Measure 1.2: Cross- Cross-border initiatives targeting the exchange of people and ideas to enhance the professional and civic society cooperation.
Project Title: School for farmers
Project Budget:
| Project Value | EU Contribution | |
| Republic of Serbia | € 21,423.97 | € 15,158.97 |
| Montenegro | € 33,301.00 | € 27,610.00 |
| TOTAL | € 54,724.97 | € 42,768.97 |
Beneficiary of funds in the Republic of Serbia: Agronomic Centre
Beneficiary of funds in Montenegro: NGO Centre for Development of Agriculture
Partners: Employment Agency of Montenegro, Regional Centre Bijelo Polje;
National Employment Service, Prijepolje Branch Office
Area of implementation:
• Montenegro: Municipalities of Bijelo Polje and Mojkovac
• Serbia: Municipalities of Prijepolje and Priboj
The target groups of the project: NGOs, unemployed from the records of agencies Bijelo Polje MNE, and Prijepolje SRB, 30 trainees.
Project duration: 16/11/2010 – 30/09/2011
Project objectives: The overall objective: To develop agriculture through cross-border cooperation, strengthen the process of food production, increase the rate of employment through the program of cross-border cooperation.
The specific objectives: Include 30 persons into the process of food production
Activities and results of the project:
The “School for farmers” Project of the NGO Centre for Development of Agriculture, Bijelo Polje and the Agronomic Centre, Priboj was implemented during 2010 and 2011 with financial support from the European Union within the CBC Programme Serbia-Montenegro 2007-2013.
The project adopted the farmer participatory approach for developing agriculture management practices. Individual farmers, registered as unemployed persons by the National Employment Agencies, participated in the projects’ activities. Promising results were achieved and they are ready for wider dissemination. The project introduced a participatory approach that uses non-formal adult education methods based on experimental learning techniques and participatory training methods. Trainers within the project emphasized learning by doing. The learning process takes place both in the classroom and in the field and was normally designed based on level of knowledge of the training attendees.
Within the preparatory activities the project supported procurement of equipment and furniture for training room owned by the Employment Agency of Montenegro, Branch office Bijelo Polje. In cooperation with the National Employment Agencies from Serbia and Montenegro the grant beneficiaries selected 30 training participants, officially registered as unemployed persons, to attend the school for farmers, and 12 lecturers from relevant educational institutions including: The Economic and Biotechnical Faculties, University of Montenegro, advisory services, Agricultural universities and Institutes from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Similarly in Serbia 9 lecturers were recruited to execute lectures for selected farmers. All participants of the “School for Farmers” attended totally 58 lectures, 29 lectures per country, and participated in 5 field visits in the two countries. The trainings were implemented in the period of three months and the farmers have had an opportunity to obtain new knowledge related different agriculture topics and techniques including: technology of agriculture products, livestock, vegetable production, plant protection, soil and Agro chemistry, fruit production, organic agriculture and field crop production.
Finally, 25 trainees in Montenegro participates and successfully passed at the final exam organised within the project. Employment Agency of Montenegro selected 15 farmers that passed final exam and supported them with the loans worth 5.000 EUR. The completion of the project in Serbia resulted in totally 28 participants educated on different topics in agriculture which also successfully passed final exam. As support for staring up their own businesses trainees from Serbia received financial support worth 160.000 RSD. All project activities were covered by national electronic and printed media and were accompanied by Press conferences in both countries.
Joint activities and trainings strengthened cooperation between all participants in this Action (Universities, NGO, Public institutions, experts from the field of agriculture and rural tourism, the unemployed), and contributed to the exchange of human resources and ideas for the purpose of improvement of standards set by EU in the process of integration of the Republic of Serbia and Montenegro in EU.
