THE REGIONAL FUND FOR CHALLENGES IN MONTENEGRO IS FINANCING NEW PROJECTS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF SKILLS
Five institutions for vocational education and training received grants for on-the-job training designed in cooperation with companies from Montenegro.
Three new projects for the improvement of skills in Montenegro received letters of intent for funding today, at a ceremony organized by the Regional Challenge Fund in Podgorica. The fund, which is supported by Germany and Switzerland, recently announced the winning projects in the third cycle of the program which provides grants for vocational education and training (VET) programs jointly designed by companies and vocational education and training providers from the Western Balkans region.
The complete list of winners is available here.
The Regional Challenges Fund (RCF) improves the sustainable competitiveness of companies in the six Western Balkan economies on the way to the EU single market, through the funding of institutions for vocational education and training, in an effort to respond to business needs for skills in cooperation with companies.
"During the three calls that have been opened so far, RCF allocated 3.25 million euros as support for a total of seven professional education and training projects in Montenegro, with 40 partner companies. We remain committed to contributing to the economic growth of the country by improving the skills and knowledge of young people, in order to create a workforce ready for work, which is needed by local companies," said Balša Ćulafić, project coordinator for the RCF in front of the Comorian Investment Forum and coordinator for cooperation with international organizations within Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro.
The third round of applications, which was organized last year, attracted 155 declarations of interest from the region, eight of which were from Montenegro. The selection committee chose three of the most successful projects in the country, for which financing in the amount of nearly 1.62 million euros is foreseen. The funds will be used to improve the infrastructure of five educational institutions and train participants of the cooperative education program.
"From our point of view, the Regional Fund for Challenges is a true model of success. It encourages direct collaboration between educational institutions and employers, ensuring that the curriculum provided by educational institutions accurately matches the demands that the labor market places on young people today. It contributes to opening an attractive professional perspective for young people on the Montenegrin labor market and helps Montenegrin employers to attract qualified workers. We are pleased that the German Federal Government, through the German Development Bank KfW, can provide the Regional Challenge Fund with a total of over EUR 65 million for Montenegro and the Western Balkans, from which it can provide
strong seed capital to successful partnerships between educational institutions and businesses for their cooperation", announced H.E. Peter Felten, Ambassador of Germany to Montenegro.
Today, 75 high-performance personal computers worth 140,000 euros, procured as part of the Regional Fund for Challenges, will be officially handed over to the Junior High School of Electrical Engineering "Vaso Aligrudić" in Podgorica, for use in student training.
Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, prof. Anđela Jakšić-Stojanović, Ph.D., congratulated the grant winners and expressed her satisfaction that the projects in which four secondary vocational schools from Montenegro are participating were awarded.
"Investing in education means investing in all the positive processes of society, especially in the part of secondary vocational education, the improvement of which, through the development of professional competences, in cooperation with the real sector, directly affects the alignment between supply and demand on the labor market. Therefore, I appreciate that the investment of the Regional Fund for Challenges is extremely important for the education system, since it coincides with the reform goals of the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation, among which is certainly the further development of secondary professional education", said Jakšić-Stojanović.
Dr. Nina Drakić, president of the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro, reminded that the Regional Challenge Fund (RCF) is a financial mechanism designed to improve employability in the Western Balkans, and pointed out the importance of the project both for our country and the region.
"Why is this project of great importance for Montenegro and neighboring countries? Because both our country and neighboring countries show the need to strengthen the knowledge of employees in the economy. Because we are increasingly realizing that this is the only way to better quality personnel energy and because there is no economic competitiveness without practical education included in economic flows. I believe that the economy of Montenegro, and the economies of the countries of the region, will progress even more strongly through projects like this, and thus get closer to full membership in the European Union," said Drakić.
The ceremony was also attended by the director of the Center for Vocational Education, Aleksandra Lalević.
"JU Center for Vocational Education strives for excellence and efficiency in vocational education, and above all to create an environment in which innovative vocational education will be created that enables the comprehensive acquisition of competitive skills, competencies and qualifications for employability, lifelong learning, inclusiveness, personal development and active citizenship individuals", concluded Lalević.