Belgrade – The competition for internships of young members of the Albanian, Bosnian and Roma minorities in the Serbian state institutions ended yesterday. On that occasion, Suzana Paunovic, the Director of the Office for Human and Minority Rights, said that the fourth year in a row 10 or 11 new trainees would be able to learn about the operation of the governmental institutions.  

“The internship program is conducted for the fourth year in a row, while 40 young people had already completed it.  This year we’ll probably have 10 or 11 new interns”, said Ms. Paunovic.

According to her, as part of the program, members of the national minorities have the opportunity to do internship in the governmental bodies, including the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, the Ministry of Culture, the Office for Human and Minority Rights and the Coordination Body for the Municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja.

“The Ministry of Health, the Poverty Reduction Team and the Office for Cooperation with Civil Society will join us this year.  They are all of our partners who are willing to accept the interns, provide them with mentors, giving them the adequate space and, most importantly , teach them how to work”, Ms. Paunovic said.  

According to her, the interns will spend six months on doing internship, during which they will receive salaries and have accommodation provided in Belgrade.  She pointed out that the internship program was open to final year students of the Faculties of Social Studies, but also to the students who have completed their faculties.  

“It is important that the interns are the Serbian citizens and members of the Albanian, Bosnian and Roma ethnic minorities”, said Ms. Paunovic.

The Director of the Office for Human and Minority Rights explained that following the expiry of the competition, the commission, which would consist of representatives of all the ministries in which the internship program would be implemented, would make a selection of the candidates. She also said that the candidates would be interviewed because, as she said, their aim wasn’t to select the interns on the basis of their biographies and the evidence of their completion of secondary school, but the most motivated young people. 

When it comes to young people who completed the program in previous years, she pointed out that a number of interns had found work, but she noted that the program wasn’t set up well.

“The program under which the interns remain in the civil service isn’t set up well since it is unrealistic due to the restrictions that are at the level of the state administration when it comes to employing new people.”, said Ms. Paunovic, adding that the previous group of interns was taught how to be competitive on the labor market.  

According to her, they were trained how to write their CVs, where to look for their employments chances, how and in what manner to seek information from the National Employment Service and how to turn to the private sector, where one should look for opportunities.

Source: “Tanjug” News Agency and Coordination Body