(Results for phase I, phase II just started)

The ASB conducted 915 workshops for 1,912 individual beneficiaries (children, young people and adults). 1,765 children and young people regularly take part in workshops for support for school. The ASB has improved three good neighbourhood clubs to make them into information and support points for people going through the reintegration process.

179 young people, children and adults have volunteered to support returnees and vulnerable people on location. Volunteers have been trained to empower them to continue their support after the ASB project. In order to deepen intercultural dialogue between the population groups, the ASB organised ten cultural events. Three legal advisers provided by the ASB provided legal assistance to 753 returnees and the local population.

365 returnees received health and social services and were informed by the ASB of other initiatives of local institutions or organisations.

The ASB commissioned an initial market study entitled “Analysis of supply and demand in the labour market in Novi Pazar Tutin and Sjenica” to be conducted. It organised 22 business training sessions on strategic planning, corporate development and marketing (88 training days in total) for 255 participants. 173 trainees, including 129 returnees, developed business plans and were supported by trainers. 98 business plans were selected. 98 beneficiaries, of which 75 men and 23 women – 68 returnees and 30 locals, received machines or tools worth 3,000 euros.

50 beneficiaries participated in and completed a vocational training programme of the ASB, among them drivers, accountants, hairdressers, cosmeticians. They also had the opportunity to establish contacts with companies interested in hiring new employees.

The ASB held 56 expert days on the topic of business consulting, monitoring and training in cooperation with accredited institutions.

The ASB set up three community centres in Novi Pazar, Tutin and Sjenica and equipped them with furniture, computers, printers, projectors, kitchen and toilet facilities. The community centres serve as meeting places for returnees and the local population. The ASB set up working groups in three municipalities to provide advisory services for returnees. The members of the working groups were trained through seminars, study visits and the exchange of experiences with the municipality of Bogatić. The ASB advised five non-governmental organisations on licensing. ASB staff created licensing documentation that is available to all other service providers in the sector. Together with other partners, a social protection strategy was developed for Novi Pazar with the aim of supporting social services in the region.

The ASB informed at least a quarter of the population of the Sandzak region about the ASB project activities as well as the challenges of returnees and irregular migration. The ASB organised 49 prime-time television appearances on local and regional television stations during the first 25-month project phase. The majority of the 120,000 inhabitants of the Sandzak region follow the television stations that the ASB used for its dissemination of information. The estimated minimum reach per television appearance is 10,000 people. The ASB’s social networks and the digital media of all ASB partners disseminated information on the activities with a particular focus on the difficulties of the returning population and the possibilities of how to achieve sustainable integration. This led to 78 posts on online portals.