Boosting professional opportunities for youth from minority and under-developed areas
Anita Mahmutović, a geographer from the Bosniak-majority municipality of Sjenica, Serbia, was thrilled to learn about the Mission to Serbia’s Professional Practice Programme, which enables young professionals from national minority–populated and underdeveloped areas to spend six months working with state institutions. Participants gain experience while supporting the implementation of the rule of law and Serbia’s reform agenda.
“I saw it as an opportunity to gain knowledge and new skills,” says Anita. “I dedicated myself completely during those six months.” She worked closely with her mentor and other senior colleagues at the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue to get acquainted with the Ministry’s procedures and to build her expertise. She also developed a range of professional skills, including problem-solving, prioritizing and negotiating, as well as working both independently and in a team.
Implemented in partnership with the Serbian Government since 2019, the Mission’s Professional Practice Programme has so far placed 21 young professionals from the Albanian, Bosniak and Serb communities at nine ministries and agencies. They include, among others, the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government; the Agency for Prevention of Corruption; the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology; the Office of the Commissioner for Protection of Equality; and the Co-ordination Body for Preševo, Bujanovac and Medveđa. Many participants have continued their employment with state institutions since completing the Programme.
Anita is one of them. After completing her professional practice in the Programme’s 2020–2021 cycle, she was hired for a post in the Sector for Co-operation with Civil Society at the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue. Now she is putting her newly developed skills and expertise to use by managing documentation in support of the Ministry’s joint projects with civil society organizations and as the Ministry’s focal point for communicating with them. It is a responsible task, as this newly created ministry places dialogue with various social groups at the forefront of its work.
Anita is convinced that the Professional Practice Programme is an important investment in young people from smaller communities, giving them opportunities for the professional development of their choice. The Programme not only opens up new pathways of opportunity, but it also enables young women and men from these communities to contribute to their country’s progress. This is inclusive youth participation in action. One of the Programme’s most important lessons, Anita says, is that “through commitment and hard work we can achieve great things”.
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This story is drawn from the OSCE's 2021 Annual Report, page 51.
