Bujanovac, Presevo, Medvedja – The number of young people that are out of work decreased by 23,000 last year. The highest percentage of unemployed young people is still in South Serbia, 34 percent of them. However, that figure is gradually reduced by the arrival of large companies and the development of small businesses there. Young people have ideas, but their biggest problem is money.

In Bujanovac, which has 43,000 inhabitants, nearly six thousand people are of work.  Of them, almost one in four are under the age of 30.

Stefan Manasijevic decided to start his own beehives business. He applied to the European Progress Program and the Government of Switzerland and received a donation of 10,000 euros.

“My greatest problem was the money. I had a good and worked out idea. I do not worry about the placement of my goods on the market, since beekeeping is on the rise“, Stefan Manasijevic said.

The municipality of Bujanovac earmarked ten million dinars from its budget for running businesses. There are a great deal of projects and ideas, but not enough money. There is another problem, which is obvious in practice.

“I believe that lower tax rates would contribute to young people being more successful.  According to statistics, their businesses operate well over the first two years, while the third year is risky. Then, they either close down or need incentives, "said Fazila Azemovic from the Local Economic Development Office in Bujanovac.

 "Making the decision to start your own business is hard," says Danijela Novkovic from Vranje, who bought a refrigerator for raspberries with the money from donation, thereby ensuring the continued operation of her family’s company.  

"In addition to money, the most important thing for starting a business is the provision of mentoring. Although there are a lot of educated young people, they lack practical working experience. That should be acquired at faculties, so that young people could have a lot of practice that they would later use in their businesses”, Danijela says.

Responsible persons say that the government keeps these problems in mind. It gradually introduces dual training, as well as organizes training for starting up business and retraining.

“We help them with writing business plans, running their businesses and give them subsidies, and, thereafter, implement some sort of mentoring, follow-up their work after the founding of their businesses, so that they could maintain them for a longer period of time," says Zoran Marinkovic, Director of the National Employment Office.

The most important thing is that young people stay in South Serbia, for which, apart from starting small businesses, the arrival of large companies is crucial.

“Thanks to geographic advantages of South Serbia and its closeness to Corridor 10, a large number of investors has been lately employing young people in that part of the country, so that that region is no longer at a disadvantage compared to other regions," Mr. Marinkovic says.  

In practice, the best recipe for reducing unemployment of the young is when they take things into their own hands and get the financial resources either from the EU funds, or from the government’s ones.  Naturally, the government’s support to the construction of infrastructure  and roads is a big plus.

Source: Radio and Television of Serbia and Coordination Body