STRATEGY FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION, SOCIAL PROTECTION AND ALLEVIATION … · 2012-02-15 · 1 strategy for social inclusion, social protection and alleviation of poverty in lipkovo municipality

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STRATEGY FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION, SOCIAL PROTECTION AND ALLEVIATION OF POVERTY IN LIPKOVO MUNICIPALITYJuly 2011

PublisherLudwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights – BIM-FV Skopje

The preparation and the printing of this publication is supported byThe Austrian Development Cooperation (ADC)

Prepared byLiljana Alceva – Local consultant on behalf of BIM-FV

Contact person from the Municipality of LipkovoUrim Sellmani Coordinator of the Local Partnership Group

ProjectSocial Inclusion and Human Rights in MacedoniaLudwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights Skopje(BIM-FV Skopje)Veljko Vlahovik 1a 1/41000 SkopjePhone num: +389 (0)2 3216 956Fax: +389 (0)2 3216 982

Support Team of BIM-FV SkopjePetranka Delova Miladinova – Project ManagerStojan Misev – Human Rights AdvisorNinoslav Mladenovik - Human Rights AdvisorJagoda Iljov – Administrative Assistant

Contact person from the Ministry of Labour and Social PolicyIrena Todoroska - Head of Unit for Social Inclusion

Translated from Macedonian into English bySvetlana Spasovska

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily re�ect the views of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights and the Austrian Development Cooperation (ADC)

When using data from the text, please quote the source: Strategy for Social Inclusion, Social Protection and Alleviation of Poverty in the Municipality of Lipkovo, July, 2011

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STRATEGY FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION, SOCIAL PROTECTION AND ALLEVIATION OF POVERTY IN LIPKOVO M

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CONTENTS

Executive summary

Introduction

1. Process of preparation of the Strategic Plan for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion

1.1. Basic principles

1.2. De�nitions

1.3. Methodology

2. Analysis of the current situation

2.1. General characteristics of Lipkovo municipality

2.2. Social pro�le of Lipkovo municipality

2.3. Dominant social problems in Lipkovo municipality

2.4. Social protection in Lipkovo municipality

2.5. Findings from the Study on Poverty and Social Exclusion in the Republic of Macedonia

3. Findings from the workshop for priority setting in the area of social development in Lipkovo

municipality

3.1. Identi�cation of vulnerable groups

3.2. Identi�cation of speci�c problems of the vulnerable groups of citizens

in Lipkovo municipality

Working group: Children

Working group: Adults

Working group: Elderly people

4. Strategic aims and activities for alleviation of poverty and social exclusion

in Lipkovo municipality

Priority area: Children

Priority area: Adults

Priority area: Elderly people

Priority area: Promotion of the social protection system in Lipkovo municipality

5. Implementation of the Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion

6. Action plan

PARTICIPANT LIST

Agenda Action Planning Workshop

Agenda Strategic Planning Workshop

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FOREWORD OF THE MAYOR OF LIPKOVO MUNICIPALITY

In order to comply with the principles of the European Union, Lipkovo municipality should have more strategic documents from the various social areas. For Lipkovo municipality of particular social importance is the obligation to prepare and adopt a strategy to alleviate poverty and social exclusion in the municipality because our municipality, we can freely say, is one of the least developed municipalities in Macedonia where the poverty of the citizens is high.

Therefore, Lipkovo, as a separate local self-government in the entire period of its existence, takes active measures, activities and programs aimed at alleviating poverty and exclusion.

It was decided to include Lipkovo in this process, since it was one of the most interested municipalities - at the time of the announcement, it was one of the most broadcast municipalities in all media since many of our citizens with the visa liberalization sought asylum in the EU countries. It would be super�uous to repeat that poverty is all over the place in our municipality.

We therefore applied, were selected and continued to cooperate with the “Ludwig Boltzmann” Institute- Research Association Skopje (BIM - PB), which is funded by the Austrian Development Cooperation, Ministry of Labour and Social Policy and by us. For this purpose, a Local Partnership Group was established, consisting of representatives of the local self-government, the Municipal Council of Lipkovo, the NGO sector, representatives from the public institutions, the business community and the local communities.

This Partnership Group in collaboration with the “Ludwig Boltzmann” Institute - Research Association Skopje(BIM - PB), that has the academic knowledge and practical experience from all social areas and contexts, contributed to the qualitative rounding up of this strategic document.

The Strategy has a major strategic aim, namely: to alleviate poverty and social exclusion in Lipkovo municipality through better use of the available human and material resources, to improve the living and working conditions, and to improve the social conditions for all citizens, to enable systemic and institutional collaboration with the objective of reaching faster growth, higher standard of living and better life. It focuses on three areas: alleviation of poverty and social exclusion as well as on social inclusion of the vulnerable groups in the municipality, including: children, adults and elderly people.

As far as the realization of the competences of the municipality and the creation of its development are concerned, the Strategy will be our guide containing the general directions the municipality should follow on its way towards the realization of its strategic aims related to social inclusion, social protection and alleviation of poverty in the municipality.

I am hereby expressing special gratitude to the entire team dedicated to the development of this strategic document, and especially to all the representatives of the”Ludwig Boltzmann” – Institute, Research Association Skopje(BIM-PB).

In the end, I frankly acknowledge that I as a mayor, with all my energy, together with the administration of the Municipality of Lipkovo will remain fully committed, as will the central government and the other participants in the development of this Strategy, to its maximum possible realization.

Best regards,Mayor of Lipkovo municipalitySadullah Duraku

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The preparation of the strategic document for alleviation of poverty and social exclusion at a local level in Lipkovo municipality is an initiative of the “Ludwig Boltzmann” Institute for Human Rights within the project “Social Inclusion and Human Rights in Macedonia”, funded by the Austrian Development Agency.

The preparation of the Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Inclusion is based on the human rights approach. It is a process that serves to improve the planning, implementation and monitoring of development. By using the human rights approach in planning it is ensured that the priorities, measures and actions contained in the strategies and action plans will be determined on the basis of the facts and the real needs of the people in the community. The process is particularly focused on the strengthening of the poor and vulnerable people, enabling them to express their needs and problems to the decision makers.

Lipkovo municipality belongs to the group of average small rural municipalities in the Republic of Macedonia. The municipality covers 22 populated areas, all of which are designated as rural local communities. According to the census data in 2002, there are 27,058 inhabitants in total in Lipkovo municipality.

The population of Lipkovo faces many social problems. The poor development of the municipality, the bad infrastructure, the lack of access to secondary health care, the unresolved status of some of the citizens, the lack of local media, the underdeveloped civil sector and other problems make life in Lipkovo complex and full of challenges.In order to overcome the existing social problems, reduce poverty and social exclusion, the working group from Lipkovo who worked on the drafting of the Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty has proposed the following measures:

Priority Area: ChildrenAim 1: Improved care of the community for children with special needs Aim 2: Creating conditions for development of children and young people Aim 3: Inclusion of children from poor families in the educational system

Priority Area: AdultsAim 1: Increase of the number of employed people Aim 2: Increase of the number of people that have obtained citizenship Aim 3: Improvement of the situation of disabled people and widows from the 2001 con�ict

Priority area: Elderly peopleAim 1: Improvement of the care for the elderly people Aim 2: Improvement of the health care Aim 3: Improvement of the access to institutions

According to the recommendations from the Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and in order to improve the general system of social protection, speci�c activities have been planned on a local level to strengthen the capacities of the municipal administration, increase the scope of social services provided to the poor and vulnerable, as well as establish mechanisms for their direct involvement in the decision making on a local level.

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INTRODUCTIONThe preparation of the strategic document for alleviation of poverty and social exclusion on a local level is an obligation undertaken by the “Ludwig Boltzmann” Human Rights Institute (BIM-FV Skopje), within the “Social Inclusion and Human Rights in Macedonia” Project, funded by the Austrian Development Cooperation, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy of the Republic of Macedonia.

The aim of the project is to apply the human rights approach for alleviation of poverty and social exclusion on a national and local level, including the identi�cation of vulnerable groups, their direct inclusion in the decision-making processes that a�ect their lives as well as establishment of a system for monitoring and accountability of the obligation bearers.

The project includes the municipalities of Berovo, Pehcevo, Radovis, Konce, Studenicani, Caska, Lipkovo and Negotino.The preparation of the Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Inclusion is based on the human rights approach. It is a process that serves to improve the planning, implementation and monitoring of development. By using the human rights approach in planning it is ensured that the priorities, measures and actions contained in the strategies and action plans will be determined on the basis of the facts and the real needs of the people in the community. The process is particularly focused on the strengthening of the poor and vulnerable people, enabling them to express their needs and problems to the decision makers.

The main features of the human rights approach (HRA) for alleviation of poverty used in the preparation of this strategy include:

• Identi�cation of the poor;• Identi�cation of the relevant normative, national and international human rights framework;• Participation and strengthening;• Equality and non-discrimination;• Progressive implementation of human rights;• Monitoring and accountability.

According to the Tool 3 of the HRA in local development (“How can the local development a�ect all”), provided by the”Ludwig Boltzmann” Institute for Human Rights the following is required to ensure compliance with the abovementioned principles:1. To identify all vulnerable groups during the data collection and analysis of the situation and problems;2. To establish initiatives for ensuring social mobilization and participation with focused actions, targeting those

groups that are usually excluded and do not participate actively in the policy development processes;3. To establish indicators and a certain group of objectives related to the realization of human rights throughout

the process by setting short term, medium term and long term objectives;4. To set successful monitoring and accountability mechanisms in order to ensure that the obligation bearers

would be responsible, especially in cases of abuse in the allocation of resources. Each local development plan should contain these elements embedded in the planning and implementation phase. Although seemingly di�cult to fully incorporate these criteria, there is not a single inclusive local development plan that would be possible without them.

According to the same document, the abovementioned principles ensure access to the development process, the institutions and available information, including mechanisms for damage compensation and accountability. In the basis of the HRA lies the constant maintaining of the level of respect of human rights and the continuous improvement in their realization.

The Strategy for Social Inclusion, Social Protection and Alleviation of Poverty in Lipkovo municipality has been developed in accordance with the National Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion in the Republic of Macedonia (2010-2020) and in accordance with the Open Coordination Method (OCM), which contributes to the strengthening of the capacities of the local government to organize and facilitate a wide consultative process with the civil society organizations, the vulnerable, poor and socially excluded groups of citizens, the business community and all other stakeholders.

In the process of development of this strategic document and in the de�ning of the strategic priorities, aims and activities, the Local Partnership Group (LPG) took into consideration the provisions of the following regulations1:• Law on Local Self-Government, O�cial Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia no. 5/2002;• Law on Financing of the Local Self-Government Units from 2002;• Law on Territorial Organization of the Local Self-Government Units, O�cial Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia,

no.55/2004;• Law on Balanced Regional Development, O�cial Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia, 63/2007;• Declaration on the Participation of the Local and Regional Authorities in Achieving the Millennium Development

Goals (MDG) by 2006.

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At the same time, in the conceptualization of this strategic document, the LPG took into account the key guidelines identi�ed in the following programs of the Ministry of Local Self-Government (MLSG):

• Program for Implementation of the Decentralization Process;• National Implementation Programme.

