Developments: Deterioration of adult education in Serbia
According to EAEA’s member Serbian Adult Education Society (SAES), the situation of adult education in Serbia has dramatically deteriorated in the last year. There have been no new policies, except one reform that mainly promoted vocational adult education.
The financial situation is a major obstacle for the work of civil society actors in Serbia. While Serbia is one of the countries that receives most European financial support, the majority of the funding ends up in the government sector. Funding is politically determined. The so-called GINGOs (governmental NGOs) benefit the most from funding, while civil society organisations, like the Serbian Adult Education Society, are left behind. Smaller NGOs often lack the resources and experience to apply for European funding.
European policies do not arrive on the ground
Serbia receives a lot of European donations and policy recommendations have good intentions, but EAEA’s member Serbian Adult Education Society (SAES) argues that they often are not applied. Hence, the EU should stop praising Serbia for its progress, when very little of the promises become reality on the ground. Another aspect relevant to funding is that the most funding is allocated to vocational education, while many donors do not recognize the importance of non-formal and informal learning.
In a country, where democracy is facing dramatic challenges, adult learning and education is necessary to equip the citizen’s with critical thinking, life-skills and the knowledge how to execute their democratic and civic rights. Therefore, SAES does not only advocate for the importance of adult learning and education, but also points out the issues in the government and its relation to civil society.
Civil society in Serbia is rarely consulted in policy making. There have been some new policies for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.