiatives, with a focus on their replicability and potential applicability to be used or adapted for use, in Serbia.
The moderators will present the models developed in the previous roundtable and participants will review the solutions developed, and discuss the most feasible strategies, focusing on how these could be translated into practice. The subject-groups in this session will aim to formulate recommendations, based on the model solutions, for the development of relevant training materials and activities, as well as identify stakeholders to support the target group.
All contributors will be duly acknowledged for their contributions in the following publications:
-a set of brochures, which will be disseminated widely to the target group -a final publication compiling all project findings, which will be distributed to the international community, policy makers and the civil society in Serbia -the training materials, which will be used by the Telecentars and other institutions to implement training activities (the materials will be available to all contributors) -and on the project webpage: www.employed-empowered.net, which is linked in from all partner organisations and the European Commission

Background Information on Aim and Scope of the Project: “Employed, Empowered”

Based on the firm belief that IDPs and refugees are a huge source of human capital, Employed, Empowered aims to harness this resource for the benefit of all of the people of Serbia, via solutions from within.
In order to do so, the project will first engage in social and economic research through 2 wide-ranging surveys:
The first to build up an exact empirical picture of the target groups (the demographic make up, needs and problems of the IDPs, refugees and returnees) and the second to provide a comprehensive analysis of the Serbian labour market and relevant economic indicators.
The two surveys will be used to undertake a gap analysis, which will be compiled in a discussion paper, and then presented to a group of distinguished experts committed to addressing poverty and unemployment in Serbia.
This committee will consist of professionals from a diverse range of sectors: large-scale employers, civil society organisations and public officials, all of whom are not only expert contributors, but will form a team of subject specific groups to identify opportunities for workable and sustainable long term directions.
The subject groups will meet for three roundtables to develop models to address poverty and unemployment amongst the refugee and IDP population in particular, but also to address the huge number of asylum seekers leaving the country every year.
The overall vision of the project is to offer workable models to facilitate reintegration for refugees, IDPs and returnees in Serbia, based on a thorough feasibility study as well as individual consulting and training.
The general aims are:
-to develop solutions for sustainable economic livelihoods for refugees, IDPs and
returnees in Serbia
-to build up a network to support feasible reintegration models
-to provide information and consultation to the refugees and IDPs
-to support local communities with expert advice, capacity building and training
activities
The research activities and the findings of the roundtables will also be used to feed into a set of training materials, which will be used for job skill training seminars to widen the professional skills of the target group according to the corresponding market needs, and enhance their competitiveness in the labour market or to encourage them to start their own small businesses.
For more information, please visit: http://www.employed-empowered.net

III Organisers:

The Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeast Europe is a non­governmental, non-profit organisation that seeks to foster democratic, pluralist, and peaceful societies in Southeast Europe by advocating principles of social responsibility, sustainable development, and reconciliation among the peoples in the region. These goals are accomplished via seminars, conferences, research projects, exchange programs, opinion polls, and publications.
Partner 1: the Center for Peace and Democracy Development in Belgrade was founded in July 1991 and formed the nucleus of the peace movement. Now, the long-term goals of the CPDD are amongst others the development of democratic institutions, a legal state and a civil society, as well as the study of human rights and humanitarian law. The CPDD will be responsible for the socioeconomic research on Serbia and for facilitating the roundtables.
Partner 2: the Novi Sad Humanitarian Center was founded in 1998. NSHC's mission is to provide emergency aid in times of crisis to people in need, and to promote the development of local communities and the region of Vojvodina. NSHC's focuses on the most vulnerable and marginalised groups of the population: refugees, IDPs, the elderly, Roma, the homeless, those deprived of their rights and the poor. The NSHC will be responsible for the “Target Group Survey” and for running 10 help desks all over Serbia.
For more information, please contact:
Aleksandar Resanovic, Executive Director Centre for Peace and Democracy Development Milesevska 51, Flor 12, Flat 49, 11000 Belgrade tel: ++ 381 11 308 99 79, fax: ++ 381 11 344 17 37 e mail: council@caa.org.yu, web: www.caa.org.yu
or:
Corinna Noack-Aetopulos, Director of Programmes Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeast Europe Krispou 9, Ano Poli, 54634 Thessaloniki, Greece tel: ++ 30 2310 960-820/1, fax: ++ 30 2310 960-822 e mail: corinna@cdsee.org, web: www.cdsee.org

This project is funded by the European Union
Delegation of the European Commission to Serbia
KRUNSKA 73 11 000 Belgrade, Serbia Tel.: +381 11 30 83 200 Fax: +381 11 30 83 201
A project implemented by the CDRSEE
Krispou 9, Ano Poli 54634 Thessaloniki, Greece tel: ++ 30 2310 960-820/1 fax: ++ 30 2310 960-822
This project is funded by the European Union under the Aeneas Programme.
The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of CDRSEE and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.