Serbia

Serbia: Support for the Development of National Employment Policy

Labour Market / Employment / European Social Fund

EU/Twinning

October 2007

February 2010

28 months

none

The project addresses the labour market reform process and strengthens the capacity to further develop and improve employment policy in Serbia in line with European standards. It comprises three components:

• Strengthening the Sector for Employment in the Ministry of Economy and Regional Development as the main actor in formulating employment policy
• Improve a gender sensitive approach to employment policy and support gender mainstreaming
• Strengthen the local level in developing and implementing employment policy.

The Ministry of Economy and Regional Development has been newly structured and need some support in administrative capacity building (review of structure, organisation and functions, staffing and management system, corporate plan, internal and external communication, training plan). The employment Sector will also benefit from this strengthening of the ministry’s overall capacity. The sector itself will be support with regards to revising the National Employment Action Plan, the development of specific programmes and measure for vulnerable groups, upgrade staff capabilities in monitoring and evaluating employment policy and programmes, indicator and assessing labour market trends and prospect. The development and follow-up of performance agreements with the National Employment Service will also be targeted. Finally information system strategy will be developed and its implementation will be supported.
The project will support the Gender Equality Council of Serbia on the one hand and actors in employment policy on the other hand. The work of the councils will be analysed and recommendations made and trainings provided to root it deeper in the administrative and governmental processes. In employment policy a programme and measures targeted at women will be worked out. Personnel will be trained in mainstreaming employment policies and gender mainstreaming will be introduced in the ministry. In recent year local employment councils have been set up in Serbia. These councils shall support a decentralisation of employment policy and its implementation and establish a functioning social dialogue at local level. Councils will be provided with best practise examples of territorial and local employment councils in Europe and trained to develop its own strategy, action plan and measures to target unemployment. They will also receive training in project development, formulation and management.

Technical assistance in equal opportunities:

• Policy advice
• Assessment of an recommendation for legislative framework
• Administrative capacity building
• Information and communication strategy
• Training needs assessment, training methodology, training materials
• Training of administrative staff & social partners
• Train-the-trainer programmes
• Gender mainstreaming concept
• Manuals and procedural guidelines
• Study tours