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The results of the research in Albania show that 31.6% of people aged 65 and over have a need for long-term care due to difficulties in functioning, while among people with disabilities aged 18-64, as many as 98% of those who need long-term care services need it due to great difficulties in performing daily life activities. The study showed that in Albania, on the one hand, there is not a sufficient number of nursing homes for older persons, and on the other hand, they are expensive for older persons and their families. Additionally there is no foster care for older persons in Albania.

As part of the project entitled “Strengthening resilience of older persons and persons with disabilities during COVID-19 and future disasters”, the study “Access to long-term care in North Macedonia” was presented in the premises of the Red Cross of the Republic of North Macedonia. The gathering was opened by the Secretary General of the Red Cross of RNM, Dr. Sait Saiti, Minister of Labor and Social Policy, Jovanka Trenčevska, Minister of Health, Dr. Fatmir Medžiti, as well as representatives of the Red Cross of Serbia, the Association Humanost and SeCons Development Initiative Group that developed this study.

The SeConS Development Initiative Group was one of the participants in the “Health for All” conference, organized at the Serbian Red Cross headquarters to mark World Health Day.
Participants at the conference noted that a major challenge faced worldwide is the fact that one-third of the world’s population currently has no access to basic health services.

As part of the project “Strengthening resilience of older persons and persons with disabilities during COVID-19 and future disasters”, the study entitled “Access to long-term care services in Serbia” was presented in the Media Center Belgrade.
Project coordinated by the Red Cross of Serbia and supported by the European Union, the Austrian Development Agency and the Austrian Red Cross.
SeConS Development Initiative Group developed this study.

As part of the ERASMUS+ project “Public Policy Making and Analysis (PPMA)”, financed by the European Commission, the publication entitled “In the labyrinth of poverty and social exclusion: social policy and the welfare state in Serbia”, by Marija Babović and Danilo Vuković, saw the light of day.
This book is intended for all those who want to remind themselves of, or gain knowledge about, the problem of poverty and social exclusion, and to direct their work towards that area or improve it.

In Montenegro, 44.9% of people over the age of 65 have serious difficulties in performing daily activities, and among them, there are more women. This is the finding of the study entitled “Access to long-term care services in Montenegro” that was created as part of the three-year project “Strengthening resilience of older persons and persons with disabilities during COVID-19 and future disasters”. The study was implemented in the Western Balkans region with the coordination of the Serbian Red Cross and the support of the European Union, the Austrian Development Agency and the Austrian Red Cross.
Photo: Red Cross of Montenegro / Dejan Kalezić

Partners in the project “Strengthening resilience of older persons and persons with disabilities during COVID-19 and future disasters” – a three-year initiative in the Western Balkans region, coordinated by the Serbian Red Cross and supported by the European Union, the Austrian Development Agency and the Austrian Red Cross – gathered in Belgrade in order to exchange experiences in previous work. This project was launched at the end of 2020, and it connects partners from the civil society of the Western Balkan countries and a large network of civil society represented by older persons and persons with disabilities at the level of the European Union.

At the Annual general meeting of the Global Compact in Serbia, held on December 14, the final Activity Report for 2022 was adopted and the Work Plan for 2023 was presented.
SeConS Development Initiative Group was an active participant, as a permanent member of the Global Compact in Serbia.

The main findings of the research “Human trafficking in Serbia – an overview of the situation in the context of the 21st century” were presented by Olivera Vuković, an executive director at SeConS Development Initiative Group and Milica Stević, a researcher, at the conference entitled “How close are we to human trafficking?” organized by ASTRA Association.

*In four villages in Vojvodina, there was a slight decrease in the acceptance of patriarchal attitudes among both women and men, while women showed a significantly higher ability to recognize different forms of violence. These are results of the initial and final studies on attitudes and knowledge about gender-based violence and gender-based discrimination, conducted as part of the project “Break the silence – Respond: Changing social norms and knowledge about gender-based violence against women in rural areas in APV”.