The collective centre Krnjača, opened in 1993, will close today as the last of the 45 vulnerable former refugee and internally displaced families move into their new EU-funded apartments in Kamendin, municipality of Zemun.
Deputy Head of the European Union Delegation to the Republic of Serbia Oskar Benedikt, UNHCR Representative in Serbia Hans Friedrich Schodder, Deputy Mayor of the City of Belgrade and the Commissioner for Refugees Andreja Mladenović and Migration of the Republic of Serbia Vladimir Cucić visited the beneficiary families in the settlement Kamendin.
Twenty four former refugee and twelve IDP families accommodated in the collective centre “Krnjača” as well as nine socially vulnerable families from the territory of the City of Belgrade received a sustainable housing solution within the framework of the European Union project „For a better life”.
This project is funded by the European Union and co-funded and implemented by UNHCR. The total value of the new residential building and household equipment is more than EUR 1 million. The project was implemented in close cooperation with the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration of the Republic of Serbia, as a competent institution for resolving housing needs of refugees and IDPs and NGO Vizija. The City of Belgrade donated construction land and infrastructure.
The concept of Social Housing in Supportive Environment is included in the Strategy for Development and Social Protection of the Republic of Serbia, and has been assessed as the best and most suitable solution for the remaining residents of collective centres. It provides housing for the most vulnerable families in need of additional support from the local centres for social welfare. To date, more than 1000 units of social housing in supportive environment were built throughout Serbia, of which 650 with the European Union funds.
The beneficiaries of units in Akrobate Aleksića bb in the settlement Kamendin, City municipality of Zemun will hold the right to use the units as long as they are in social need. The building will have a host family to act as a link between the residents and the Centre for Social Welfare in Belgrade providing them with necessary additional support.
More information about the project:
The Project “Support to the Improvement of the Living Conditions of Forced Migrants and Closure of Collective Centres” is funded by the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Serbia and implemented by UNHCR with the support of the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration of the Republic of Serbia and the Municipality of Belgrade. This Project is part of a more comprehensive program funded by the European Union supporting improvement of living conditions for forced migrants – “For a Better Life“, with a total value of EUR 14.2 million.