Abbreviation list Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights – BIM-FV Skopje

SSO – State Statistical O�ce EU – European Union IPARD - Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance for Rural Development PCE – Public Communal Enterprise LAG – Local Action Group LED – Local Economic Development LPG – Local Partnership GroupLC – Local community MoES – Ministry of Education and ScienceMLSP – Ministry of Labour and Social PolicyNGO – Non-governmental organization

Analysis PESTEL - PESTEL (Political Factors, Economic Factors, Social Factors, Technological Factors, Environmental Factors and Legal Factors)RM – Republic of MacedoniaSWOT Analysis – Analysis of Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats

UNDP – United Nations Development Programme USAID – United States Agency for International DevelopmentUSAID –MLGA- USAID Macedonia Local Government Activity NHIF – National Health Insurance Fund CSW – Center for Social Work

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1. Process of preparation of the Strategic Plan for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion 1.1. Basic principles

Local development, including the processes of alleviation of poverty and social exclusion is a competence of the local self-government, and as such, largely depends on the good planning on the part of the local self-governmental unit. It is usually impossible to identify accurately the needs of the municipalities by using measures on a national level, and therefore, the preparation of the Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion on a local level is one of the essential measures for the planning of the overall sustainable development of municipalities

The necessity of preparing a Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion arises from the importance of identifying the key social problems faced by the population in Lipkovo municipality. The strategic plan should contribute to the achievement of the vision of the municipality through the realization of strategic aims, which constitute measures for the resolution of the most pressing problems faced by the citizens of Lipkovo municipality. The Strategic Plan for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion in Lipkovo municipality is based on the following postulates:• A Human Rights-Based Approach – including the right to a decent standard of living, access to health care

services, non-discrimination, education, work, social protection and security, children’s rights and healthy environment;

• Millennium Development Goals – in accordance with the Agenda for Global Sustainable Development, aimed at alleviating poverty, overcoming the problem of illiteracy, protecting infants and parturient women, enabling prevention from HIV / AIDS and other epidemics and providing conditions for a healthy living environment;

• Integrated process for development planning - a process of participatory planning and decision making, incorporating the strategic aims for the development of the relevant stakeholders on a local level in order to ensure optimal distribution of the available resources among them with thee overall objective of enabling sustainability and providing assistance to the poor and vulnerable groups;

• Comprehensive development planning - including all competences of the municipality: urban planning, environmental protection, activities within the municipality, culture and sports, social welfare, education, health and protection from natural disasters;

• Human development - including the promotion of the human development approach that is aimed at providing conditions for the display of each individual’s full potential as well as concern for adequate access to the health and education services, in particular, decent standard of living for all;

• Sustainable development - approach aimed at uniform, balanced ful�llment of the social and economic needs of di�erent generations;

• Good governance practice - by promoting the values, such as transparency, inclusiveness, responsibility, e�ciency, e�ectiveness, coherence and ability to deliver (all of which are values associated with the interests of the citizens);

• Local self-government - the practice of the local government is a basis for the development of a democratic society that supports the citizens, a society through which the citizens have equal opportunities to realize their rights.

1.2. De�nitions

In the preparation of this document the following de�nitions related to alleviation of poverty and social exclusion have been used:Poverty: Poor are considered to be individuals, families and groups of persons whose resources (material, cultural and social) are at such a level that excludes the minimum acceptable way of living in their country.

Social exclusion: Unlike poverty, which focuses on individuals or households, social exclusion primarily concerns the relationships between the individual and society as well as the dynamics of those relationships. Social exclusion means inability to e�ectively participate in the economic, cultural and social life, and in a way, alienation and distancing from the normal social processes.

Social needs: Needs of the individual that condition his existence as a human being as well as needs of the individual that are met in the community.

Social problem: Conditions that a�ect a signi�cant number of people in the form of undesirable e�ects, which given their prevalence are considered to be a source of di�culties and dissatisfaction, and which could be prevented, or the e�ects of which can be mitigated, by an organized social action.

Social protection: Monetary compensations and personal social services provided to persons who are not part of any scheme of social insurance and who have insu�cient means of subsistence for themselves and their family.

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1.3. Methodology

The methodology of participatory planning has been used in the preparation of the Strategic Plan for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion. The process of participatory planning has been de�ned as a process that includes all concerned stakeholders: individuals, groups, organizations and institutions, as well as their involvement in the decision making on development-related issues, in this case Lipkovo municipality.

The conditions which have to be met in order to apply the participatory planning approach and which were met within the municipality include:- Preparedness on part of the Mayor, the Municipal Council, the local administration, the civil society organizations and business community to implement the participatory planning approach in order to improve the social status of the vulnerable groups of citizens;- Transparency in conducting the activities of the municipality during the planning;- Impartial relations among the Mayor, the administration and the other stakeholders regarding the development of the municipality and improvement of the social inclusion of the vulnerable groups;- Timely implementation of the activities arising from the participatory planning.

The activities which took place in the municipality during the participatory planning process include:- Identifying the relevant factors for the development of the municipality through direct contacts with the local government;- Conducting research and preparing a study concerning the status of vulnerable groups in the municipality;- Formal and informal meetings with the relevant persons and representatives of the various groups and organizations;- Analysis of the existing documents (analyses, studies, strategies, etc.) describing the situation in the municipality, with particular reference to the documents and data that give a picture of the situation in the social sphere;- Harmonization of the de�ned priority vulnerable groups, their needs and opportunities as well as strategic aims to improve their situation on a the local level with the development priorities on a local level and planning region level;- Timely and continuous involvement of all stakeholders by establishing a Local Partnership Group consisting of representatives from the civil society, private and public sector in the municipality (the Local Partnership Group underwent a cycle of trainings on human rights and development planning);- Active involvement of all stakeholders in all phases of the strategic planning by setting priorities for the improvement of the situation of the vulnerable groups in the municipality alongside with the Local Partnership Group, interviews with the representatives of the relevant institutions and organizations in the municipality, focus group discussions with the poor and vulnerable groups of citizens;- Involvement of the citizens in the participatory planning process by organizing public debates and discussions, dissemination of information through the mass media and other forms of achieving greater civic involvement.

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2. Analysis of the current situation2.1. General characteristics of Lipkovo municipality Lipkovo municipality belongs to the group of average small rural municipalities in the Republic of Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the Republic of Macedonia and covers an area of 270 km2. The geographical con�guration of the terrain is mostly highland and mountainous, and much of the territory belongs to the watersheds of the rivers Lipkovska, Lojanska, Slupcanska, Otljanska, Matejacka and Vaksinska. To the north it borders with Kosovo and Serbia, to the east with the municipality of Kumanovo, to the south with Aracinovo and to the west with Skopje.

There are 22 towns in the municipality, all of which are rural local communities. They lie at an average altitude of 365 m above the sea level, which is the average altitude for the country. The average population density is 110 inhabitants per km2. The density is greater in the plain areas whereas the mountainous areas cover larger area, but have fewer inhabitants. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Lipkovo with 2644 inhabitants, towards which gravitate the other surrounding villages. The largest settlement in the municipality is the village of Slupcane, with 3789 inhabitants.

According to the census in 2002 there are 27,058 inhabitants in Lipkovo. The population has been continuously on the rise from 1948, when the �rst o�cial census took place. Compared to the previous census of 1994, the number of inhabitants has increased by 2801 persons. However, in the mountainous areas there is an emigration trend to the plain villages of this area, but also to the cities of Skopje and Kumanovo. Many people immigrated to Turkey. There are 3,599 households and 5,790 housing units in the municipality. The average household has 4 to 6 members. Out of the total population, 13,701 (52%) are male and 13,348 (48%) are female. In terms of ethnic population structure, 26,360 (97.4%) are reported as Albanians, 370 (1.4%) as Serbs, 169 as Macedonians (0.6%) and 0.6% as others.

Table 1. Overview of population according to nationality

Albanian Serbian Macedonian Bosnian Vlach Other Total

26.360 370 169 6 1 152 27.058

97.4% 1.4% 0.6% 0.0% 0.0% 0.6% 100%

In terms of age structure, the largest group are children age 5 - 14 ; in addition to this, great portion of the population belong to the age group 20 -40 years.

Graph 1. Age structure of the population

The municipality has rich natural resources. Special emphasis shall be put on its forest and lake potential. The main economic activity is agriculture which is the dominant activity for 95% of the population. Agriculture covers an area of 22,599 ha, of which 8256 ha or 36.5% is agricultural land irrigated partly from the Lipkovo hydro system. Pastures occupy an area of 4375 ha, whereas forests spread on an area of 9968 ha. One of the main features of this municipality are the two arti�cial lakes: Lake Lipkovo used for irrigation, drinking and household use for the inhabitants of the municipality of Kumanovo and Glaznja Lake, which is generally used for irrigation and �shing.

Minerals and ores are particularly important for the development of the municipality. The municipality is rich in antimony and arsenic from the Lojane mine, as well as in marble and granite from the settlements of Matejce and Nikustak. The development potentials are mainly seen in the tourism development, the use of fertile land (agriculture and livestock breeding) and the rational exploitation of mineral resources.

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2.2. Social pro�le of Lipkovo

Education: Primary education is organized in six central and seven regional schools for regular, compulsory education. Of these, two have central heating. The situation with the schools in the highland hill places is relatively good whereas in the mountainous places it is quite bad. A new school building has been built in Nikustak. In Lipkovo there is a secondary school, located in the Lipkovo municipal center. There are no vocational or specialized schools. The number of elementary and high school students is on the increase. However, the participants in focus groups emphasized the problem of lack of money for continuing education. The situation is only worsened by the lack of public awareness of the possibility of obtaining student loans and scholarships.

“We lack the most basic stu�. As a student, my main problem was the lack of money to pursue my education. I need money to be able to graduate from university and invest in yourself. My father is unemployed, the other families are also unemployed. Our relatives working abroad give us a hand to cover transportation costs, buy a book or two, but not more than that “- said a student - participant in the focus group.

In Lipkovo municipality there is no preschool facility for children (kindergarten).Employment: Unemployment is the biggest problem of Lipkovo inhabitants, especially of women. The total number of population with working capacity according to the latest data is 5254, out of which 3,491 are unemployed. Out of the total population with working capacity of Lipkovo, only 25% are employed, out of which only 7% are women.

Graph 2. Overview of employed people Graph 3. Overview of unemployed people

The population mainly deals with agricultural activities, and most jobs are registered in the private sector, i.e. in the local small and medium-size enterprises. The situation with the unemployment rate is alarming, especially taking into consideration the poor road infrastructure, the insu�ciently used natural and geographical advantages, the insu�cient use and deterioration of some facilities (school buildings, associations, centers, etc.) that can be used for economic activities, the insu�cient use of the urbanized economic zones, etc. One of the problems faced by farmers is the lack of opportunities to sell their products on the market and the low purchase prices.

“The border crossing and the regional road Lojane-Miratovce has not been paved in asphalt, so the border crossing is not functional. The opening of this border crossing would open a door for the farmers to the Kosovo and Serbia markets. The agricultural activity is quite prevalent “-statement of an adult participant in the focus group.

The migration from the villages to the cities and the growing emigration of citizens abroad, the low level of education and the unskilled labor certainly contribute a great deal to the poor economic situation in Lipkovo. Although, lately the local self-government undertakes signi�cant actions to improve this situation, a lot still remains to be done.

