Provision to the improvement to the living conditions of IDPs and returnees from readmission process in Serbia and support to the sustainable return to Kosovo

Grant Agreement Number: EuropeAid/137919/DH/SER/RS

Funded by: Europeaid        Duration: 11/06/2018- 10/06/2020   

Challenge

Since the conflict that took place in Kosovo in 1998 and 1999, thousands of people have lost their homes and are unable to return to their places of origin. Serbia, including Kosovo, currently has one of the largest numbers of IDPs in Europe. The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) estimates that there are around 97,000 IDPs in Serbia as of May 2015.

Although voluntary return is the best solution for refugees and IDPs, only a quarter of refugees have realised a durable solution through return. Few IDPs are able or willing to return to their places of origin, despite the difficult living conditions that many of them are facing. The main obstacles to sustainable return in Kosovo involve lack of security, lack of mechanisms for the protection of basic rights, unresolved issues in relation to property and reconstruction, restricted access to public services, and lack of economic opportunities, among others. The lack of security and marginalization of returnees often leads to secondary displacement. Therefore, there is still a necessity to further support programmes aiming to provide durable housing solutions and improved living conditions for those in need.

Action

The overall objective of the technical assistance (TA) project EU support for the sustainable solutions for internally displaced persons and returnees was to assist the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Serbia and the Beneficiary Institutions – Commissariat for Refugees and Migrations and the Office for Kosovo and Metohija in the implementation and monitoring of 13 grant projects activities to improve the living conditions of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and returnees from readmission process in Serbia and support to the sustainable return to Kosovo.

By setting up a Project Monitoring Unit (PMU), the TA project provided assistance to the EUD and the Beneficiary Institutions in monitoring of the implementation of the grants awarded following the Call for Proposals: EuropeAid/154545/DD/ACT/RS, “Provision to the improvement of living conditions of IDPs and returnees from readmission process in Serbia and support to the sustainable return to Kosovo”

Project should achieve two main results:

• Full implementation of the grant scheme dedicated to improving the living conditions of IDPs and returnees from the readmission process in Serbia through provision of support in all implementation actions; the PMU provided support to the grant beneficiaries for the information campaign, monitoring and reporting to the EUD, as well as visibility activities and materials;
• Full implementation of grant scheme dedicated to return to Kosovo through provision of support in all implementation actions. The PMU provided support to the grant beneficiaries for the information campaign, monitoring and reporting to the EUD, as well as visibility activities and materials.

The project has been funded with support from the European Commission. The contents of this publication are sole responsibility of the author, and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

Project Partners