The ceremony marking the beginning of construction of 276 apartments for refugees from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, residing in the territory of Novi Sad, within the fifth subproject of the Regional Housing Programme (RHP) in the Republic of Serbia took place in Veternik today.

The total value of the construction works is 6.4 million euros and the funds are provided mostly from the RHP Donor Fund, where the European Union is the main donor. The construction of apartments started in Vojvode Bojovica Street, with a symbolic laying of the foundation stone and the deadline for completion of construction is 15 months (November 2019).

Ivica Dacic, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and President of the Commission for Coordination of Permanent Integration of Refugees of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, Milos Vucevic, Mayor of Novi Sad, Mateja Norcic Stamcar, Chargé d’affaires in the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Serbia, Hans Schodder, Representative of UNHCR in Serbia, James Stockstill, Representative of the OSCE Mission to Serbia,Vladimir Cucic, Commissioner for Refugees and Migration, Dragan Katuca, Director of Project Implementation Unit in the Public Sector, Predrag Vuletic, Provincial Secretary for Social Policy, Demography and Gender Equality, Dusko Cutilo, Director of the Fund for Assisting Refugees, Expelled and Displaced Persons as well as numerous other representatives of government and international institutions and beneficiaries attended the ceremony.

Minister Dacic thanked donors, as well as everyone in the government of the Republic of Serbia and local self-governments for a very responsible approach to the implementation of the Regional Housing Programme.

"We have completed a significant part of the program so by the end of the year, more than 3,000 families will be taken care of, but we still need to keep working," Dacic said, adding that he hopes that the upcoming works will run smoothly and will be terminated within the deadlines.

Commissioner Cucic thanked beneficiaries for their patience and pointed out that they are the true future hosts who will receive the new homes through the Regional Housing Programme after many years and that the Republic of Serbia will always be home to them.

The Mayor of Novi Sad, Milos Vucevic, thanked the Government of the Republic of Serbia and the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration, as well as the European Union and other donor countries for their support.

"I expect that at the beginning of 2020 we will gather in this same place and attend the ceremony when 276 families who have suffered great injustice will move into their new apartments. At the same time, we are preparing, with the same partners, the construction of 152 apartments in Futog and an additional investment here in Veternik, "said Vucevic.

RHP subproject 5 is worth a total of 46.7 million euros. From this amount, the approved international donations amount to 36.3 million euros, and the Republic of Serbia’s contribution is 10.4 million euros. In addition to the allocation of 250 packages of building materials in 11 municipalities across Serbia and the purchase of 200 rvillage houses in 19 municipalities, this subproject will provide another 1267 apartments in 27 local self-government units for refugee families in the Republic of Serbia.