Health care: The health care services in the municipality are provided through private health care institutions, 11 private clinics with general physicians and one dental clinic. There is no private gynecological clinic. There are no public specialist clinics, and the most urgent priority is a gynecological-obstetrician practice. There are two pharmacies on the territory of Lipkovo. In the bigger hilly villages there are clinics that provide basic health care services. There are no clinics in the higher mountainous villages. There is no ambulance service. There is no specialist clinic nor polyclinic in Lipkovo. If need arises, inhabitants are sent to Kumanovo and Skopje. The Government of the Republic of Macedonia has adopted a Decision envisaging the establishment of a health care center. The funds for it are already provided and it is already sta�ed with medical personnel. The procurement of medical equipment for the health care center is underway.

Social protection: the protection for the youngest and oldest inhabitants of Lipkovo should be improved. There is no kindergarten or nursing home in the municipality. The elderly living in the mountainous villages where there are no basic infrastructure (water, roads, public transport, etc.) as well as the elderly whose younger family members went to work abroad are particularly vulnerable.

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The Centre for Social Protection which bears competence for Lipkovo is located in Kumanovo; in Lipkovo there is only an o�ce providing material assistance to the socially disadvantaged citizens. This o�ce has limited capacities in every sense of the word (technical, material, human).

Culture and Sports: In Lipkovo there is a lack of cultural institutions/centers. The network of cultural institutions on a local level is not developed at all. There is no theater, cinema, museum. The central elementary schools dispose of a library, but there is no central municipal library. There was a Cultural Center in Matejce, but after the con�ict in 2001, it was completely destroyed. The procedure for construction of a new cultural center is underway, an initiative funded by the Ministry of Culture.

In Lipkovo, there is a sports hall in the village of Slupcane and six sports grounds. There are six sports clubs, out of one proactive football club.

Media: In Lipkovo, there is no local radio or a local television, and no local newspapers.

Civil sector: There are ten registered citizens’ associations in Lipkovo, but only a few of them are active: the ED “Natira”, the Union of Albanian Women - Lipkovo branch o�ce, the “Baran” Association, the Association of Albanian Women - Intellectuals.b They are generally aimed at the protection of human rights, emancipation and environmental protection.

Economic entities: In the records of the business entities there are app. 900 economic entities established on the territory of Lipkovo, out of which only 400 are active. Of these, 37% are enterprises, 56% are trade companies and 7% other. Dominant industries include the milling industry and the production industry of carpentry and furniture. Many of the industrial facilities that used to employ many inhabitants of the municipality (part of the neighboring municipality of Kumanovo) have gone bankrupt. Examples include: “Cik Kumanovo”, “Kozara” the tobaccoproducer “Kumanovo”, the agricultural cooperative “Nikustak” and others.

In Lipkovo, agriculture is the traditional dominant activity because there are excellent agro-technical conditions for development, and most of the rural surroundings of arable land is irrigated by the waters of Lipkovo system. According to the agricultural census data of the State Statistical Agency of the Republic of Macedonia, in Lipkovo municipality there are two large farms and 3450 individual farmers, who cover a total area of 8256 ha.

2.3. Dominant social problems in Lipkovo municipality

According to the Study on Poverty and Social Exclusion in Lipkovo, the following social problems have been identi�ed:Social problems: The social problems related to social development have been singled out as most signi�cant social problems in the municipality: unemployment, poverty and social exclusion. The employment rate on the territory of Lipkovo is 11%. In terms of the economic entities, most people are employed in business entities with over 25 employees whereas the fewest people in economic entities with 6-10 employees. Most are employed in the state administration, primarily in the education sector. The black market economy is visible as well. The analysis of the number of unemployed people by educational level shows that the largest part (73.8%) are people with no quali�cations and only a small part (2.1%) are people with 2-year college or higher education. Although there is no signi�cant di�erence in the number of unemployed persons by age, most of the unemployed are between 20-29, which constitutes 30% of the total number of unemployed persons. One third of the unemployed have been unemployed for eight and more than eight years. In terms of employment, most disadvantaged are the people with the lowest educational level.

The Employment Center bearing competence for Lipkovo is located in Kumanovo.The Centre employs 27 people, out of which 18 have completed university education, 7 secondary education and 2 persons elementary education. The Center, as a competent institution for taking action in case of unemployment, implements active measures to reduce unemployment, including: subsidizing employment, self-employment, employment of disabled people and people from certain target groups. Foreign language training and professional orientation sessions for the unemployed are organized in the job clubs. The users of social monetary assistance are hired only once to carry out public works in the municipality.

The Center for Social Work, which is situated in Kumanovo, is locally competent for the residents of Lipkovo. In Lipkovo there is only an O�ce for Material Compensations in which users can get social monetary assistance, permanent monetary assistance and one-term monetary assistance. There are 4 employees in the O�ce of the SWC, which is insu�cient for a municipality of Lipkovo’s size. The spatial facilities of the O�ce are adequte, but there is no modern technical equipment. It is equipped with computers and there is an Internet connection. They do not have any vehicles, but if necessary, vehicles are being sent from Kumanovo. These vehicles are in poor condition.

Other social problems, such as drug abuse, abuse of other phycho-tropic substances or asocial behaviour of children, are present to a lesser degree on the territory of Lipkovo.

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The population living in high mountainous areas has been singled out as socially most disadvantaged group in the municipality. Given the poor communication and the lack of institutional network necessary for meeting the basic human needs, the inhabitants of these municipalities are completely excluded from mainstream society. In Lipkovo there is one category of citizens who are not enrolled in the birth registry because they did not have the necessary documents, and are thus, unable to use social and other bene�ts. On the territory of Lipkovo there was also a large group of citizens who upon the announcement of the visa liberalization with the European Union became asylum seekers in the European countries.

Infrastructural issues: Lipkovo municipality faces major infrastructural problems. One of the most serious problems is the lack of good drinking water. The water supply system is almost inexistent. There is no water supply network in any of the villages and are usually supplied with water through individual wells and springs running through the hill/highland and mountainous area. Citizens speci�cally emphasize this problem and are bothered by it – although the dam is on the territory of Lipkovo, the municipality has no water supply system. In the plain part, the �ve Lipkovo villages have temporary partial water networks of poor quality and bad-quality water.

There is a sewerage system only in two villages, i.e. most of the villages are not covered by the sewerage system network, but use septic tanks. Therefore, waste waters polluting groundwater constitute a signi�cant problem, as do the individual springs (wells), soil, yards, etc.

The plain areas are connected mainly by asphalt-paved roads whereas the main road artery is the Lipkovo- Kumanovo route. The access to the mountainous villages represents a major problem, especially in winter. In the villages there are unpaved earth roads.

Environmental problems: The quality of the drinking water is the biggest problem for the inhabitants of Lipkovo municipality. The drinking water in plain areas is a problem because it is contaminated with arsenic, antimony and chromium concentrate and other heavy metals and waste waters. These waters are not controlled by the sanitary and health care authorities. In Lipkovo there is also a problem with the illegal land�ll. The ccmmunal enterprise with a total number of ten employees operates in only 11 hill/highland villages.

2.4. Social protection in Lipkovo

Lipkovo has developed a Substrategy for Rural Development for the period 2009-2013. This strategy was the basis for the development of the Program for the Development of the Northeast Planning Region under which Lipkovo together with �ve other municipalities (Kumanovo, Palanka, Rankovce, Staro Nagoricane and Kratovo) plans its economic, social and environmental development.

According to the Substrategy for Rural Development 2009-1013, the vision for Lipkovo municipality is as follows:Lipkovo municipality will be an environmentally clean and developed rural municipality with a high quality of life.

This vision should be achieved through activities that will improve the quality of life in the municipality which is further elaborated in the mission given in the Substrategy: To increase the quality of life in Lipkovo municipality through the rural, sociological and economic development as well as through the clean environment.

From the vision and mission statements, it can be concluded that the local self-government in Lipkovo seriously considers the development of the municipality and the prosperity of its citizens.

In these statements it is especially important to recognize the expressed awareness that the local development is not possible without the social development.

Within the municipal administration there is no special department for social protection, and the responsibilities and competences are carried out by an employee in the Unit for Normative, Legal and Public A�airs. There is no social worker in the local self-government who would deal with issues related to the social protection of the population.

The Strategy for Local Development 2009/2011 is a signi�cant municipal document in which social development is determined as one of the basic pillars of local development. The following strategic social goals have been envisaged: strengthening of the capacities of inhabitants through various courses and trainings, capacity building of the local NGOs, construction of social housing facilities and realization of activities to improve the welfare of children.

The collaboration with the citizens most often takes place through gatherings of the citizens, reporting on local television stations in the neighboring municipality of Kumanovo and through the Information Center in the municipal building. As a form of assistance to socially vulnerable population is granting onetime �nancial aid award for which jurisdiction has the mayor. The total budget of the municipality is 270 000 Euro (excluding grants by the Government of the Republic of Macedonia) whereas the annual budget entry of the Mayor for allocation of resources on a basis of a submitted application/request is 3000-4000 Euro, which also includes requests for assistance.

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The O�ce for Material Compensations has, in general, poor co-operate with the NGO sector, the religious organizations and the private sector. The O�ce is involved in joint activities with the municipality and cooperation is assessed as good. Given that the O�ce is responsible for acting in administrative proceedings when di�erent monetary rights are realized, there is no cooperation with the schools and the health care facilities.The cooperation with the local Employment Centre is assessed as not good enough, primarily due to the physical separation. The most burdening problems for the functioning of the O�ce include: lack of vehicles, lack of working resources (paper, o�ce supplies, etc.) big overload of work upon the professionals, who are serving a large number of clients. Most performance problems arise as a result of the lack of documentation needed for the realization of certain rights of some categories of citizens who have not been registered in the birth records.

It should be underlined that in Lipkovo there is a great need for the establishment of a Center for Social Work or at least for expansion of the powers of the existing O�ce of Material Compensations, which would facilitate the realization of the social protection rights.This situation imposes the need for Lipkovo inhabitants to travel to the neighboring municipality of Kumanovo to realize some right to institutional or extra-institutional protection or part of the rights to social protection monetary assistance that cannot be realized in the O�ce for Material Compensations.

The analysis of the structure of users of social protection monetary assistance on the territory of Lipkovo municipality shows that 2300 households are bearers of the right to social monetary assistance, and about 80 families use permanent monetary assistance. The one-term monetary assistance most often is granted to cover the cost of health care services. The procedure is rendered even more di�cult due to the complex documentation required for the realization of certain rights.

There is no social services network in the municipality. From the forms of extra-institutional protection, there is no center for daily or temporary accommodation of users, foster families or small group home. There is no community kitchen and no institution providing institutional protection.

2.5. Findings from the study of poverty and social exclusion in Macedonia

A basic Study on Poverty and Social Exclusion in Macedonia - Local Social Problems and Needs has been developed in March 2011 within the project “Social Inclusion and Human Rights in Macedonia,” of the “Ludwig Boltzmann” Institute of Human Rights. The survey whose data will follow as a quantitative method for data collection is just one part of the study (one of the used sources of data), which consists of a qualitative part, i.e. an analysis of the content of existing documents, interviews with professional structures and focus group discussions with the vulnerable and the poor.

