The implementation of the Regional Housing Program (RHP), for the accommodation of refugees through grant measures, the acquisition of village households and the allocation of packages of construction materials was the main topic of the three-day meeting held in Banja Koviljaca and organized by the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration of the Republic of Serbia.

The meeting was attended by Ms. Andrijana Petkovic from the Ministry for Public Administration and Local Self Government, by the Trustees of the Commissariat for Refugees and the representatives of those local self-governments wherein the RHP is being implemented, as also by the coordinators from the SCRM, the PIU and the representatives of the UNHCR and OSCE who are themselves engaged in the monitoring of the Project.

“The most important thing is that this job be completed on time.  There are no excuses in this regard.  I urge you to do your part of the work, and we will be here to offer such assistance as we can and to answer any questions you may have. The timely completion of this project will enable us to move forward and resolve the problems of the remaining displaced population who live in a state of need,” said Mr. Vladimir Cucic, Commissioner for Refugees and Migration of the Republic of Serbia. 

The Regional Housing Programme is a large donor project by means of which over 100 million Euro has been set aside for the Republic of Serbia and intended for the permanent resolution of the accommodation problems of the refugee population who left their homes during the 90’s on account of the hostilities which transpired in the Republic of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

At the opening of the meeting in question, Assistant Commissioner, Mrs. Danijela Popovic Rocco emphasized that at the present time, it is imperative that the beneficiary selection process be completed in a timely manner.

“Those resources which are currently at our disposal have been earmarked and if the same are not utilized before the predetermined period, there exists the possibility that we will be unable to access them. For this reason, it is important that we exert every effort in order to ensure that this phase of the project, which itself comprises the selection of beneficiaries, be completed in a timely fashion, precisely, within the next four months,” Mrs. Rocco went on to say.

Mrs. Ruzica Banda addressed the meeting as the representative of the OSCE. She stated that the OSCE and the UNHCR, amongst other duties, “are charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the assistance be delivered to the most vulnerable categories of the refugee population as also to inform the donors themselves as to the dynamics of the project’s implementation. We would wish to note that the largest donors to the RHP are the EU and the USA, while the RHP fund itself is financed through the donations of the countries of Germany, Italy, Norway, Switzerland, Denmark, Turkey, Luxemburg, Cyprus, Romania, the Czech Republic Slovakia and Hungary.