Initiative for Development and Cooperation – IDC together with Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund Deutschland e.V – ASB, Association for social support of the youth – ARSIS, and PREDA Plus is implementing a project “Support to Syrian refugees both in camps and en-route in Serbia, FYROM and Greece” funded by the German Federal Foreign Office. 

Project has been developed in order to contribute to the improvement of the refugee situation in Serbia, FYROM and Greece and to reduce vulnerability of refugees in these countries. Project improves refugees’ situation both in transit through the Balkans and in camps with provision of accommodation, food and hygiene, clothes, medical and dental care and psycho social counseling.

Within the project, Initiative for Development and Cooperation – IDC as a partner from Serbia is providing medical and non-medical assistance to refugees through:

5 medical teams formed in 4 municipalities

Consisting of doctors and medical technicians, the teams are active in 8 hour shifts/7 days a week on the field providing medical care services in the Reception centers in Subotica, Dimitrovgrad, Šid, Principovac and Sombor. All five medical teams are equipped with instruments and medicines according to the specific needs of each clinic and its patients. Since the beginning of the project, medical teams have realized total of 9730 direct medical interventions.

Dental care at disposal in 3 Reception centers in the municipality of Šid

IDC has engaged a dentist, who has provided dental services to the migrants in all three camps on the territory of the municipality of Sid in the premises of Community Health Center Sid.

4 specialized non-medical volunteer teams present everyday on the field aiming to support medical teams

The volunteer non-medical team consisting of 15 people engaged in providing the support to the IDC medical teams in Belgrade (Miksaliste Refugee Aid Center), Sid, Subotica and Dimitrovgrad. Additionally, 5 -7 IDC volunteers are engaged everyday 7 days a week in Info center for migrants in Nemanjina Street in Belgrade managed by Info Center for Refugees  and Asylum and UNHCR. Besides these teams, these is a group of young volonteers engaged on cleaning the bus station in Subotica on a daily basis.  Likewise, IDC used to organize ad hoc volountering teams when needed.

All volunteer team members are between 18 and 26 years old with different educational level and field of interest. Active volunteers are conducting the following activities: direct support to migrants regarding registration, information dissemination, translation, distribution of NFIs and other, provision of support to medical team (sorting, packing and transporting necessary medicines, collecting date on the provided medical services, etc.), occupational activities, conferences and workshops organization, raising awareness and other activities in accordance with the requirements.

Within the period of 4 months the total of 366 group volunteer actions were realized involving 1793 individual volunteer engagements. Via forming, maintaining and expanding of the volunteer network of IDC volunteers we are promoting volunteering and encouraging social engagement of youth in providing the support to the local communities while dealing with migrant crisis.