On Wednesday, March 1, 2023, the Youth with Disabilities Forum held a media breakfast as part of the project “Job Fit: Economic Empowerment of People with Disabilities”.

As part of the media breakfast, the services and activities that will be available to persons with disabilities and employers in Novi Sad and other parts of Vojvodina as part of the “Job Fit” project, which is implemented with the support of the American Agency for International Development (USAID), were presented.

The project “Job Fit” aims to create equal access to the employment of persons with disabilities, as well as to encourage a more open and inclusive labor market in Serbia.

“The project will provide psychosocial support and career guidance to people with disabilities, while employers will be trained on how to create an inclusive working environment,” said Jovana Krivokuća-Milovanović, executive director of the Youth with disabilities Forum. “In the next year, in two local self-government, the project will support innovative “start-up” financing models and companies that employ people with disabilities”.

Through the Portal – www.zaposljavanje.fmi.rs, which was developed with the support of the European Union and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), and which serves to connect people with disabilities who are looking for work and employers, candidates will be able to create their profiles and apply for current job ads, while employers will have the opportunity to directly preselect candidates from the Portal.

“It is planned that the city of Novi Sad will allocate 20 million dinars for retraining in the IT sector, and priority will be given to people with disabilities, for whom we will provide free courses, and that is why we are looking forward to becoming part of this story and this great project” – said Dr. Nenad Ivanišević, Provincial Secretary for Economy and Tourism of the city of Novi Sad.

Dr. Lidija Tomaš, head of the City Administration for Social and Child Protection of the City of Novi Sad, reminded that at the level of this local self-government, at the end of last year, a decision was made on accessibility, which will contribute to working to overcome barriers within this project, and pointed out: “It is necessary is the application of accessibility standards both in the facilities themselves and in the workplaces themselves for the employment of persons with disabilities.”

“The goal is to promote a labor market that is equal for everyone, and the media are important partners in this process,” said Ana Koeshall, director of the Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation.

The project “Job Fit” is implemented by the Youth with Disabilities Forum with the support of the American Agency for International Development (USAID) and in cooperation with partners: Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation, Caritas Serbia, Smart Kolektiv and the Center for Independent Living of Persons with Disabilities.

Project activities will be implemented at the national level with a focus on Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš, Subotica, Zrenjanin and Valjevo.