A meeting between the Minister and journalists was organized within the Inclusive Early Childhood Education and Care project. Other representatives of the Ministry and the Project also attended the working breakfast.

In an informal atmosphere, the Minister shared information on the results and plans related to the implementation of the Project with the media, highlighted the efforts of the Ministry to increase the number of places in preschool institutions and plans to further improve the quality of preschool education and support children and families that belong to vulnerable social groups through cooperation at the local level.

At the end of the event, media representatives had the opportunity to get answers to questions about the project from the Minister and other representatives of the Ministry.

See photos from the event here.

Minister Branko Ruzic visited the kindergarten “Mali princ”, which is part of preschool institution “Bosko Buha” in Palilula. The visit was organized within Inclusive Early Childhood Education and Care project, which the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia is implementing with the financial support of the World Bank.

Through socializing and talking with children, the Minister drew attention to the key messages of the Project that relate to the importance of preschool education and acceptance of diversity in order to support the inclusiveness of the system. In a playful atmosphere, in the yard of the kindergarten, the minister and the children created a joint panel on which they their handprints in different colours. The visit ended with the presentation of gift, an interactive board, to the kindergarten.

The project of inclusive preschool education is extremely important for the community, since it aims to improve the accessibility, quality and fairness of preschool education. This primarily means increasing the coverage and accessibility of preschool institutions, where all children from birth to 6.5 years of age will benefit, as well as their families, preschool institutions and local communities (local self-government units, health services, social work centres, etc.). The priority are children from socially and economically vulnerable social groups.

See photos from the event here.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development and the Novak Djokovic Foundation signed an Agreement on Partnership Cooperation on the Inclusive Early Childhood Education and Care project.

The cooperation means that the Ministry and the Foundation will join the capacities in the next two years and together adapt and equip the rooms in public facilities, which will be intended for the realization of preschool education.

“Setting up a good foundation of education from the earliest age is important, not only for the socialization of children, but also for their further successful schooling. The Novak Djokovic Foundation has been implementing its own programs for years now, which are aimed at better conditions for the realization of preschool education. In this case, we will use their knowledge and experience and unite to provide good conditions for an even larger number of children, especially from socially and economically vulnerable social groups, to be included in the system of preschool education, “said the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Science and technological development Branko Ruzic.

The plan is to adapt and equip at least 100 rooms for the realization of preschool education in public facilities and existing preschool institutions by the end of 2022. The works will be financed from the Inclusive Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Project, which is financed by the World Bank, while the Foundation will coordinate activities on renovation, conversion and adaptation of those spaces and equipping them with furniture and didactic material.

“Guided by the desire to provide our youngest generations with a stimulating environment to play and learn in order to develop their full potential, our team has so far reconstructed, equipped and helped 45 kindergartens throughout Serbia. This way, we have encouraged the development of local communities themselves, which in the long run contributes to a better future for all of us. However, the numbers show that there is still a long way to go to ensure that every child in Serbia has access to preschool education. That is why we are very glad that, thanks to our many years of experience, we have gained the trust of the Ministry to help them on that path and we are sure that with the partnership with the World Bank the project will be successfully realized, “said Maja Kremic, National Director of the Novak Djokovic Foundation.

Within this cooperation, the Foundation will implement a program of support for parents and guardians of children under the age of 6 in all municipalities where there will be a renovation and adapted space for educational work.

Cooperation with the Foundation will additionally support the efforts of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development to improve the system of preschool education and to carry out the educational process in even better conditions.

In the first year of cooperation, works are planned in 20 local governments: Doljevac, Vlasotince, Vladicin Han, Varvarin, Trstenik, Brus, Kraljevo, CaCak, Obrenovac, Stari Grad, Jagodina, Batocina, Svilajnac, Raca, Velika Plana, Bac, Apatin , Sid, Nova Varos, Cajetina.