For the purposes of this study, a survey has been conducted in Lipkovo on 100 rural households, all of Albanian ethnicity. The structure of the surveyed households by type of household shows that most respondents are non-agricultural (26%), followed by agricultural (13%) and mixed (57%) whereas 4% have not provided information on the type of household. In terms of the age structure, in most households, the “head of the household” is between 50-59 years of age(46%), in 36% of the households, the “head of the household” is between 40-49 years of age, in 14% he/she is older than 60 and in 4% is between 30-39 years years of age. Five-member households (28%) and six-member households (18%) are the greatest in number. In 92 households the head of the household is male, and in only 8 households the head of the household is a woman.

According to the survey, the main economic activity is agriculture which is the dominant activity for 95% of the population. Much of the employed population works in the milling industry and in private companies for production of furniture and carpentry.

Of the total number of households surveyed, in 47% of the cases there is none employed members, and the ratio of employed men to employed women is 95 (men) to 10 (women).

The analysis of the obtained data shows that 30 households did not generate any income from regular employment in the past 12 months.

Respondents from Lipkovo stated that in their populated place there is a sports �eld (89), swings (5), a cafe-bar (71), a library (57), a restaurant (96), a market (94) and an Internet cafe and sports betting house (89). In 37 households it was mentioned that nobody uses the Internet. In 53% of cases of Internet use, respondents used a home computer, and only in nine cases used Internet from an Internet cafe.

In Lipkovo the dominant problems in the �eld of social inclusion are as follows: unemployment, poverty and social exclusion. Namely, there are 4,702 registered unemployed persons in the Employment Center, of which 35% are women. Most of the unemployed are unskilled workers and only 2.1% have two-year college or higher education. Almost one third of the unemployed are between 20 and 29 years of age. Also, one third of the unemployed are long-term unemployed (more than 8 years).

The survey showed that the elderly, the population living in high mountainous areas of the municipality and disabled persons are vulnerable groups of citizens. The drugs, alcohol and other psychotropic substances’ addicts represent

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a somewhat minor problem. At the municipal level, there are no special institutions and support centers for these categories of citizens.

The persons who have not been recorded in the registers have been pointed out as a separate social problem in the survey .

3. Findings from the workshop for priority setting in the area of social development in Lipkovo municipality

3.1. Identi�cation of vulnerable groups

A total number of 11 representatives of the local leadership group of Lipkovo municipality attended the workshop held March 21-23, 2011 in the Drim Hotel in Struga.

The vulnerable groups in Lipkovo municipality and their speci�c problems were analyzed at the workshop through a constructive and open discussion. Three priority vulnerable groups and their priority problems were identi�ed. Three working groups focused on the social aspects of three age groups of citizens in the municipality, namely:•children;•adults,and•elderlypeople.

From each age group, special categories of vulnerable citizens facing speci�c needs were identi�ed. According to the work of the working groups, the following have been identi�ed as special categories of vulnerable children, adults and elderly people:

Table 2. Vulnerable groups of citizens

Children Adults Elderly people

- Children with physical and mental disabilities

- Children living in villages without basic infrastructure

- Children from isolated mountainous villages

- Children without parents

- Children from poor families

- Persons that do not have regulated status in the country

- Unemployed people

- Persons without any educational background

- Elderly people living alone

- Elderly people in mountainous villages

- Elderly people with no access to health care

The children with special needs who live in Lipkovo municipality lack basic conditions for development. They represent a major burden for the parents and the whole family, and are thus, excluded from the educational process and the whole community. Their rights are not being realized because the family, fearing stigmatization in the community, literally hides these children. Given that there are no so-called special classes in the schools of Lipkovo municipality, these children do not have any possibilities to get an education and to get involved in the social life, so they are left only to the care of their family.

The children from the mountainous areas and the places with no basic infrastructure are particularly vulnerable when it comes to education, socialization and health care. Namely, with the exception of the primary district schools (up to grade 4) in these places there are no additional opportunities to learn foreign languages, get involved in music or sports, nor any other activities that help to develop their educational, health and spiritual potential. Taking into account the poor road infrastructure, these children are unable to participate in the additional activities in the other populated areas of Lipkovo municipality. There are no local clinics in the mountainous areas, so the children (and other inhabitants) living there do not have health care.

Lipkovo is a traditional community in which the children without parents and parental care are mainly taken care by the extended family. Still, there is no special care for these children in the municipality, especially not when it comes to the provision of support in the educational process, personal development and improvement of their �nancial condition.

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The children from poor families face a problem in the educational process where they are often excluded by their classmates, mainly because of their clothing, textbooks and other school-related materials. The inability to socialize with their peers, which is related to additional �nancial resources needed, also a�ects the self-security and self-con�dence of the young persons. Greater care should be provided from the community for these children, so that they can develop their potential and become useful and productive members of society.

During discussion, the following particular problems faced by the children and young people in Lipkovo municipality were identi�ed:

- Violence in schools;- Lack of cultural, sports’ and recreational facilities;- Lack of speci�c subject-matter classrooms in schools;- Lack of development programs to support talented children;- Lack of professional sta� in schools.

According to the available statistical data, most inhabitants of Lipkovo municipality belong to the age range of 20 -39. The people that do not have regulated status (i.e. citizenship) in the Republic of Macedonia were singled out as a specially vulnerable category of adults within the working group. These people are facing problems in the realization of their rights to health care, social protection, employment, education, travel abroad as well a number of other problems.

Unemployment is the main problem for the adult population of Lipkovo, causing many other problems and limitations in their life. The lack of facilities, companies and organized agricultural entities worsen the already unfavorable situation with the employment rate. The unemployed, as outlined in the working group, do not form families, live in poverty, and often resort to vices (alcohol, drugs, gambling and betting).

The following problems faced by the adults and citizens of working capacity of Lipkovo municipality were speci�cally highlighted:- Lack of infrastructure leading to a lack of direct and indirect investments in the municipality;- Underdeveloped small and medium size businesses, as an opportunity for employment;- Non-regulated (citizenship) status which prevents access to all rights and obligations;- Lack of funding for the higher education;- Unemployment - which causes inability to provide basic living conditions for the family.

Old people from Lipkovo face serious problems in achieving their rights to health care, especially those who have not regulated their status in the Republic of Macedonia. Particularly vulnerable are the elderly who live alone and face their own inability to complete the household chores, take care of themselves and their health, and have no socialization opportunities. The elderly who live in the mountainous villages due to the poor infrastructure (water supply system, sewerage system, roads) can not live a normal and digni�ed life. Given that in the mountainous villages there is no medical care whatsoever, it can be concluded that there are no basic living conditions for these citizens.

The elderly in Lipkovo face the following problems:

- Lack of daily care for the elderly and disabled citizens;- Lack of homes and daycare centers to support the elderly;- Lack of health care (many elderly people have no health insurance);

3.2. Identi�cation of speci�c problems of the vulnerable groups of citizens in Lipkovo municipality

During the workshop the participants worked on a detailed analysis of the problems for each of the three categories of citizens of Lipkovo (according to age). For each group, three key problems faced by persons from that speci�c group were identi�ed. For each problem, the discussion resulted in an analysis of the problems and the reasons for each problem and its consequences were determined. Furthermore, the external factors for each problem were discussed (political, economic, social, technical, legal, environmental) or the so-called PESTEL analysis was conducted. These external factors re�ect upon the consequences of the problem and can have a positive or negative e�ect, i.e. they can contribute to the mitigation or resolution of the problem, or, on the other hand, worsen the condition. If the external factors have a positive e�ect, they can be used to plan the activities for overcoming the identi�ed problem. If the external factor has a negative e�ect, then additional protection measures should be undertaken in the planning of the problem solution.

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Working group: children

In this working group, three priority issues related to the social inclusion of children in Lipkovo were considered. The discussion in the group showed that the biggest problem for the children with special needs is their rejection by the whole community, including schools, peers, and generally, most of the citizens. It creates many problems in the lives of the children with special needs and their families, which ultimately re�ects on the life in the wider community.The lack of conditions for the development of children and young people is a major problem in Lipkovo, especially when it comes to the extracurricular activities, taking into consideration that the largest percentage of the population in the municipality is under the age of 14. The insu�cient development of the talented students, the neglect of the basic traditional values, such as honesty, hard work, etc., is caused by the lack of proper conditions for further learning and socialization of the young people in Lipkovo.

Poverty becomes present in the everyday life of citizens in the Republic of Macedonia, especially in underdeveloped and rural areas, such as Lipkovo municipality. The consequences of being poor are felt particularly hard by the children and the young people, since growing up and living in harsh conditions restrict the possibilities for their development.These are serious problems and their resolution should involve the whole community and local self-government by providing adequate conditions (construction of cultural and sports facilities, support of young and talented students etc.); schools (greater involvement of teachers in organizing extracurricular activities, additional teaching for the particularly low-performing and particularly high-performing students, non-discrimination of children on the basis of their social background, activities to promote positive values, work with parents, etc.); civil society (mobilization of additional resources and donations, organizing educational activities, etc.); parents (greater care for the raising of children) and all other stakeholders in the development of Lipkovo municipality.

Table 3. Causal and consequential relation of the problems detected in children

Causes Problem Consequence

- poor economic condition of the family and community

- lack of adequate institution for their care and development

- failure to accept /refusal by the other members of the community

Insu�cient care of the community for the children with special needs

- overburdening of the nuclear family with obligations and care for

the children - exclusion from the community

and social life - incapability of the children for

independent life, selfsustainability and making a contribution to the

community

- poor economic condition of the citizens and the local self –

government in Lipkovo - lack of adequate institutions for

development of young people (sports’ halls, educational, cultural

and other institutions and possibilities)

- lack of adequate developmental programs for the young people

Lack of conditions for development of children and young people

- violence in the schools - lack of opportunities to identify and support the development of

talented children and young people - bad reputation of the young

population - neglect of the basic human values

(honour, hard work, trust, etc.)

- poor economic condition – lack of funds

- di�erent treatment of the male and female children (priority of the

male children when it comes to education)

- early school leaving

Exclusion of children coming from poor families from the educational

process

- lack of opportunities of gaining employment and �nding a well

paid job - a drop in the education level of

the community - increasingly creating conditions

that lead to exclusion in the community

The group also discussed external factors a�ecting the problems of children. The following external in�uences were pointed out in the discussion: - Failure to implement the adequate legislation in the �eld of improving the condition of children with special needs;- Lack of adequate facilities for children with special needs and elderly people (day care centers, nursing home, community kitchen, etc.)

- Negative impact of climatic conditions;

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- Insu�cient information on possible investments for the development of children and young people (international funds, state programs, civil society organizations and initiatives);- Unequal opportunities for the development of rural and urban areas;- Lack of state investments for the development of young people in Lipkovo;- Unequal investments in the di�erent regions on the part of the state;- Failure to use the opportunities of the international community;- Lack of programs for social inclusion for children from poor families;- Lack of technical and spatial conditions in the educational institutions in Lipkovo municipality.These factors have been taken into account in setting the strategic aims and priorities as well as in the preparation of the Action Plan.

Working Group: Adults

In this working group, three priority issues a�ecting adults in Lipkovo municipality have been considered. The main problem of the inhabitants is the unemployment, which is a global problem in the Republic of Macedonia. The consequences of unemployment are su�ered not only by the adult people of working capacity, but also by their children and parents. Furthermore, the negative consequences of unemployment are re�ected on the entire community.

