Sonja Đuričković from Danilovgrad is a mother of three. She was unemployed for more than 7 years and was unsuccessfully trying to find a job. Thanks to the EU’s support provided through the EMPLOYED project, she got the opportunity to acquire new knowledge and skills and to get a job at Lamex, a company from this town, located on the banks of the Zeta River.
“I gained a lot of experience. Whatever I needed, my colleagues helped me and I am very grateful for this opportunity,” said Sonja in an interview for the Europe House.
This opportunity was also valuable for Danilovgrad companies.
“Six people attended a 2-months training. Sonja is one of them. She proved to be a good worker and was given a chance to prove herself and to progress her career”, said Marko Vukčević from the Lamex company.
Through this project for the long-term unemployed, we helped 22 people not only to get a temporary job in domestic companies, but also to acquire skills and valuable professional experience.
“I am always happy when I see how EU funds really affect people’s lives and existence, which was definitely the case here in Danilovgrad. I believe that a lot of key work can be done at the local level to fulfil the conditions that need to be met for Montenegro to access the EU,” said the Head of the EU Delegation to Montenegro, Oana Cristina Popa.
For the first time, the Municipality of Danilovgrad is implementing the EU-financed EMPLOYED project, which provides direct financial support to employers for employment on the territory of the Municipality.
“We are pleased that the implementation of the project was successful, and that with the support of the European Union and the Government of Montenegro, we had the opportunity to influence to a certain extent the improvement of business opportunities and the reduction of unemployment in our city”, emphasized the manager of the EMPLOYED project and a member of the Municipality of Danilovgrad’s Project Management Team, Ms Simona Bošković.
The local administration and the project implementation team made a special effort to provide all the necessary support in the process of applying for the Public Call. They organized workshops and info days to familiarize both employers and long-term unemployed persons, for whom this project was primarily intended, with the Call itself.
As part of the EMPLOYED project in the Municipality of Danilovgrad, through grants from the European Union, with co-financing from the Government of Montenegro and Danilovgrad’s local self-government, opportunities for on-the-job training were created for around 50 persons, and 22 of them were employed.
Behind these figures are just as many individuals and their families, who had the opportunity to acquire new knowledge and skills, but also to provide new income for a better quality of life.
The total budget of the EMPLOYED project is more than 275 thousand euros.