|
ONLINE VERSION |
|
|
PRINT VERSION |
|
Panel: Strategies’ Solutions for Youth Issues in Macedonia.
Regional Cooperation in Youth Projects – between fancy and usual life style
Since the NGO market is still dominated by foreign donors and money is power they are the designers of the fashion within the NGO world since couple of years. One of the trend was the regional cooperation equal haute couture for many of us. Is this is still in fashion or is over-passed by new others? For some donors you we have to wear this fancy coat that is complicated to make it in order to solve the appearances: find a partner most of the time in the last minute, give them a task to look serious, negotiate the how much is taking each part if the money comes.
The presentation will respond to the question is the regional cooperation really useful or is just a path preach by donor so, a way to increase the funds and visibility of our own organizations. Many donors in the region initiating funds to support mutual cooperation in the region and many of the organizations who wanted to apply to European Union funds or Stability Pact recall the hard work we have to carry in order to get partners and to finalize a happy agreement and a successful program. Is there any use of and if this criteria will disappear we will continue to look at our neighbor country as a potential partner, client or competitor.
The experience of BCYF (Balkan Children and Youth foundation) as a key player in supporting youth NGOs in the 10 countries in the region shows that there is no willingness to cross border cooperation in the region although this might position get your project among the preferences. Meantime the partnership program our organization initiated shows the potential of such a program. For example the Center for Business Development of Pristine visited CEDU 2000+ in Bucharest to learn more about how to build an incubator for youth entrepreneurship, Civic Initiatives Serbia got together with Youth Democracy from Zagreb to exchange experience in training for young people civic participation.
While many of us are looking at the West countries as advanced models, very good examples and lessons learned can be just next door to our neighbors. The cooperation can be extended from NGO-NGO cooperation to our colleagues from government particular these times when most of the countries are leaving the fever of youth policy. The Croatian model in this respect or the lessons learned from Romania can serve to authorities, international organization and youth organizations value information about coalition building and the power of advocacy. In addition, some of the NGOs had been more or less successful in involving business people in their work and Romania offers several good lessons learned that can bee copied and worth trying.
The youth regional cooperation has extended to various networks and offered several good examples that can serve to various purposes as exchange of experience, access to information and to funds. Youth NET, South Eastern European Youth Network, Balkan Idea, Youth Employment Summit, are few examples.
The exercise of regional cooperation is costing time and compromises. Since we are all lagging behind in partnerships at local level is hard to consider the cross countries ones particular when there cultural differences and not only. The cooperation it works only if the benefit is very visible: most of the time money since visibility is not part of the fashion. What about new ideas – stolen or copyrighted, new friends, different cultures and traditions? Or what about the cutting age fashion: merging of organizations so often present in business organization?
Skopje, November 19, 2003
Lorita Constantinescu
Program Manager
BCYF
|
|
|
|
 “Give pleasure to your boss!!!”These days, a new commercial about a new coffee brand appeared on TV. I presume you’ve already seen it. A secretary slips when bringing coffee to her boss, slides down his desk on her stomach to stop in front of him with the coffee in her hand? I am not sure how you react to it, but after I had seen it for the first time I was left with my mouth open. It was a mixed feeling of bewilderment, sickness, disbelief…how could somebody think of something like that? How could nobody react to this commercial?
|  |
“Mesecina” and “Arka” work on registering adults
People are born for the second time after obtaining personal documentsBari, Alisa, Dzejlan and a list of other names are just some of the examples for successful work of the Roma information centers of the humanitarian organization Mesecina from Gostivar. Despite being adults, they have recently been given their first birth certificate and have practically been born for the second time. | |
Civic resistance for the restarting of the melting plant in Veles
The Green Coalition insists on dislocating the polluterIt was so alive on 16 February in Veles! The event “Veleska pastrmajlija” was taking place at the pizza-bar “Snoopy”. The event has a special purpose – collecting money for the Children Ward at the Town Hospital. The action was organized by the “Focus” Foundation, in cooperation with the municipality of Veles. | |
Expeditio, Kotor, Montenegro
Our vision is a quality space for better lifeWe decided to make an unusual interview with three people, as they themselves are unusual, as well as the association they are members of. Aleksandra Kapetanovic, Biljana Gligorovic and Tatjana Rajic are three young architects, who dedicate their creativity, knowledge and enthusiasm to cultural heritage, architecture, spatial planning and the civic sector in Montenegro, particularly focused on Boka Kotorska and its surroundings. | |
Violeta Tanceva – Zlateva
My attitude towards the language“People who are of the same origin and who speak the same words and who live and make friends of each other, who have the same customs and songs and entertainment are what we call a nation, and the place where that people lives is called the people's country. Thus the Macedonians also are a nation and the place which is theirs is called Macedonia.”
| |
Armenian community in the Republic of Macedonia
About 110 families cherish both the Armenian and the Macedonian cultureThe genesis of the Armenian communities on the territory of today’s Macedonia goes back to the medieval times as can be proved by the numerous papers, traveling notes by foreign travelers who stayed or passed through the towns where among other nations, lived the Armenians. | |
|
|
