Enhancing community engagement and comprehensive support to combat gender-based violence: A story from Užice, Serbia

The “Integrated support for women from multiple vulnerable groups” project implemented by the Association “Women’s Centre Užice” is an example of how community engagement, accompanied with comprehensive and continuous support can help combat gender-based violence (GBV) and contribute to better social inclusion of the most vulnerable at the local level.

The overall objective of the project is to provide adequate primary support for women victims of GBV as well as socio-economic support to women from multiple vulnerable groups and socially vulnerable families.

Urgent temporary accommodation: First of its kind in Serbia

The project that is implemented within the “European Union Support to Social Housing and Active Inclusion” programme will establish a service for urgent temporary accommodation for women victims of gender-based violence, for up to 48 hours, which is the first and only service of this kind in Serbia.

"For almost a decade, ŽCU has been advocating the establishment of a Regional shelter for victims of violence on the territory of Zlatibor district, however, despite all efforts, no concrete steps have been taken. We recognized that the development of this service would raise the way of providing our support to victims of violence in a family-partner context to a completely new level and, most importantly, ensure their safety", says Marina, the director of the Women's Centre Užice.

SOS Phone: A call that matters

To ensure that women who experience any kind of GBV can effectively seek help and receive timely information on how to protect themselves, Women’s Centre Užice runs the SOS hotline. 

"The SOS phone exists to help women who have experienced violence to regain confidence in themselves, look at their position from a different angle and begin to believe that there is a solution within them... This is our goal and our mission," says Branka, who works at the Women's Centre Užice.

Each month ten to 20 women victims of GBV have received support through phone consultations, combined with personal individual consultations and following support in the implementation of legal protective measures.

"The women who turn to us for help and support recognize this and based on that we build mutual trust, through a relationship of understanding and acceptance. Every woman has a unique story and we give each of them our best. Women recognize this and give us their trust, share their life stories, emotions, but also joy when they find their way out of violence", adds Branka.

Sanja (a pseudonym) who is a beneficiary of the social protection services provided by the Užice Women's Centre, says: "If I had to evaluate the quality of what was provided to me at the moment when I applied for support because of the violence I suffer, and the highest rating is 10, then I give it a score of 20 or even 100. They accepted me into their fold, into their auspices, into their protection, opened my eyes to understand that I don't have to put up with anyone. They give you all the support, love and understanding, and they fight for you and guide you everywhere you need to go. They are like another home for me."

Access to rights: A pathway to social inclusion

Equal access to rights is essential for fostering social inclusion and enhancing the overall quality of life, particularly for the most vulnerable members of society. Women’s Centre Užice has long recognized this as a core aspect of their work. Until now, 26 beneficiaries, of which 19 are women, were assisted with individual mentoring support in accessing their social, educational, healthcare and employment rights.

"From the very beginning, the Women's Centre Užice has been engaged in improving the position of women from various aspects. We are among the few organisations in Serbia that have such a programmatic component in their work, which is not only related to one aspect of the problem of social inequality of women, but looks at the problem from several angles. We designed our support so that after the support women are psychologically empowered, improve their skills needed for employment and start to believe in their abilities when it comes to the process of finding a new job or starting their own business," says Marina, director of the Women’s Centre Užice.

The mentoring support includes the development of individual plans that fit the needs of each beneficiary, while the process is also participatory, enabling individuals to express their needs and aspirations. More specifically, individual mentoring support encompasses facilitating contacts with potential employers, enrolment into educational institutions, support in employment and finding internships and access to healthcare.

Jovana (a pseudonym) points out: "After this support, I found myself after 40 years of losing myself. They were a wind at my back, because I have lived in the countryside for 40 years as a farmer, I have always exercised my rights, but I have never had my own money and ability to make decisions around it."

RETEX Centre - Where sustainability meets equality

The RETEX Centre is an innovative centre that specialises in collecting and recycling textile. This social enterprise, which is a part of the Women’s Centre Užice, provides employment for women belonging to vulnerable social groups.

"For 13 years, our RETEX has been raising community awareness about textiles as a major polluter of the environment, the importance of textile waste management, and we have also proposed numerous innovative ways to mitigate the consequences of that pollution. In our work, we introduced the process of upcycling, i.e. reuse of second-hand clothes. We've helped our community go green, get rid of waste, and help other people get the clothes they need", explains Jasmina, who is employed at the RETEX centre.

At the recycling workshops organised in the social enterprise, women give new life to the used textile which is then sold to known clients, ensuring the centre's sustainability. In addition, the humanitarian centre donates clothing, footwear, and textile household items to people living in poverty. 

Enhancing capacities with new premises for the provision of services

To enhance Women’s Centre Užice’s capacities for the provision of social care services and organisation of all activities, with the support of the European Union new premises in Užice have been purchased and reconstructed and equipped with furniture and appliances. This will enable the association to have an adequate space for emergency accommodation for women victims of GBV, as well as for activities of their social enterprise.

The project is implemented with the “European Union Support to Social Housing and Active Inclusion” programme, funded by the European Union (27 million Euros) and implemented by UNOPS. Through 19 social housing and active inclusion projects, Programme aims to provide adequate housing solutions and tailor-made active inclusion measures for 350 vulnerable families. In addition within the Programme, five small-scale infrastructure projects have been implemented, to improve living conditions in the substandard settlements across Serbia. This project is a part of the last Open-Call aimed at providing support to civil society organisations, through the provision of new premises for the provision of social care services and the establishment of new and improvement of existing innovative open community-based social care services.