The citizenship issue has arisen in Lipkovo municipality after the Republic of Macedonia gained independence and is increasingly a�ecting the inhabitants of this municipality. The non-regulated status constitutes a limitation for the inhabitants in every sense possible: upon obtaining health care, in employment, when traveling abroad, etc. This problem can be perceived as a problem of the individual, but if the number of such individuals is considerable, then this constitutes a problem for the community and adequate measures for its resolution should be undertaken.

Lipkovo municipality was a�ected by the con�ict in 2001, the consequences of which can be felt ten years after its completion. The municipality is uno�cially still considered a “crisis area”, which has a negative e�ect on the potential investors, and development, in general. The problem with those people who lost their loved ones in the con�ict has still not been resolved, which has resulted in the exclusion of this people from the social processes.

Table 4. Causal and consequential relation of the problems detected in adults

Causes Problem Consequence

- Lack of �nancial resources for education

- Lack of basic conditions (lack of basic infrastructure) which means

lack of conditions for direct and indirect investments

High unemployment rate

- Acquiring bad habits (stealing, alcoholism, drug abuse)

- People do not enter into marriages – Decrease of the birth rate

(poor families do not have family planning)

- Decrease in the number of the population

- Lack of basic rights - Non-registered persons in the

birth registers (the services have not updated data in real time, citizens are not informed, parents do not have eregulated stay, citizenship

criteria have not been met)

Non-regulated status (citizenship)

- Lack of opportunities to get an education, �nd a job, receive social

welfare or health care - Limiting of the traveling abroad – lack of possession of personal

documents

- The 2001 con�ict (disabled participants in the con�ict )

- Lack of respect of the principle of equality of all citizens

- Lack of political will to protect the disabled participants in the 2001

con�ict

Inadequate protection of the disabled and widows from the 2001

con�ict

- No resocialization and reintegration programs for the

disabled persons from the con�ict - Social exclusion of these citizens

The following external in�uences that have a negative e�ect on the position of adults have been identi�ed as particularly important in Lipkovo:- Failure to implement laws;- A small number of Internet users;- Construction land owned by the central government;- Lack of economic, industrial and production facilities;

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- Unfavorable investment climate that deters potential foreign and domestic investors;- Marginalization of citizens;- Lack of implementation of the domestic and EU regulations;- Lack of free health insurance;- Lack of guaranteed funds and rights of the families of the killed in the con�ict.These factors are taken into account in setting the strategic aims and priorities as well as in the preparation of the Action Plan.

Working group: Elderly

The elderly, perhaps, are the most vulnerable group in each community, especially when one considers the increasingly prevalent tendency to abandon the traditional way of life. In the municipality one part of the population is temporarily working abroad whereas their families, mostly elderly people, have remained in Lipkovo to live alone. Due to age, these individuals have intensi�ed health care needs and their possiblities of obtaining care have been limited by the material condition of their families. Those families who are able to arrange private care for elderly members, do so by compensating in payment to the people who care for the elderly in their absence.

In Lipkovo there is no nursing home or day care center for the elderly, which would alleviate the problems of this category of citizens.

The problem is even greater for the elderly who live in the mountainous villages with no basic infrastructure and lack of health care. The consequences of this situation include: deteriorated health, loneliness, inability to meet basic living and social needs, etc.

Table 5. Causal and consequential relation of the problems detected in elderly people

Causes Problem Consequences

- Temporary emoloyment abroad of their children

- No public institutions that would take care of them

- A tendency of young couples of living alone

Lack of adequate care for elderly people living alone

- Loneliness of the elderly - Lack of any assistance (health care,

�nancial, physical) - Lack of communication and socialization with the others

- Worsening of the health condition - Lack of physical assistance by

another person

- Lack of public health care institutions (in Lipkovo there is no clinic yet and in the mountainous villages there are no private clinics

and no ambulance service) - Lack of valid documents

(citizenship status, health care booklet, etc.)

- No health care insurance

Inadequate and insu�cient health care for the elderly

- Worsening of the health condition of the elderly

- High health care costs - Frequent deaths

- Non-asphalted road infrastructure - Lack of organized transportation

for the elderly - Lack of vehicles for organized

transportation of the elderly - No home nurse for parturient

women (no mobile medical team)

Lack of access to the institutions for the persons from mountainous

villages

- Failure to detect grave illnesses (diagnoses)

- Frequent deaths - Lack of information on events and

developments in the country- Lack of information regarding the

events/developments and legal obligations/rights

- Lack of realization of the legally guaranteed rights (social assistance,

lack of access to institutions)

The following external factors a�ecting the situation of the elderly were highlighted:

- Lack of special programs to support the marginalized elderly people;- Many of the elderly do not receive pensions and are not entitled to bene�ts;- The pension bene�ciaries are not adequately informed of the bene�ts available for them;- Lack of funds for care of the elderly;

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- Lack of public institutions (nursing homes);- No legal obligation to establish institutions;- Lack of clean water, pollution of the environment;- Lack of free health care for the elderly;- Lack of �nancial assistance funds - Lack of public health care facilities;- Strict unfavourable provisions in the Law on Citizenship;- Water supply system, sewerage system;- Securing funding from the central government for infrastructural development ;- Making amendments in the Law on Municipal Financing;- Activating mobile teams to visit the mountainous villages;- Adoption of the Law on Development of Mountainous Villages;- Regular control of drinking water in the municipality.

These factors have been taken into account in setting the strategic aims and priorities as well as in the preparation of the Action Plan.

4. Strategic aims and activities for alleviation of poverty and social exclusion in Lipkovo municipality

Priority area: Children

Aim 1: Improved care of the community for children with special needs

Activities:1.1. Identi�cation of children with special educational needs ; 1.2. Educational campaign for accepting children with special needs ; 1.3. Acceleration of the activities for work of the Daily Center for Children with Special Needs.

Aim 2: Creating conditions for development of children and young people

Activities:2.1. Organization of lab-subject matter classroom teaching in schools; 2.2. Encouragement of construction of sports’ �elds and cultural centers; 2.3. Establishment of cultural, art, sports’ associations ; 2.4. Development of a Program for Development of Young People.

Aim 3: Inclusion of children from poor families in the educational system

Activities:3.1. Development of a program for their inclusion in the educational system; 3.2. Organization of a campaign for promotion of positive values in society; 3.3. Development of a program for priority employment of young people that come from poor families.

Priority area: Adults

Aim 1: Increase of the number of employed people

Activities:1.1. Provision of monthly scholarships for secondary school students and university students; 1.2. Development of a feasibility study for identi�cation and urbanization of free economic zones ; 1.3. Organization of presentations for the fostering of the development of small and medium size businesses; 1.4. Lobbying for the improvement of the business climate.1.5. Organization of meetings with potential investors.

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Aim 2: Increase of the number of people that have obtained citizenship

Activities:2.1. Establishment of a committee within the municipality; 2.2. Identi�cation of people without citizenship and regulated stay; 2.3. Undertaking activities in accordance with the identi�ed needs.

Aim 3: Improvement of the situation of disabled people and widows from the 2001 con�ict

Activities:3.1. Lobbying for the resolution of the status of these people ;3.2. Preparation of a special program for resocialization and reintegration of disabled people; 3.3. Preparation of a special program for support of the children and families of the people killed in the con�ict .

Priority area: Elderly people

Aim 1: Improvement of the care for the elderly people

Activities:1.1. Establishment of a Daily Center for the Elderly ;1.2. Hiring an NGO to visit the elderly people (once a week, etc.) ;1.3. Provision of physical assistance by a third party (intermediation).

Aim 2: Improvement of the health care

Activities:2.1. Lobbying to the MPs to make amendments in the Law on citizenship; 2.2. Organization of public discussions concerning the initiative to register farmers ;2.3. Establishment of an ambulance service in Lipkovo municipality .

Aim 3: Improvement of the access to the institutions

Activities:3.1. Repairing of the road infrastructure (lobbying to the state and international foundations to assist in the repairing of the roads in the mountainous villages) ; 3.2. Establishment of a mobile team for early detection of diseases ; 3.3. Visit to the registrar’s services in the mountainous villages .

Priority area: Promotion of the social protection system in Lipkovo municipality

Aim 1: Strenghtening of the capacities of the municipal administration Activities:1.1. Strengthening of the capacities of the municipal administration through hiring a social worker in the municipality; 1.2. Strengthening of the capacities of the municipal administration through training of the employees on the opportunities and forms of developing the social protection functions of the municipality;1.3. Training on strategic planning and development of programs from the area of social protection;

1.4. Expansion of the forms of social protection o�ered by the municipality (predominantly, �nancial assistance) with new forms of social services ;

1.5. Increase in the percentage of the budget allocated for social protection and increase of the e�ciency in the use of these budgetary resources.

21

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

Aim 2: Expanding of the competences of the Center for Social Work of Lipkovo municipality

Activities:2.1. Lobbying to the central government to expand the competences of the Social Work Unit within the CSW Kumanovo on the territory of Lipkovo municipality

Aim 3. Establishing mechanisms to identify, consult with and include the poor and vulnerable in the decision-making processes and their implementation

Activities:3.1. Conducting of surveys though dissemination of questionnaires, organization of focus group discussions, public discussions etc. with the representatives of the vulnerable and poor groups in Lipkovo municipality.

5. Implementation of the Strategy for Alleviation of Poverty and Social Exclusion

The basic assumption for the possible implementation of the Strategy is the best possible commitment on the part of the local self-government, civil society, private enterprises and, of course, citizens as end users of the bene�ts from the realization of the strategic plans.

The obligation of the local government here is particularly important since the institutional and legal prerequisites for a successful implementation of planned actions should be enabled.

A three year Action Plan has been prepared within the Strategy although the strategy covers a period of 5 years. This is done in order to monitor more easily the implementation of planned actions, monitoring and evaluating performance. After two years (May 2014), it is necessary to evaluate the achievements under the Action Plan and make an appropriate review of the strategic document.

It is particularly important for the local self-government in Lipkovo to establish a separate working group or body (Committee) which is responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the Action Plan through the monitoring of set indicators. The �rst task of this body would be to prepare a detailed monitoring plan and to act according to it.

It is important to provide visibility for the implementation of the Strategy. It can be done mainly through public promotion of the annual reports on the progress and results of the implementation of the Strategy, which is an additional tool that will allow citizens an insight into the changes it implies.

22


UNICIPALITY

6. A

CTI

ON

PLA

NA

ctio

n pl

an fo

r the

pri

orit

y ar

ea: C

hild

ren

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 1

– Im

prov

ed c

are

of th

e co

mm

unit

y fo

r chi

ldre

n w

ith

spec

ial n

eeds

(up

to th

e ag

e of

26)

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Iden

ti�ca

tion

of c

hild

ren

with

spe

cial

edu

catio

nal

need

s

Num

ber o

f ide

nti�

ed c

hild

ren

(per

-ce

ntag

e of

chi

ldre

n th

at h

ave

been

cat

-eg

oriz

ed a

s ch

ildre

n w

ith s

peci

al n

eeds

an

d re

ceiv

ed m

edic

al a

sses

smen

t and

�n

ding

s fr

om re

leva

nt in

stitu

tions

), cl

assi

�cat

ion

acco

rdin

g to

deg

ree

and

type

of h

andi

cap

by p

opul

ated

are

as)

Surv

ey fo

rms,

a ge

n-er

al p

hysi

cian

’s re

port

, sc

hool

repo

rts,

�ndi

ng

and

opin

ion

from

the

Cent

er fo

r Men

tal

Hea

lth –

Sko

pje

NG

O w

orki

ng w

ith c

hild

ren

with

spe

cial

edu

catio

nal

need

s, fo

r ex.

