The participants in the Job Shadowing visit to Banja Luka found the recipe for success – build shared knowledge by combining best practices with an understanding of new approaches to youth-related issues, and use it to create activities for young people.
This sums up the very essence of the visit: strengthening the capacities of youth officers so they can successfully tackle the challenges of creating youth policies across Bosnia and Herzegovina, in pursuit of their common goal – to ensure the best mechanisms for youth care in their local communities.
This is a program where copying other people’s work earns you an A+, and with hosts like Banja Luka, it’s been a real pleasure,” said youth officers from Srbac, Bijeljina, Teslić, Trebinje, and Novi Grad Sarajevo, who took part in the third Job Shadowing visit for youth officers: Local Practice, Shared Knowledge! in the City of Banja Luka.
The program is implemented by the Institute for Youth Development KULT with support from the FBiH Ministry of Culture and Sports and the Embassy of Sweden in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This time, youth officers learned about new ideas and solutions for challenges in working with young people.
The City of Banja Luka and its youth officer, Marija Babić, shared with participants the solutions for supporting youth organizing, including assistance for youth organizations.
During the visit, at a working meeting with youth organizations and those developing programs of importance for young people, participants learned through direct dialogue how motivation is built among youth to organize and claim their rights. New contacts were made, especially with organizations active in the arts, to improve collaboration.
Participants also visited the Youth Center and Milanović House in Banja Luka to learn about quality, accessibility, and models of support for developing and maintaining youth spaces. These spaces allow young people to connect, create, participate in cultural and artistic activities in the city, and launch their own initiatives.
On the second day of the Job Shadowing visit, representatives of local communities explored concrete examples of support for youth businesses. Through constructive discussions at the Banja Luka Entrepreneurship Center, which supports micro and small enterprises, participants learned how to foster entrepreneurial culture among youth, offer career guidance, and provide other forms of support offered through the Entrepreneurial Academy project.
The Job Shadowing experience at the Department for Business and Local Economic Development gave participants a chance to review legislation regulating youth support.
Spending two days with Marija Babić, youth officer, and Danijela Kajkut, Head of the Department for Social Activities of the City of Banja Luka, was an opportunity to learn from a community that strategically invests in youth and, in cooperation with public institutions, develops and implements support mechanisms that comprise a comprehensive system of youth care.
Participants gained a deeper understanding of practical support for youth organizing and activism and learned how the local community invests in young people, nurtures their entrepreneurial spirit, and considers the developmental potential they have for society.
During these two days, I’ve gained new ideas on how the Youth Center in Trebinje can become even better at fostering ideas, initiatives, and gatherings. Going forward, we should involve new young people in shaping our cultural activity repertoire,” said Zoran Jakšić from Trebinje.
The Job Shadowing program will conclude with a final event in December, where hosts and participants will continue the process of learning, collaboration, and building a stronger network of youth officers in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
