Youth from MZ Gorica in Zenica implemented the initiative "Overcome the blockade"

For the past few months, young people from the local community Gorica in Zenica have been busy writing a project proposal, and then implementing it. Since in this local community for many years there are no conditions for gathering young people and for their greater participation in the social life of Gorica, as the main prerequisite for their greater involvement in the community, young people recognized the existence of adequate premises in which to realize all ideas and where they could work on their skills and knowledge. They raised this issue at the Community Dialogue, and their project proposal was aimed precisely at providing this precondition. They decided to renovate the premises that were once intended for the Youth Club, but which have deteriorated over time.

Months of work included the refurbishment of interior walls, insulation, flooring, installations, carpentry. It is interesting that everyone from the community participated in all activities, „from 7 to 77“, so to speak. Everyone has found their role and the way they can help. The youngest ones helped by carrying materials and cleaning, while the older ones selflessly shared their knowledge and skills and thus helped the project group in the realization of the idea. For this project, which they symbolically called "Overcome the blockade", young people received help from the City of Zenica, the Ministry of City Planning, Communication, Traffic and Environment of ZDK, Gorica Local Community, and of course from good people in their local community. With the grant they have received through the project "Community based approach to support youth in local communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina“ and with the help of these partners, all the funds they needed were provided.

The refurbished premises are now a gym and cafeteria, which ensures that young people have more content available to everyone, and after the ceremonial opening of the premises, which took place at the end of last week, young people started with other activities foreseen by their initiative. In Gorica, this is becoming a center of events - education, environmental actions, sports activities, and a place where ideas and projects are developed.

The local coordinators who worked with these young people recount how skeptical they were at first. As they were told, this was not the first time that youth had discussed these issues among themselves, but they had not been able to address them. They expected the same thing now - they will target the problem, discuss the possibilities of how to solve it and nothing will happen. One of the young men who participated in the implementation of this project said that he realized that something is really going to change once he saw that the construction material they needed to renovate the premises had arrived.

“The distance from the city and the impossibility of organizing transportation to it prevented these young people from doing many things. Their interests were limited by the very scarce conditions they had in their community. These premises open up many opportunities for them, which we believe will be well used,“ said one of the local coordinators of the project “Community based approach to support youth in local communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina“ in Zenica.

We share this story about uniting forces for the benefit of all, about the dedication and perseverance of young people, and their desire for better with a sense of pride and privilege because we have the opportunity to meet such young people and help them realize their wishes.

The youth initiative "Overcome the Blockade" was implemented through the Community Dialogue, which is a component of the project "Community based approach to support youth in local communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina" implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and financially supported by the Government of the United Kingdom.