Youth and Public Policy in Serbia

YOUTH POLICY REVIEW SERIES Youth and Public Policy in Serbia Recently, Serbia has made significant strides in developing policies that respond to the concerns of its youth. The adoption of a national Law on Youth in 2011 was a significant step forward in the realization of young people’s rights. But young people continue to face significant obstacles on the road from childhood to adulthood. Youth and Public Policy in Serbia sheds light on the opportunities and challenges confronting young people in Serbia. About the Youth Policy Review Series Tanja Azanjac Donatella Bradic This review series researches and analyzes public policies affecting youth. Djordje Krivokapic Many countries have stated their youth policies, but are they executing Marlene Spoerri them? Do these policies allow young people to achieve their rights? How do youth policies interact with broader policies that affect young people? Tatjana Stojic Country-specific titles lay out the evidence on which young people, their organizations, and the entire youth sector, can advocate for the adoption and implementation of sound national and international youth policies, and hold governments, agencies and donors to account on the promises they make to young people. Youth and Public Policy in ISBN 9783944859040 Serbia A publication of WWW.YOUTHPOLICY.ORG/REVIEWS 9 783944 859040 Youth Policy Press YOUTH POLICY REVIEW SERIES Youth and Public Policy in Serbia A publication of Youth Policy Press Research Team International Editorial Board Tanja Azanjac Robert Thomson Donatella Bradic Djordje Krivokapić Project Coordination Tatjana Stojic Yael Ohana Milosz Czerniejewski Local Coordinator Andreas Karsten Tatjana Stojic John Muir International Advisor Marlene Spoerri Copyright © 2014 by Youth Policy Press www.youthpolicypress.com First edition printed in 2012 Second edition printed in 2014 This youth policy review has been generously supported by the Open Society Foundations · www.opensocietyfoundations.org ISBN 978-3-944859-04-0 Design by Maximilian Kall This work is made available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0 carbon neutral Printed by Druckerei Lokay in Reinheim, natureOffice.comcarbon | DE-344-005716 neutral natureOffice.com | DE-344-005716 Germany, on 100% recovered paper printprint production production with EU Ecolabel Youth Policy Press, Alt-Moabit 89, DG, D-10559 Berlin Tel +49 30 394 052 555, Fax +49 30 394 052 505 [email protected] III Contents Executive Summary 1 1 Introduction 1.1 Rationale for the Pilot Review 8 1.2 Rationale for the Review in Serbia 9 1.3 Objectives 10 1.4 Methods and Approach 11 1.5 Challenges and Limitations 12 1.6 Conclusions 13 2 Background on Youth 2.1 Introduction 18 2.2 Context 18 2.3 Key Issues Affecting Young People 23 2.3.1 Leisure Time 24 2.3.2 Access to Information 26 2.3.3 Employment 27 2.3.4 Mobility and Migration 31 2.3.5 Education 33 2.3.6 Health 36 2.3.7 Participation 39 2.3.8 Crime and Violence 43 2.4 Youth Visibility 47 2.5 Conclusion 49 IV 3 Youth and Public Policy 3.1 Introduction 52 3.2 Key Definitions 52 3.3 Development of Youth Policy 53 3.3.1 Youth Policy in Tito’s Yugoslavia 53 3.3.2 Youth Policy in Milosevic’s Serbia 56 3.3.3 Youth Policy, 2000–2007 57 3.3.4 Youth Policy, 2007–2011 59 3.4 Youth Policy in 2012 61 3.4.1 National Youth Strategy 62 3.4.2 National Youth Action Plan 66 3.4.3 Law on Youth 67 3.4.4 Local Youth Action Plans 69 3.4.5 Intersectoral Legislation Dealing with Youth 70 3.5 Institutions for Implementation 71 3.5.1 Ministry of Youth and Sport 71 3.5.2 National Youth Council 72 3.5.3 Local Youth Councils 73 3.5.4 Local Youth Offices 73 3.5.5 Agency for Youth 75 3.5.6 Civil Society 75 3.6 Financing 76 3.7 Monitoring and Evaluation 77 3.8 International Support and Alignment with International Standards 78 3.9 Conclusion 80 4 Intersectoral Coordination 4.1 Introduction 84 4.2 Coordination Mechanisms 84 4.3 Employment 85 4.3.1 Institutions 86 4.3.2 Policies 87 4.3.3 Implementation and Outcomes 91 4.4 Health 96 V 4.4.1 Policies 97 4.4.2 Implementation and Coherence 98 4.4.3 Monitoring and Evaluation 100 4.4.4 Outcomes and Effectiveness 101 4.5 Formal Education 103 4.5.1 Policies 104 4.5.2 Institutions 106 4.5.3 Implementation and Outcomes 107 4.6 Nonformal Education 110 4.6.1 Institutions 111 4.6.2 Policies 113 4.6.3 Resources 114 4.7 Conclusion 115 5 Vulnerable Groups 5.1 Introduction 118 5.2 Groups Recognized in Policy 118 5.3 Groups Overlooked by Policy 130 5.4 Conclusion 133 6 Conclusion 6.1 Introduction 136 6.2 Steps Forward 136 6.3 Gaps 137 6.4 Recommendations 141 Bibliography 144 Appendix I: Research Plan 149 Appendix II: Focus Group Results 155 Appendix III: Questionnaire 