Rez

ja

Sept

embe

r 201

2

Educ

atio

nal c

ampa

ign

for

acce

ptin

g ch

ildre

n w

ith

spec

ial e

duca

tiona

l nee

ds

Num

ber o

f hel

d w

orks

hops

and

pub

lic

disc

ussi

ons

(six

pub

lic d

iscu

ssio

ns, o

ne

per e

ach

cent

ral e

lem

enta

ry s

choo

l),

num

ber o

f tea

cher

s tr

aine

d (2

0% o

f th

e st

a�),

num

ber o

f peo

ple

pres

ent

at th

e m

eetin

gs/d

iscu

ssio

ns (3

0-50

pa

rtic

ipan

ts),

num

ber o

f est

ablis

hed

spec

ial c

lass

es (a

t lea

st o

ne p

er e

ach

cent

ral e

lem

enta

ry s

choo

l, in

tota

l 6),

num

ber o

f em

ploy

ed s

peec

h th

erap

ists

(s

peci

aliz

ed s

ta�,

in to

tal 6

)

Min

utes

’ fro

m h

eld

mee

tings

, par

ticip

ant

list,

Ann

ual r

epor

t fro

m

the

cent

ral e

lem

enta

ry

scho

ols,

repo

rts

form

th

e Bu

reau

for D

evel

op-

men

t of E

duca

tion

Lipk

ovo

mun

icip

ality

, res

pon-

sibl

e ed

ucat

ion

advi

sor f

rom

Li

pkov

i mun

icip

ality

May

201

2

Acce

lera

tion

of th

e ac

-tiv

ities

for w

ork

of th

e D

aily

Ce

nter

for C

hild

ren

with

Sp

ecia

l Edu

catio

nal N

eeds

Num

ber o

f con

tact

s w

ith th

e M

LSP,

issu

ed li

cens

es in

ord

er to

faci

litat

e th

e pr

oces

s of

con

stru

ctio

n of

the

Cent

er

and

enab

le it

s fu

nctio

ning

Запи

сниц

и од

ср

едби

те, о

длук

и и

оста

нати

док

умен

ти о

д О

пшти

ната

Lipk

ovo

mun

icip

ality

, MLS

P D

ecem

ber 2

012

23

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 2

– C

reat

ing

cond

itio

ns fo

r dev

elop

men

t of c

hild

ren

and

youn

g pe

ople

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Dev

elop

men

t of a

Pro

gram

fo

r Dev

elop

men

t of Y

oung

Pe

ople

Hel

d m

eetin

gs w

ith th

e yo

ung

peop

le

in tw

o se

cond

ary

scho

ols,

num

ber o

f m

eetin

gs w

ith h

igh

scho

ols

grad

u-at

es, i

n th

e N

GO

s (in

tota

l 3),

num

ber

of p

eopl

e pr

esen

t at t

he m

eetin

gs (a

t le

ast 1

0 pa

rtic

ipan

ts p

er m

eetin

g)

Min

utes

’ fro

m th

e m

eet-

ings

, pa

rtic

ipan

t lis

t, de

velo

ped

prog

ram

, de

cisi

on fo

r pro

gram

ad

optio

n by

the

Coun

cil

Team

from

the

mun

icip

ality

, N

GO

sec

tor

June

201

2

Org

aniz

atio

n of

lab-

subj

ect

mat

ter c

lass

room

teac

hing

in

sch

ools

Num

ber o

f ope

n cl

assr

oom

s (6

in

cent

ral e

lem

enta

ry s

choo

ls a

nd 1

in th

e se

cond

ary

scho

ol),

num

ber o

f tra

ined

te

ache

rs, i

mpr

oved

ave

rage

mar

k of

st

uden

ts

Scho

ol A

nnua

l Rep

ort

Team

from

the

mun

icip

ality

, M

inis

try

of E

duca

tion

and

Scie

nce

3 ye

ars,

30%

impl

e-m

enta

tion

Enco

urag

emen

t of c

on-

stru

ctio

n of

spo

rts’

�eld

s an

d cu

ltura

l cen

ters

5 co

nstr

ucte

d sp

orts

’ hal

ls in

sch

ools

, 4

spor

ts’ �

elds

, com

plet

ion

of th

e co

nstr

uctio

n of

the

Cultu

ral H

ome

in

Mat

ejce

Real

ized

initi

ativ

es a

nd

cons

truc

ted

cent

ers

Lipk

ovo

mun

icip

ality

, Age

ncy

for Y

outh

and

Spo

rt, M

inis

try

of E

duca

tion

and

Scie

nce,

M

inis

try

of C

ultu

re

June

201

4

Esta

blis

hmen

t of c

ultu

ral,

art,

spor

ts’ a

ssoc

iatio

ns

Esta

blis

hed

one

new

cul

tura

l and

art

ce

nter

, num

ber o

f hel

d m

eetin

gs w

ith

the

youn

g pe

ople

, tw

o in

itiat

ives

for

the

esta

blis

hmen

t of s

port

s’ cl

ubs

Min

utes

’, par

ticip

ant

lost

, num

ber o

f est

ab-

lishe

d as

soci

atio

ns

Lipk

ovo

mun

icip

ality

, Min

istr

y of

Edu

catio

n an

d Sc

ienc

e,

Min

istr

y of

Cul

ture

, Age

ncy

for

Yout

h an

d Sp

ort

June

201

4

24


UNICIPALITY

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 3

– Im

prov

emen

t of t

he s

choo

l con

diti

ons

for c

hild

ren

from

poo

r fam

ilies

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

ni-

zatio

n/in

divi

dual

D

eadl

ine

Bu

dget

Org

aniz

atio

n of

dire

ct

assi

stan

ce fo

r stu

dent

s of

poo

r fam

ilies

(sch

ool

mat

eria

ls, c

loth

es, e

tc.)

Set c

riter

ia fo

r the

gra

ntin

g of

dire

ct

assi

stan

ce, n

umbe

r of s

tude

nts

that

ha

ve re

ceiv

ed it

, am

ount

of

�nan

cial

re

sour

ces

allo

cate

d fo

r thi

s pu

rpos

e

Min

utes

’ fro

m w

orki

ng m

eetin

gs

held

to d

eter

min

e th

e cr

iteria

and

pr

oced

ure

for t

he g

rant

ing

of d

irect

as

sist

ance

, a b

ook

of ru

les

for g

rant

-in

g as

sist

ance

, �na

l acc

ount

of t

he

mun

icip

ality

, bud

get o

f the

mun

ici-

palit

y, a

list

of b

ene�

ciar

ies

of d

irect

as

sist

ance

Lipk

ovo

mun

icip

al-

ity, s

choo

ls, U

nion

of

Hig

h Sc

hool

St

uden

ts

Sept

embe

r-O

ctob

er 2

011

Org

aniz

atio

n of

a c

am-

paig

n fo

r pro

mot

ion

of th

e po

sitiv

e va

lues

in s

ocie

ty

Prep

ared

and

real

ized

pro

ject

, sub

mit-

ted

to th

e do

nor,

num

ber o

f rea

lized

m

eetin

gs ,

num

ber o

f peo

ple

pres

ent

Cont

ract

and

�na

l rep

ort f

or th

e �n

anci

ng o

f the

pro

ject

, pro

mot

iona

l m

ater

ial,

min

utes

’ fro

m m

eetin

gs

NG

Oen

d of

201

1

Org

aniz

atio

n of

info

rma-

tion

shar

ing

activ

ities

and

co

urse

s fo

r req

uali�

catio

n an

d fu

rthe

r qua

li�ca

tion

of v

ulne

rabl

e gr

oups

(E

nglis

h la

ngua

ge c

ours

es,

com

pute

rs, p

repa

ratio

n of

a

busi

ness

pla

n, e

tc.)

Num

ber o

f hel

d in

form

atio

n sh

arin

g w

orks

hops

, num

ber o

f par

ticip

ants

(at

leas

t 20)

, num

ber o

f org

aniz

ed c

ours

es,

num

ber o

f par

ticip

ants

at t

he c

ours

es

Part

icip

ant l

ists

, min

utes

’, wor

k pr

ogra

m fr

om th

e co

urse

s, lis

ts o

f pa

rtic

ipan

ts th

at h

ave

com

plet

ed th

e re

qual

i�ca

tion

and

furt

her q

uali�

ca-

tion

cour

ses

Mun

icip

ality

, NG

O,

Empl

oym

ent c

ente

r

25

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

Act

ion

plan

for p

rior

ity

area

: Eld

erly

peo

ple

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 1

– In

crea

se o

f the

num

ber o

f em

ploy

ed p

eopl

e

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Prov

isio

n of

mon

thly

sc

hola

rshi

ps fo

r sec

ond-

ary

scho

ol s

tude

nts

and

univ

ersi

ty s

tude

nts

Num

ber o

f gra

nted

sch

olar

ship

s, pe

rcen

tage

from

the

budg

et o

f the

m

unic

ipal

ity, s

chol

arsh

ip a

mou

nts

Regi

ster

of

scho

lars

hip

bene

�cia

ries

, bud

get,

�nal

bud

get a

ccou

nt

Coun

cil o

f Lip

kovo

mun

icip

al-

ity a

nd m

ayor

, res

pons

ible

em

ploy

ee fo

r ele

men

tary

and

se

cond

ary

educ

atio

n

cont

inua

lly 3

yea

rs

Dev

elop

men

t of a

feas

ibil-

ity s

tudy

for i

dent

i�ca

tion

and

urba

niza

tion

of fr

ee

econ

omic

zon

es

Dec

isio

n of

Lip

kovo

mun

icip

ality

, num

-be

r of h

ired

exte

rnal

con

sulta

nts

Cont

ract

for t

he d

e-ve

lopm

ent o

f a s

tudy

, am

endm

ent o

f the

D

etai

led

Tow

n Pl

anni

ng

Sche

me

Mun

icip

ality

, Urn

anis

m U

nit

Augu

st 2

011

– D

e-ce

mbe

r 201

2

Org

aniz

atio

n of

pre

sent

a-tio

ns fo

r the

fost

erin

g of

the

deve

lopm

ent o

f sm

all a

nd m

ediu

m s

ize

ente

rpris

es

Num

ber o

f pre

sent

atio

ns, n

umbe

r of

par

ticip

ants

, num

ber o

f app

rove

d cr

edits

, dire

ct in

vest

men

ts’ a

mou

nt

Min

utes

, par

ticip

ant

lists

, Cen

tral

Reg

iste

r M

unic

ipal

ity, N

GO

D

ecem

ber 2

012

Lobb

ying

for t

he im

prov

e-m

ent o

f the

bus

ines

s cl

imat

e (o

rgan

izat

ion

of

mee

tings

with

pos

sibl

e in

vest

ors)

Mun

icip

ality

, NG

O, b

usin

ess

sect

or

Dec

embe

r 201

2

26


UNICIPALITY

Stra

tegi

c ob

ject

ive

2 –

Prov

isio

n of

sup

port

for t

he r

egul

atio

n of

the

stat

us o

f per

sons

wit

hout

cit

izen

ship

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Num

ber o

f peo

ple

that

exe

rcis

e th

e rig

ht to

hea

lth c

are

Hea

lth C

are

Cent

er

Hea

lth C

are

Com

mitt

ee

2 ye

ars

Esta

blis

hmen

t of a

com

mit-

tee

in th

e m

unic

ipal

ity

Num

ber o

f Com

mitt

ee m

embe

rs

Min

utes

from

the

ses-

sion

of t

he C

ounc

il of

Li

pkov

o m

unic

ipal

ity, a

de

cisi

on o

n th

e es

tab-

lishm

ent o

f a c

omm

ittee

Mun

icip

ality

, Cou

ncil

of L

ip-

kovo

mun

icip

ality

Au

gust

201

1

Iden

ti�ca

tion

of p

erso

ns

with

out c

itize

nshi

p

2.1.

