In response to the high rate of youth unemployment, which is as high as 43% in Serbia and the fact that young people need an average of two years after finishing school/studies to find the first job, the organization Center E8 and Association of high school students started a major national project “Future #for5“.
The project is also supported by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Coca-Cola Foundation and V+O Communication.
“It is no coincidence that we today, on the International Students’ Day decided to start this national project for youth that will be carried out by youth. Through a series of activities that we have prepared and which will be implemented by the end of 2017, the idea is to empower high school students to be more proactive in seeking employment, but also to be open to various forms of non-formal education and thus create a path for “Future for 5”, just like the name of the project ” said Maja Josic, coordinator of the project “Future #for5 ” and program manager of the Center E8.
By the end of 2017, within the project “Future #for5” a series of educational and informative activities will be organized. High school students will be able to attend a variety of lectures, panel discussions and educational workshops in more than 10 cities in Serbia.
Topics that will be covered by the project are divided into five categories, ranging from the presentation of modern professions through workshops #for5 – during which young people will be prepared for an encounter with their future employer, education on entrepreneurship and all the topics on how young people can quickly and easily start their own business, solving case studies and use of modern technologies for business purposes are also some of the topics that will be covered by the project.
On behalf of Association of high school students that brings together more than 160 high schools and more than 60,000 young people, Jovana Jankov spoke, member of Board of directors, stressing the importance of this project for the fulfilment of a better future and empowerment of young people. She particularly emphasized the fact that on this project young people will work with young people, because they are the ones who best understand the challenges they face every day in high school.
In addition to activities for high school students, the project “The Future for 5” will deal with the college students, in a manner that Career Days in student centres in five university cities in Serbia will be organized which will inspire more than 35.000 students to start thinking about a career on time and to apply for various programs of non-formal education and internship. Various companies will have the opportunity to present their internship programs.
About the importance of non-formal education for better dealing with the future employer, Milica Stefanovic, Communications Manager at Coca-Cola stated: “For four years we are successfully dealing with the training program for students of final year, graduates and students of master programs through six weeks internship that we provide. During the internship, young people not only acquire various practical experiences and awareness of how the company works, but they also pass directly through training programs that are specially prepared for them. As a result of this project, some young people have already become our colleagues and others were easily recruited by other employers. With that in mind, it was a logical step to support this project that deals with empowerment of young people, but also gives a wider contribution to the whole local community in terms of reducing the unemployment rate.” said Milica Stefanovic.
Ministry of Youth and Sports has supported the project “Future for 5”, whose main, expected result is to reduce youth unemployment by creating a platform for non-formal education and youth activism that directly corresponds with key strategic priorities of the Ministry of Youth and Sports – youth employment, defined in the new youth strategy for the period 2015-2025.