The local conference in Kisela Voda is realized under the motto “I decide, therefore I exist”, which clearly shows its purpose: to strengthen the capacities at the individual and institutional level in the context of the promotion of children’s rights through the inclusion of children in the decision-making process.
Participants from public kindergartens were professional associates, educators and caregivers. From the municipal elementary schools, class and subject teachers, professional associates, parents, students and head of sectors participated. The secondary schools of the City of Skopje, which operate on the territory of Municipality of Kisela Voda were represented by professors and students.
The group of speakers was heterogeneous in order to be able to perceive the strengths and weaknesses of many municipal stakeholders in terms of respecting children’s rights. They spoke on topics they are experts in and trough a simple language they conveyed their insights to the participants on the conference. They encouraged fruitful discussion and created a productive atmosphere.
The conference was opened with a welcoming speech by Dragi Zmijanac, the co-founder and director of PDAS Megjasi and Kristina Vasileska, director of KMOP Skopje, who introduced the audience to the ongoing and upcoming activities in order to contribute to the development of the concept of “Child friendly cities”.
The representative of the municipality of Kisela Voda, Mr. Sasho Jovanovski – advisor for education in the mayor’s office, gave an overview of the numerous projects that the municipality of Kisela Voda implemented for the improvement of working and living conditions in kindergartens and schools, the assistance for children from families in social risk and the constant care of children with special needs.
The representative of the municipality of Vinica, Mr. Aleksandar Jovanov – a advisor in the municipality of Vinica, spoke about the possibility of promoting inter-municipal cooperation through the exchange of ideas, realization of joint projects and inter-sector networking with a purpose of creating municipalities dedicated to children.
The conference part was opened by Vesna Blazevska – social worker at JDG Veseli Cvetovi, who spoke about early child development in terms of respecting for children’s decisions and how family and employees in public kindergartens deal with this challenge.
The next speaker was PhD Blagoja Petrovski. From the position of a psychologist, he made an analysis and pointed out the different ways of decision-making among high school students, as well as that young people are proactive in navigating their future.
Advisor Tatjana Nankova is a member of the Commission for Education and continually is making decision towards a more child friendly municipality. Among other things, she pointed out that the environment in which children live and work is improved with many sports fields and children’s corners with appropriate urban equipment that meets children’s needs.
Danijela Petrushevska, project coordinator in the office of the Mayor of Kisela Voda, said that the children will certainly take an active part in the process of making the Integrated Local Development Plan of Municipality of Kisela Voda through consultative meetings with the children, resulting in SWOT analyses on which the strategic planning will be based.
Cooperation between the Ombudsman and the municipalities in the direction of promoting the rights of the child was a topic that Deputy Ombudsman Vaska Bajramovska Mustafa gave an overview of. She gave in depth explanation of her experiences and shared views from which it became clear that cooperation exists, but it must be developed and improved.
The best teacher at regional, state and international level, Vesna Boshkovska works at OOU Kiril Pejčinović. She set herself the goal of introducing or reminding the participants about the forms of student organization in primary and secondary schools and the advocacy of children’s/youth’s rights.
Student Thea Stojanovska is in her second year at SEPUGS Vasil Antevski Dren. Her topic was peer bullying and the role of young people in dealing with it. In her presentation, she made a distinction between the types of violence and their representation. She emphasized that young people must acquire skills to properly deal with violence.
When a child abuser commits a crime and breaks the law, then Children’s Judge Vesna Kostova Spaseska must make a judgment. She spoke about the humane and inhumane treatment of child delinquency in the community. This challenge is very big and to overcome it requires systemic support.
Mirjana Gegovska Grujoska spoke about the role of the family and how, in family settings, strategies for encouraging human rights are developed. She is a social worker and a member of the Local Council for Social Protection. From her presentation it could be concluded that families should be the foundation of democracy in the community.
The student-volunteers, in addition to other tasks, made flowers and sent a message for the promotion of children’s rights by presenting the conclusions of the meetings held with the members of the Student Parliaments in all primary and secondary schools and the members of the Council of Parents in both kindergartens in Municipality of Kisela Voda.
After the conference, the municipal panel was founded, composed of the municipal administration and educational staff, representatives of the local authorities and other stakeholders within the municipality. The panel will be a body within the municipality, which will ensure the creation of a local strategy for children’s rights, as well as the promotion of children’s rights and their inclusion in local planning.
The event takes place on May 22, 2024, in Skopje.