1. O

rgan

izat

ion

of a

pu

blic

dis

cuss

ion

Num

ber o

f peo

ple

pres

ent a

t the

pub

-lic

dis

cuss

ion,

num

ber o

f reg

iste

red

peop

le, n

umbe

r of d

irect

vis

its, n

um-

ber o

f ann

ounc

emen

ts in

the

med

ia

Part

icip

ant l

ist,

min

utes

’ fr

om p

ublic

dis

cuss

ions

, lis

ts a

nd m

inut

es’ f

rom

di

rect

vis

its, r

egis

ter o

f pe

rson

s w

ithou

t citi

zen-

ship

Com

mitt

eeJu

ne 2

012

2.1.

2. O

rgan

izat

ion

of d

irect

vi

sits

in p

opul

ated

pla

ces

2.1.

3. R

epor

ting

on th

e pa

rt

of th

e ci

tizen

s

Prov

isio

n of

free

lega

l aid

N

umbe

r of b

ene�

ciar

ies

of fr

ee le

gal

aid,

num

ber o

f hel

d m

eetin

gs w

ith a

la

wye

r, nu

mbe

r of p

repa

red

lett

ers

Dat

a ba

se, �

les

of

clie

nts,

list o

f mee

tings

, m

inut

es

Com

mitt

ee, N

GO

, mun

icip

ality

Ju

ne 2

013

Lobb

ying

for t

he a

men

d-m

ent o

f the

Law

on

citiz

ensh

ip

Num

ber o

f mee

tings

with

coo

rdin

ator

s of

Par

liam

enta

ry s

ectio

ns, n

umbe

r of

peop

le th

at h

ave

sign

ed th

e pe

ti-tio

n, n

umbe

r of m

eetin

gs w

ith o

ther

m

unic

ipal

ities

Min

utes

’ fro

m m

eetin

gs,

part

icip

ant l

ists

, per

i-od

ic m

eetin

gs w

ithin

th

e te

am

Team

from

the

mun

icip

ality

co

ntin

ually

3 y

ears

27

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 3

: Im

prov

emen

t of t

he s

itua

tion

of d

isab

led

peop

le a

nd w

idow

s fr

om th

e 20

01 c

on�i

ct

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Lobb

ying

for t

he re

solu

-tio

n of

the

stat

us o

f the

se

peop

le

cont

inua

lly u

ntil

the

prob

lem

has

bee

n �n

ally

reso

lved

3.1.

1. P

etiti

on s

igni

ng

Num

ber o

f peo

ple

that

hav

e si

gned

th

e pe

titio

n, n

umbe

r of M

Ps to

who

m

it ha

s be

en s

ubm

itted

, num

ber o

f m

eetin

gs w

ith c

oord

inat

ors

of P

arlia

-m

enta

ry s

ectio

ns

Petit

ion,

min

utes

’ fro

m

mee

tings

, the

Arc

hive

of

the

Parli

amen

t of t

he

Repu

blic

of M

aced

onia

Team

from

the

mun

icip

ality

, N

GO

M

arch

201

2

3.1.

2. O

rgan

izat

ion

of

mee

tings

with

coo

rdin

ator

s of

par

liam

enta

ry s

ectio

ns

and

dist

ribut

ion

of th

e pe

titio

n to

the

MPs

Prep

arat

ion

of a

spe

cial

pr

ogra

m fo

r res

ocia

liza-

tion

and

rein

tegr

atio

n of

di

sabl

ed p

eopl

e

Num

ber o

f wor

king

mee

tings

, hire

d ex

pert

s, nu

mbe

r of p

erso

ns in

volv

ed in

th

e pr

epar

atio

n an

d fo

rmat

de�

ning

of

the

prog

ram

List

s an

d m

inut

es’ f

rom

m

eetin

gs, t

he p

rogr

am

itsel

f

Team

from

the

mun

icip

ality

, N

GO

D

ecem

ber 2

012

Prep

arat

ion

of a

spe

cial

pr

ogra

m fo

r sup

port

of t

he

child

ren

and

fam

ilies

of t

he

peop

le k

illed

in th

e co

n�ic

t

Num

ber o

f wor

king

mee

tings

, hire

d ex

pert

s, nu

mbe

r of p

erso

ns in

volv

ed in

th

e pr

epar

atio

n an

d fo

rmat

de�

ning

of

the

prog

ram

Team

from

the

mun

icip

ality

, N

GO

D

ecem

ber 2

012

28


UNICIPALITY

Act

ion

plan

for p

rior

ity

area

: Eld

erly

peo

ple

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 1

– Im

prov

emen

t of t

he c

are

for t

he e

lder

ly p

eopl

e

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Esta

blis

hmen

t of a

Dai

ly

Cent

er fo

r the

Eld

erly

Pe

ople

Num

ber o

f com

pris

ed p

eopl

e, a

ddre

ss,

initi

ativ

e to

the

cent

ral g

over

nmen

t Lo

cal c

omm

unity

, A

nnua

l Rep

ort o

f Li

pkov

o M

unic

ipal

ity

Soci

al A

�airs

Com

mitt

ee

June

201

4

Org

aniz

atio

n of

dire

ct v

isits

of

the

elde

rly th

roug

h th

e N

GO

sec

tor (

once

a w

eek,

et

c.)

Num

ber o

f app

lican

t org

aniz

atio

ns

afte

r the

pub

lishi

ng o

f an

anno

unce

men

t, qu

ality

of t

he

o�er

(exp

erie

nce

of th

e pr

opos

ed

sta�

, pric

e), n

umbe

r of v

isits

and

be

ne�c

iarie

s, nu

mbe

r of i

nvol

ved

peop

le in

mak

ing

this

vis

its

Repo

rt fr

om th

e re

aliz

ed c

ompe

titio

n,

cont

ract

bet

wee

n th

e m

unic

ipal

ity a

nd th

e N

GO

, rep

ort o

n th

e w

ork

done

Coun

cil o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity, N

GO

, a p

rivat

e co

mpa

ny

June

201

4

Prov

isio

n of

con

ditio

ns

for t

he e

stab

lishm

ent o

f a

serv

ice

for a

ssis

tanc

e of

el

derly

peo

ple

Num

ber o

f eld

erly

peo

ple

that

hav

e be

en p

rovi

ded

assi

stan

ce, n

umbe

r of

job

seek

ers

Repo

rt o

f the

mun

icip

al

Info

rmat

ion

Cent

er

Info

rmat

ion

Cent

er

2 ye

ars

Enco

urag

emen

t of a

pu

blic

-priv

ate

part

ners

hip

for t

he e

stab

lishm

ent

of a

H

ome

for t

he E

lder

ly

Num

ber o

f com

pani

es th

at h

ave

been

inte

rest

ed, r

ealiz

ed id

ea fo

r an

esta

blis

hmen

t of a

n el

derly

peo

ple’

s ho

me

Fun

ctio

ning

Hom

e fo

r th

e El

derly

S

ocia

l A�a

irs C

omm

ittee

cont

inua

lly u

ntil

the

hom

e ha

s be

en

esta

blis

hed

29

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 2

– Im

prov

emen

t of t

he h

ealt

h ca

re

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Num

ber o

f peo

ple

that

exe

rcis

e th

e rig

ht to

a h

ealth

car

e H

ealth

Car

e Ce

nter

H

ealth

Car

e Co

mm

ittee

2

year

s

Org

aniz

atio

n of

pub

lic

disc

ussi

ons

conc

erni

ng

the

initi

ativ

e to

reg

iste

r fa

rmer

s

Num

ber o

f pub

lic d

iscu

ssio

ns (8

-10)

, pr

inte

d an

d di

ssem

inat

ed 5

000

broc

hure

s

Repo

rt fr

om th

e w

ork

of

the

NG

O

NG

O( a

gric

ultu

re )

2 ye

ars

Esta

blis

hmen

t of a

n

ambu

lanc

e se

rvic

e in

Li

pkov

o m

unic

ipal

ity

Requ

est o

n th

e pa

rt o

f the

CO

UN

CIL

OF

LIPK

OVO

MU

NIC

IPA

LITY

to th

e M

inis

try

of Ju

stic

e, p

rocu

rem

ent o

f an

ambu

lanc

e ve

hicl

e

Arc

hive

of t

he

mun

icip

ality

H

ealth

Car

e Co

mm

ittee

1 ye

ar

Rais

ing

an in

itiat

ive

to

esta

blis

h a

poly

clin

ic in

Li

pkov

o m

unic

ipal

ity

Requ

est o

n th

e pa

rt o

f the

Cou

ncil

of

Lipk

ovo

mun

icip

ality

to th

e M

inis

try

of

Hea

lth, n

umbe

r of m

eetin

gs

Obt

aine

d lic

ense

s fo

r th

e es

tabl

ishm

ent o

f a

poly

clin

ic

Coun

cil o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity, m

ayor

1

year

30


UNICIPALITY

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 3

– Im

prov

emen

t of t

he a

cces

s to

the

inst

itut

ions

for t

he e

lder

ly

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

Repa

iring

of t

he ro

ad

infr

astr

uctu

re (l

obby

ing

to

the

stat

e an

d in

tern

atio

nal

foun

datio

ns to

ass

ist i

n th

e re

pairi

ng o

f the

road

s in

th

e m

ount

aino

us v

illag

es)

Dec

isio

n of

the

Coun

cil,

cons

truc

ted

high

way

(no

of k

m) ,

am

ount

of d

ona-

tion

fund

s

Arc

hive

, rep

ort f

rom

th

e m

unic

ipal

ity, �

nal

acco

unt f

rom

the

mu-

nici

palit

y

Uni

t for

Urb

anis

m a

nd C

on-

stru

ctio

n 3

year

s

Esta

blis

hmen

t of a

mob

ile

team

for e

arly

det

ectio

n of

di

seas

es

Requ

est o

f the

Cou

ncil

to th

e H

ealth

Ca

re C

ente

r to

orga

nize

regu

lar m

edi-

cal c

heck

-ups

eac

h si

x m

onth

s, nu

mbe

r of

vis

its, n

umbe

r of p

eopl

e th

at h

ave

been

thro

ugh

thes

e ch

eck-

ups

Arc

hive

, Ann

ual R

epor

t of

the

Hea

lth C

are

Cent

er

Hea

lth C

are

Com

mitt

ee

June

201

4

Visi

t to

the

regi

stra

r’s

serv

ices

in th

e m

ount

ain-

ous

villa

ges

Requ

est b

y th

e Co

unci

l to

the

Min

istr

y of

Just

ice

Arc

hive

Lega

l and

Nor

mat

ive

A�a

irs

Com

mitt

ee

2 ye

ars

31

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

Act

ion

plan

of a

ctiv

itie

s ai

med

at i

mpr

ovem

ent o

f the

soc

ial p

rote

ctio

n sy

stem

in L

ipko

vo m

unic

ipal

ity

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 1

: Str

engh

teni

ng o

f the

cap

acit

ies

of th

e m

unic

ipal

adm

inis

trat

ion

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

1.1.

