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MATRA Serbia; an early childhood developmemt programme is launched

07-08-2007 Together with our colleagues and friends from Center for Integrated Pedagogy, CIP, ICDI started a new MATRA project, this time in Serbia. The overall goal of this project is to strengthen, improve and expand early childhood development provisions (ECD) in Serbia and, ultimately, to prepare children to become full participants in this nation and Europe. As a major additional goal, we see this project contributing to the social transformation of the country and to the strengthening the civil society. We envisage a range of positive outcomes for several distinct beneficiary and target groups. The main beneficiaries, the children (around 700, aged 0 to 6), will profit from better ECD; more of them, especially from the vulnerable groups, particularly Roma- and internally displaced children, will enroll into basic schools; and also the physical and social environment where they grow up will improve. Parents and members of the extended family will gain a deeper understanding of child development and education; they will acquire knowledge and skills to actively support their children’s wholesome development and be empowered to mobilize the local communities in promoting children’s rights and in securing a friendly environment for them. 200parents will be involved directly, and 2100 - indirectly. Educators, CSOs’ staff and other professionals working with children will better their understanding of the needs and capacities of children of minorities and of rural areas, and acquire new skills as to how to respond effectively to them; they will develop a stronger commitment to see these children socially integrated and to work effectively with the parents and families. They will, further, be capable of coordinating community initiatives and endorsing and starting up local actions. The project will directly touch on 120 and indirectly – on 300 professionals. Combined, these interventions will help to repair and strengthen the social cohesion at local level, and in turn, benefit all. The expected outcomes will be quantified and shaped in a measurable easy-to-communicate manner, as all project participants will be invited to share their views and know-how. Thus, instead of having the feeling that ‘outsiders’ ‘impose tasks’, the local committees will set up their ‘own’ targets and develop a sense ownership which is essential for the success and the sustainability of the project. The project duration is three years and we plan to finalize it by June 2010.