The gathering was organized by the National Employment Service, in cooperation with the project partners: Open University Subotica and Provincial Secretariat for Education, Administration and National Communities, and presented the results of the successfully implemented Lifelong Learning project to relevant ministries, provincial secretariats, economic actors, and civil society organizations.



Zoran Matović, the director of the project centre within the Cabinet of the National Employment Service, Vladimir Perović, Coordinator of the Project Management Sector of the Open University Subotica, Pavle Budinčević, program director of the Open University Subotica and Mato Groznica, Deputy Secretary for Education, Administration and National Communities held presentations at the conference.



In his speech, Mr. Matović stressed the successful cooperation of the project partners in the past 13 months and the significance of the project activities from the aspect of the National Employment Service. Also, he indicated several new activities of the National Employment Service after the current project, which are in line with the MATCHDO project – the fourth Survey of employers and entrepreneurs, small and medium size enterprises with the aim to develop the national frame for qualification by the end of 2014.

After the welcoming speech, Mr. Perović presented the implemented activities and the overall project results of the project MATCHDO, which are the following: Survey of employers from 8 cities of Serbia, Situation Analysis development, organization of public debates in the form of round table discussions in 8 cities of Serbia, realizing a pilot educational training for newly employed persons in Subotica, developing the MATCHDO web platform for distance learning, media campaign and the development of the Action Plan.



Following the previous presentation Mr. Budinčević added the final result of the project MATCHDO – the Action Plan, which is a document elaborated in line with the proposed program measures and which includes project ideas for overcoming the gap between the offer of the labor market and the demands of the employers. This document is in line with the relevant national, but also European strategies, and offers solutions to future reforms of the whole system. The Action Plan foresees the modernization and harmonization of the secondary education system and higher education with the needs of the labor market and the society as a whole, to secure the development of human potential according to the defined development strategies of the Republic of Serbia till 2020 in all scopes of the society. The Action Plan foresees the increase of employment, improving the business atmosphere, business conditions and cooperation between state institutions and economic actors, as well as reduction of the lack of interest and increase of motivation of unemployed persons.



At the end of the conference, the deputy secretary of the Provincial Secretariat for Education, Administration and National Communities, Mato Groznica give another review of the results of the project “MATCHDO” emphasizing their reflections in the future activities of the Provincial Secretariat, and also stressed that this institution will continue to contribute to the improvement of connection of the labor market and the formal as well as non formal education. After the speeches of the keynote speakers of the project partners, a constructive public debate began, in which the representatives of all three sectors – public, private and civil, participated.