Serbia
From the Field
In Serbia, we held a launch event for an environmental joint initiative to reform waste management practices and achieve a sustainable long-term solution for waste management. The initiative is designed to strengthen the work of civil society organizations who are focusing on this issue. The group consists of five core members: the Center of Modern Skills, Young Researchers of Serbia, Yurom Center Nis, Group 484, and the European Movement in Serbia.
In Iraq, to commemorate International Literacy Day, we handed out 1,200 certificates to women who have graduated from the Women’s Awareness and Inclusion Program. The program provides basic literacy courses for women in south Iraq. Over 23,000 women have participated in the program to date.
In Sri Lanka, we opened a garment factory as part of USAID’s Public Private Alliances program that allows USAID to work collaboratively with the private sector to create job opportunities, jump start economic growth in former conflict areas and help build lasting peace. This partnership will not only provide employment to young men and women in the conflict-affected district of Ampara, it will also promote training and on the job interaction among members of diverse ethnic groups in the area.
From the Field
In Benin, we will hold the closing ceremony of the first annual Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) campaign in northern Benin (Atacora) funded under President’s Malaria Initiative. IRS applies insecticide and protects against mosquitoes that transmit malaria in the houses of rural communities that are most exposed to the disease.
In Ghana, we will launch the Les Aspin Anti-corruption and Good Governance training program. Les Aspin’s Africa training program involves participants from Ghana (4 persons), Kenya (4 persons), Uganda (2 persons), Tanzania (2 persons), Mali (2 persons) and Nigeria (2 persons). Selected participants include junior to middle level personnel of government and civil society organizations working in the area of anti-corruption and the administration of justice. The Anti-Corruption and Good Governance program, which is an annual event, is a capacity building activity in anti-corruption and good governance for government and civil society leaders from Ghana, Nigeria, Mali, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The six West and East African countries have been selected based on their political stability. The Les Aspin Center in Washington, D.C. conducts workshops in two phases: the orientation takes place in Ghana and the actual workshop takes place in the United States. For the current workshop, there are 16 participants representing civil society organizations, non-governmental organizations, and government.
In Serbia, we will hold an event to mark our assistance to Serbian Berry Sector. This collaboration is significant to the progress and expansion of the berry sector in Serbia. Issues pertaining to export, coordination of assistance, new markets, policy issues and constraints will be addressed.
USAID – From the Field
submitted by Abby Sugrue
In Kazakhstan: An event to raise awareness about the risks of drug abuse, HIV/AIDS and TB among at-risk youth – the event will include an awards ceremony for a drawing competition, a football match, and educational sessions on prevention of drug-use, HIV/AIDS and TB. Local NGOs, youth groups and local media are invited.
In Armenia: An Amerenian Eye Care Project, and an international conference on the Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP), a potentially blinding eye disorder that primarily affects premature infants. A group of very well known ROP and retina specialists from the US and Australia will be traveling to Yerevan to train and teach the Armenian specialists to launch the program. Attendees will include neonatologists, pediatric & regional ophthalmologists, clinical residents and neonatal nurses.
In Serbia: “Agribusiness & Renewable Energy Sources,” a conference to inform investors and agricultural producers on possibilities of production and the need for the use of sustainable sources of energy, in order to lower the emission of pollutants and dependency on import of fossil fuels. Attendees will include Senior representatives of Serbian Ministry of Agriculture and Mining and energy, Special Advisor to the Ministry of Environment, and Agbiz project companies and clients.
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USAID Helps Serbia Go Hollywood
Film production putting Serbia on the map “For all the right reasons”
USAID Helps Serbia Go Hollywood
Serbia is back. After years of being off the beaten path, the rest of the world is waking up to the fact that Serbia is a pretty hip and trendy place, with Lonely Planet travel guides even recently dubbing its capital Belgrade one of the world’s “Ultimate Party Cities.” But, few people are probably aware that as recently as the 1980s, Serbia was also one of the world’s leading filming locations.
USAID’s Competiveness Project is now working with production companies in film, TV, post-production and special effects to regain that status by promoting the advantages of Serbia as a film destination. USAID brought local stakeholders together to establish the Serbia Film Commission and helped it become a member of the International Association of Film Commissioners (AFCI). The Commission actively utilizes key industry trade shows, including the Cannes Producers Network and the American Film Location Market, to drum up interest in filming in Serbia.
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