158 Appendix IV: List of Interviews 172 Appendix V: About the Authors 175 VI Tables and Figures Tables 1 Leisure Time of Serbian Youth 25 2 Percentage of Young People Who Have Traveled Outside of Serbia 32 3 Party Membership (by %) 41 4 Definitions of “Youth” 54 5 Principles Underlying National Youth Strategy 63 6 Objectives of the National Youth Strategy 64 7 Classification of Youth by Age 65 8 Classification by Vulnerability 66 9 Principles of Youth Policy as Specified by Law on Youth 68 10 Institutions Responsible for Youth Employment Policy 86 11 Employment Action Plan Objectives 89 12 Macroeconomic and Sectoral Employment Policies 92 13 A Look at Serbia’s “First Chance” Program 96 14 Questionnaire Results on Formal Education 110 Figures 1 GDP Per Capita 1989–1999 20 2 Unemployment rates by age groups 2005–2010 29 3 Science TIMSS Grade 8 Scores 108 4 Math TIMSS Grade 8 Score 108 VII List of Acronyms CeSID Center for Free Elections and Democracy EU European Union FRY Federal Republic of Yugoslavia GDP Gross Domestic Product ICTY International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia IDP Internally Displaced Person ILO International Labor Organization IOM International Organization for Migration KOMS Umbrella Organization for the Youth of Serbia LGBTI Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual, Intergender MERD Ministry of Economy and Regional Development MoYS Ministry of Youth and Sport OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development OSCE Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe RSD Republic of Serbia Dinars SRS Serbian Radical Party STD Sexually Transmitted Disease UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund USAID United States Agency for International Development YCS Youth Coalition of Serbia Executive Summary n recent years, Serbia has made significant strides in developing policies that are cognizant of and responsive to the concerns of Serbia’s youth. The adoption in 2011 of a national Law on Youth represents a significant step forward in the realization of young people’s rights. But, while Ser- Ibia’s youth has made demonstrable headway in the policy domain, young people continue to face significant obstacles on the road from childhood to adulthood. This review sheds light on the opportunities and challenges confronting young people in Serbia, as well as how Serbia’s youth might successfully advocate for policies and reforms that overcome such obstacles. Young people between the ages of 15 and 31 make up about 20 percent of the population in Serbia. Confronted by a graying population and the hardships of a post-communist, post-conflict transition, these young people faced enormous obstacles over the course of the past decade. On the economic front, while Serbia has experienced steady gains in GDP since the democratic changes of 2000, Serbia’s young people continue to suffer from high rates of unemployment, a lack of access to the labor market, and vulnerability to macroeconomic instability. On the political front, while Ser- bia has successfully made the transition to an electoral democratic state, young people continue to be far removed from decision-making processes and are often denied a voice in the decisions that affect their lives. To remedy this, in 2007 Serbia launched a multifaceted, participatory strategy to develop a national youth policy. In that year, it established the Ministry of Youth and Sport (MoYS) and charged it with overseeing that policy. In 2008, in consultation with youth policy experts, civil society organizations, intersectoral ministries, and thousands of young people themselves, the MoYS drafted Serbia’s first National Youth Strategy. The follow- 2 · YOUTH AND PUBLIC POLICY IN SERBIA ing year it adopted an Action Plan that delineated the tools and activities through which to realize the ambitions laid out in the Strategy. In 2011, for the very first time, Serbia’s parliament adopted a national Law on Youth—to go into effect in 2012. The passage of the Law on Youth and the creation of a coherent national strategy are important steps in empowering Serbia’s young people. The policy that has thus far developed may be applauded for the following reasons: » A Participatory Process: The process that led to the development of the National Youth Strategy, Action Plan, and Law on Youth was broadly in- clusive and engaged experts, civil society organizations, youth groups, and young people themselves from all across Serbia. » Recognition of Civil Society: Civil society formed an important partner throughout the development of Serbia’s Youth Strategy, and it has been reflected in the Law on Youth.

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