The Association of Youth Work Practitioners will advocate for the improvement of youth work as a key tool for empowering young people, creating an inclusive environment, setting high standards of professionalism and quality, as well as recognizing youth work practitioners as important actors in youth policy through the legislative framework.
This was reported by the PR Center at the founding assembly of the Professional Association of Youth Work Practitioners, organized by the Youth and Non-Formal Education Forum - Forum MNE.
Ajša Hadžibegović, a youth worker with many years of experience, was elected president of the Association of Practitioners of Youth Work, the vice-presidents are Aleksandra Gligorović and Mirela Rajković, while the president of the Assembly of the Association is Dejana Dizdar.
Hadžibegović said that the establishment of the Association of Practitioners of Youth Work is the realization of a 20-year dream.
"This significant step has the potential to bring recognition of the profession of youth work in Montenegro and its contribution to the development of society. This is something we have dreamed of for two decades, since the first steps in creating what we call today youth work. Although this profession is still not formally recognized, our goal is to work through this Association to establish it and point out its importance for society," said Hadžibegović.
She emphasized the importance of youth work for young people, but also for society as a whole, describing it as the key to building a democratic society in which human rights are respected and equal opportunities are provided for all generations.
"What we adopted today in terms of the vision, mission and key goals of the Association clearly defines what needs to be done. The task before us is to determine precisely what we mean by youth work at the internal level and how to bring it closer to the public", explained Hadžibegović.
She pointed out that one of the key challenges is defining the quality standards of youth work and its recognition by institutions and social actors.
"Youth work should become part of the systemic response to social challenges that affect young people. Our vision includes popularizing youth work and building a community of practitioners. "Today in Montenegro, there are a large number of people who work with young people, but they may not recognize themselves as professionals in this field or they do not have the necessary competencies for such a responsible job," said Hadžibegović.
She said that there is a lot of work ahead to create a strong community of practitioners and strengthen youth work as a profession that can provide solutions for many challenges of young people and society as a whole.
Project manager of the MNE Forum, Anđelija Lučić, said that youth work and informal education are key to developing skills, empowering young people and creating communities that encourage participation and social change.
"However, in Montenegro we face a lack of standardized programs, professional staff and sustainable services for young people. The profession of youth worker is not formally recognized, and youth work programs are mostly implemented by non-governmental organizations. However, the contents of those programs vary significantly, there is no quality assurance system, and the services offered to young people are often fragmented, unsustainable and insufficiently accessible to all young people in all municipalities. This state of affairs results in weak support for young people during the transition to adulthood," said Lučić.
She reminded that in June 2023, the MNE Forum gathered practitioners of youth work in order to identify key challenges.
"During the meeting, the need for formal recognition of the profession of youth worker through the Youth Act was highlighted, as well as for the establishment of a professional association that would improve the status and position of those who work with young people," stated Lučić.
She invited all relevant actors to join their efforts to improve the quality of youth work and informal education, in order to jointly create better conditions for young people throughout Montenegro.
Member of the Association of Youth Work Practitioners, Andrea Mićanović, emphasized the importance of professionalization and standardization of youth work, which is still not recognized as a profession in Montenegro.
"It is very important that we have an organization that will deal with advocating a legal solution that will enable youth workers to perform their activities in a manner recognized by law. This will enable them to work with young people, improve youth policies and contribute to the development of our society," Mićanović said.
She explained that the Statute of the Association, which was adopted today, deals with issues such as the mission, vision and goals of the organization, activities, structure and membership.
"I believe that the Association will act in accordance with what is written in the Statute and that it will not remain just a dead letter on paper. Our goal is for the current practitioners of youth work in Montenegro to network and work together on initiatives that will lead to the professionalization of this activity," Mićanović pointed out.
He believes that the professionalization and standardization of youth work are key to the improvement of youth policies and the development of Montenegrin society.
"The association will be the initiator of initiatives that will enable youth workers to contribute to the creation of better opportunities for young people, as well as for overall social progress," said Mićanović.
Forum MNE supports the process of establishing a professional association of youth work practitioners through the Core grant of the SMART Balkan regional project Civil society for a connected Western Balkans, which is implemented by the Center for the Promotion of Civil Society (CPCD) from Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Center for Research and Policy Making (CRPM). from North Macedonia and the Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM) from Albania, and financially supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway.
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