At the final conference of the “LINKzaMlade” project, titled “How to Improve Programs Supporting Youth Employment,” held today in Konjic, the key results of the project were presented. The project is implemented by the LINK Entrepreneurship Center Mostar, the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton Employment Service, the City of Konjic, the municipalities of Jablanica and Prozor-Rama, as well as employers and other organizations and services. Alisa Gekić, Director of the LINK Entrepreneurship Center Mostar, stated that the project was successfully completed with more than 135 individual support plans created and 60 newly created jobs.
The final conference of the “LINKzaMlade” project was held in Konjic.
“Projekat “LINKzaMlade” ulazi u završnu fazunakon praktično 17 mjeseci uspješne implementacije. Moramo reći da smo jako zadovoljni sa implementacijom, budući da smo ostvarili veliki odziv kada govorimo o animiranju mladih, jer činjenica je da definitivno na evidencijama Službe za zapošljavanje imamo veliki broj nezaposlenih osoba. Međutim, ključno je ko su to aktivni, a ko pasivni tražitelji posla. Tako da smo u saradnji sa Službom za zapošljavanje i poslodavcima-Eurosjaj, GeoBiro i brojnih drughi koji su uključeni u projekat, nastojali animirati mlade da se uključi i uzmu učešće u procesu karijernog vođenja, intenzivne radionice, izgradnje vještina i brojnih drugih obuka za eventualno prekvalifikaciju i dokvalifikaciju. Nakon toga smo kreirali više od 130 individualnih profila za zapošljavanje, kreirali jednu bazu aktivnih tražitelja posla na ovom području. I danas ponosno predstavljamo 60 radnih mjesta koji imaju perspektivu da budu dugoročno održivi. Na ovaj način smo htjeli na neki način da pilotiramo i taj proces karijernog vođenja uz podršku Međunarodne organizacije rada i Evropske unije pokažemo kako upravo ovaj pristup može biti implementiran generalno na području Bosne i Hercegovine i kao dugoročan sistemski održiv način animiranja u realizaciji aktivnih mjera zapošljavanje”-navela je Gekić.
In the area of the City of Konjic, 26 young people gained employment thanks to the “LINKzaMlade” project, said Adisa Kevrić, who attended today’s conference on behalf of Mayor Osman Ćatić.
“When it comes to the City of Konjic, three new businesses were supported through grant funds for the purchase of equipment and the co-financing of contributions, and support was also provided for the employment of 23 people from the area of the City of Konjic in the business entities Eurosijaj and GeBiro. The three supported businesses are: Aldin Cero – hair salon; Redžo Ena – hair salon; and Almir Širbegović, who is engaged in photography. On this occasion, we would like to thank the donors and representatives of LINK who provided selfless support to the City of Konjic in the implementation of this project,” said Adisa Kevrić.
Dženan Trbić from the International Labour Organization stated that the employment and self-employment of young people is possible when work is carried out with quality, as is the case with the “LINKzaMlade” project.
“The project presenting its results today is one of 16 projects being implemented in parallel, and they clearly demonstrate in practice that employment in Bosnia and Herzegovina is not as big a problem as it is often stereotypically perceived. When we take into account all the results our partners are achieving in the field—particularly highlighting the role of LINK and the work LINK is doing—it becomes evident that employment, including self-employment and support for entrepreneurship, can have a significant impact when carried out in a high-quality and consistent manner, as LINK does,” said Trbić.
The “LINKzaMlade” project is part of the “EUzaZapošljavanje” project, financed by the European Union and Sweden. Mojca Krisper Figeroa, Team Leader in the Cooperation Section of the Delegation of the European Union to Bosnia and Herzegovina, spoke to radiokonjic.ba about the importance of the project.
“Once again, we are here to present and showcase all the results achieved by the LINK Agency through the youth support project. We must emphasize that we are very pleased with this joint initiative of the European team, through which four million euros have been allocated to projects that are, in fact, youth support projects. I would also like to add that young people are truly a vulnerable group that needs the greatest possible opportunities and strong support in order to become independent, secure their first jobs, and gain work experience so they can succeed as well as possible in the future,” stated Krisper Figueroa.
One of the young people from Konjic who was supported through the “LINKzaMlade” project is Konjic-based photographer Almir Širbegović. Speaking about the significance of the project for our radio, he stated.
“I started my own business related to photography—specifically, a photo studio. I attended training sessions in Mostar through the LINK organization, where I learned about starting a business, since all of this was new to me. It was very helpful to learn how to operate and run a business. I purchased new equipment and received around 7,500 convertible marks. An important step was starting a craft business, that is, registering my company,” Širbegović emphasized.
The conference also offered a series of recommendations from the EU, Sweden, local authorities, and employers on how this model of supporting youth employment could be applied in other communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Izvor teksta i fotografija: Radio Konjic –https://radiokonjic.ba/u-konjicu-odrzana-zavrsna-konferencija-projekta-linkzamlade/