Str

engt

heni

ng o

f the

cap

aciti

es

of th

e m

unic

ipal

adm

inis

trat

ion

thro

ugh

the

real

loca

tion

and

/or

em

ploy

men

t od

adeq

uate

sta

� th

at w

ill w

ork

on s

pcia

l pro

tetc

tion

issu

es

•N

umbe

r of e

mpl

oyed

pro

fess

iona

l st

a� m

embe

rs

•W

ork

cont

ract

s Д

огов

ор

за р

абот

а;•

Act o

f Sys

tem

atiz

atio

n of

th

e W

ork

Posi

tions

in th

e M

unic

ipal

Adm

inis

trat

ion

Coun

cil o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity, m

ayor

2012

-201

4

1.2.

Str

engt

heni

ng o

f the

cap

aciti

es

of th

e m

unic

ipal

adm

inis

trat

ion

thro

ugh

trai

ning

of t

he e

mpl

oyee

s on

the

oppo

rtun

ities

and

for

ms

of

deve

lopi

ng th

e so

cial

pro

tect

ion

func

tions

of t

he m

unic

ipal

ity

•N

umbe

r of i

mpl

emen

ted

trai

ning

s fo

r th

e ad

min

istr

atio

n;

•Pe

rcen

tage

of e

mpl

oyee

s co

mpr

ised

in

the

trai

ning

com

pare

d to

the

tota

l nu

mbe

r of e

mpl

oyee

s

•Fa

ctua

l she

et fr

om th

e tr

aini

ngs

held

Co

unci

l of L

ipko

vo

mun

icip

ality

, may

or, M

CSW

, 20

12-2

014

1.4.

Tra

inin

g on

str

ateg

ic p

lann

ing

and

deve

lopm

ent o

f pro

gram

s fr

om th

e ar

ea o

f soc

ial p

rote

ctio

n fo

r di�

eren

t vul

nera

ble

grou

ps

•N

umbe

r of d

eliv

ered

trai

ning

s;

•N

umbe

r of t

rain

ed p

erso

ns, a

nd•

Num

ber o

f inv

olve

d pr

ofes

sion

als.

•Pa

rtic

ipan

t lis

t; •

Repo

rts,

and

•Ph

otog

raph

s.

Coun

cil o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity, m

ayor

, MCS

W,

NG

O

2012

-201

4

1.5.

Exp

ansi

on o

f the

form

s of

so

cial

pro

tect

ion

o�er

ed b

y th

e m

unic

ipal

ity (p

redo

min

antly

, �n

anci

al a

ssis

tanc

e) w

ith n

ew

form

s of

soc

ial s

ervi

ces

•N

umbe

r of n

ewly

intr

oduc

ed fo

rms

of

soci

al s

ervi

ces;

•N

umbe

r of r

ecei

ved

requ

ests

;•

Num

ber o

f del

iver

ed s

ervi

ces;

•Pe

rcen

tage

of a

lloca

ted

bud

geta

ry

fund

s ;

•Pe

rcen

tage

of f

unds

spe

nt o

n ne

w

form

s of

soc

ial s

ervi

ces.

• D

ecis

ion

of th

e Co

unci

l, pu

blis

hed

in th

e O

�ci

al

Gaz

ette

of L

ipko

vo

mun

icip

ality

;•

Bud

get o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity;

• D

ecis

ion

for p

aym

ent.

Coun

cil o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity, M

CSW

20

12-2

014

1.6.

Incr

ease

in th

e pe

rcen

tage

of

the

budg

et a

lloca

ted

for s

ocia

l pr

otec

tion

and

incr

ease

of t

he

e�ci

ency

in th

e us

e of

thes

e bu

dget

ary

reso

urce

s

•Pe

rcen

tage

of b

udge

tary

allo

cate

d fu

nds

for s

ocia

l pro

tect

ion;

•Pe

rcen

tage

of s

ocia

l pro

tect

ion

fund

s sp

ent f

or th

e in

tend

ed p

urpo

se.

• D

ecis

ion

of th

e Co

unci

l, pu

blis

hed

in th

e O

�ci

al

Gaz

ette

of L

ipko

vo

mun

icip

ality

;•

Bud

get o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity.

Coun

cil o

f Lip

kovo

m

unic

ipal

ity, m

ayor

20

12-2

014

32


UNICIPALITY

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 2

: Exp

andi

ng o

f the

com

pete

nces

of t

he C

ente

r for

Soc

ial W

ork

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

2.1.

Lob

byin

g to

the

cent

ral

gove

rnm

ent t

o ex

pand

the

com

pete

nces

of t

he S

ocia

l W

ork

Uni

t with

in th

e CS

W

Kum

anov

o on

the

terr

itory

of

Lip

kovo

mun

icip

ality

•N

umbe

r of h

eld

mee

tings

;•

Prep

ared

lett

ers,

requ

ests

, pe

titio

ns.

•M

inut

es fr

om h

eld

mee

tings

Co

unci

l of L

ipko

vo

mun

icip

ality

, may

or

2012

-201

4

Stra

tegi

c ai

m 3

. Est

ablis

hing

mec

hani

sms

to id

enti

fy, c

onsu

lt w

ith

and

incl

ude

the

poor

and

vul

nera

ble

in th

e de

cisi

on-m

akin

g pr

oces

ses

and

thei

r im

plem

enta

tion

Stra

tegi

c pr

iorit

yIn

dica

tors

Ve

ri�ca

tion

mea

ns

Resp

onsi

ble

orga

niza

tion/

indi

vidu

al

Dea

dlin

e

Budg

et

3.1.

Incl

usio

n of

the

conc

erne

d vu

lner

able

gr

oups

in th

e pr

oces

ses

of c

reat

ion

and

plan

ning

of

pro

gram

s fo

r so

cial

de

velo

pmen

t of t

he lo

cal

com

mun

ity a

nd th

eir

impl

emen

tatio

n

•N

umbe

r of c

ondu

cted

sur

veys

•

Num

ber o

f org

aniz

ed fo

cus

grou

ps

•N

umbe

r of o

rgan

ized

com

mon

ev

ents

•Su

rvey

qu

estio

nnai

re•

Fac

t she

et o

f ev

ents

Loca

l sel

f-go

vern

men

t, M

CSW

, N

GO

sco

ntin

ually

33

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

Appendices:Participant list

Strategic Planning Struga 21-23.03.2011

Name and last name Institution

Urim Selmani Coordinator of the Local Partnership Group and col-laborator in the Local Economic Development within the Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Kani Zenuni Advisor in the Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Alija Vadzit Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Baskim Ademi Head of the Human Resource Management Unit within Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Dzevdet Ramadani Advisor in Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Erkan Ari� Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Lumnuse Avdili NGO

Gule Iseni Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Dzabir Ramadani Employment Service Agency

Fatmir Kasumi Lipkovo Public Communal Enterprise Pisa

Rukije Miftari Head of the Inspection Unit within Lipkovo Self-Gov-ernment Unit

Dije Ari� Women’s rights NGO

Action planning Lipkovo 11-12.05.2011

Name and last name Institution

Urim Selmani Coordinator of the Local Partnership Group and col-laborator in Local Economic Development within the Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Kani Zenuni Advisor in Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Alija Vadzit Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Baskim Ademi Head of the Human Resource Management Unit within the Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Erkan Ari� Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Gule Iseni Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Dzabir Ramadani Employment Service Agency

Fatmir Kasumi Lipkovo Public Communal Enterprise Pisa

Rukije Miftari Head of the Inspection Unit within Lipkovo Self-Gov-ernment Unit

Dije Ari� Women’s rights NGO

Dzemal Memeti Head of the Financial A�airs Unit within Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Скендер Муслиу President of the Council of the Municipality

Saip Ramadani Advisor in Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Bunjamin Memedi Advisor in Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Dzevdet Ramadani Advisor in Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

Dzezmi Musliu Senior administrative accounting clerk in Lipkovo Self-Government Unit

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UNICIPALITY

Annex 4 – AGENDA OF WORKSHOPS

STRATEGIC PLANNING WORKSHOPPreparation of a Strategy for Social Inclusion, Social Protection

and Alleviating Poverty at a Local Level

21-23 March 2011 Hotel Drim – Struga

21.03.2011, Monday 19.00h Arrival of participants in Hotel Drim, until 19h at the latest accommodation in double rooms, according to previous arrangement

20:00- 20.30h O�cial opening of the workshop, Congress Hall ‘Drim’

• Opening speech – Ms Petranka Miladinova, Project Manager at BIM-FV Skopje• Opening speech - Representative from MLSP• Opening speech- Mayors of the partnership municipalities

20:30-21:30h Cocktail/ dinner

22.03.2011, Tuesday

09:00- 10:30h Introduction Presentation, expectations, review of the agenda Brief analysis of the existing documents related to the social issues in the municipalities De�nitions of terminology

10:30-11:00h Co�ee break

11:00-12:30h Projection of an educational documentary �lm on marginalized groups Discussing gender equality

12:30-14:00h Lunch

14:00-15:30h Identi�cation of vulnerable groups De�ning problems and needs

35

STRA

TEGY

FOR S

OCIA

L INC

LUSIO

N, SO

CIAL P

ROTE

CTIO

N AN

D AL

LEVI

ATIO

N OF

POVE

RTY I

N LIP

KOVO

MUN

ICIPA

LITY

ACTION PLANNING WORKSHOP

Preparation of a Strategy for Social Inclusion, Social Protection and Alleviating Poverty at Local level

AGENDA4-6 May, 2011 Hotel Molika, Pelister

04.05.2011, Wednesday

17.00h Arrival and accommodation of participants

05.05.2011, Thursday

09:00-10;30h Introduction, expectations, review, draft-strategy and focus- groups results


11:00-12:30h Preparing strategic objectives

12:30-14:00h Lunch

14:00-15;30h De�ning the strategic objectives


16:00-17:30h De�ning the main bearers of activities and obligations

20:30-21:30h Dinner

06.05.2011- Friday

09:00- 10:30h De�ning indicators


11:00-12:30h Veri�cation tools and budget

12;30-13:00h Co�ee break

13:00-14:30h Plan for monitoring Evaluation and wrap-up

14:30-16:00h Lunch

16.00h Participants leaving

36


UNICIPALITY

Documents

STRATEGY FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION, SOCIAL PROTECTION AND ALLEVIATION … · 2012-02-15 · 1 strategy for social inclusion, social protection and alleviation of poverty in lipkovo municipality