The EU will continue its support in employment and social policy: EUR 15,3 million for the new program

The European Union (EU) will continue to support Montenegro in employment, education and social policy by signing the Financial Agreement for the new Operational Program in the period 2015-2017 worth 15,3 million euros, it was announced at today's conference.

At the conference, the goals, achievements and future steps within the Operational Program "Human Resources Development 2012-2013" were presented.

Director General of the Directorate for European Integration, Programming and Implementation of EU Funds from the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, Ljiljana Simović, said that the Program's first goal is access to the European Social Fund, through strengthening administrative capacities and educating the entire Montenegrin society about the possibilities of using funds from of the mentioned fund.

As she stated, this is also the closing criterion for chapter 19 - Social policy and employment.

"Implementation of projects within the Operational Program is ongoing, and some of them are coming to an end. The projects are focused on priorities that are of particular importance, because they support the key challenges faced by Montenegro, but also the whole of Europe, which relate to the areas of employment, education, research and social inclusion", the Ministry announced.

It is stated that the implementation of grant projects for which 2,2 million euros have been allocated, a total of 18, of which nine are focused on the training and employment of young people, women and the long-term unemployed, and nine are intended for the training of persons with disabilities and RE population.

As announced, additional 14 grant projects, which are being implemented in the value of around 330 thousand euros, serve to improve the cooperation of the sectors of higher education, research and industry.

"The continuation of EU support to the employment, education and social policy sector is also reflected in the upcoming signing of the Financial Agreement for the new Operational Program for the period 2015-2017 in the amount of 15,3 million euros," the announcement states.

Acting Director General of the Directorate for Financing and Contracting of EU Aid Funds in the Ministry of Finance, Katarina Živković, said that significant results were achieved even though the Operational Program started to be implemented relatively late.

She added that there are currently four contracts for the procurement of equipment for secondary vocational schools in the fields of agriculture, mechatronics, electronics and mechanics and for the textile industry.

Also, a total of 32 grant contracts were awarded to non-governmental organizations, local governments, centers for social work, the Employment Service, private companies, professional associations, religious organizations, and the results of all projects implemented within the Operational Program will be presented at the Project Fair, which will to be organized in the following period.

The program manager at the EU Delegation in Montenegro, Roman Botard, announced the support of the EU to the Government of Montenegro in the amount of 15,3 million euros, which will be implemented in the coming years as part of the IPA perspective II.

"In this way, the EU will support Montenegro's transition path towards an economy based on knowledge, a qualified workforce, which will increase not only the number of jobs, but also their quality," the statement said.

As explained, the implementation of the Operational Program "Human Resources Development 2012-2013" officially began in December 2014, when the financial agreement was signed, and ends on December 31, 2017.

"The total value of the Operational Program at this moment is 5,8 million euros and it is divided in the ratio of 85 percent IPA funds, 15 percent national co-financing", according to the Ministry.