Self-reliance and livelihoods

2017

In line with its responsible disengagement and with the programmatic document, which provides pathways and direction for action to all relevant stakeholders dealing with durable solutions for IDPs, UNHCR will focus on operational activities in 3 out of 5 Serbian municipalities with comprehensive solutions for Roma IDPs for the most vulnerable IDPs. The comprehensive solutions will cover areas of shelter, income generation, access to education, access to employment, capacity building directed at facilitating cooperation between the local communities and the IDP beneficiaries. These comprehensive solutions should represent a series of best practices on which the government should in the future base its durable solutions activities. The IDP needs assessment (2011) and the Roma IDP need assessment, carried out in 2014, confirmed that lack of jobs and livelihood opportunities are the major obstacles to sustainable integration. Declining economic situation in Serbia, further aggravated by global economic crisis, has led to decreased standard of living and increased poverty, especially among vulnerable IDP population. The unemployment rate among this category is twice as higher than in the local population. All the above contributes to the grey market, and as main source of subsistence for the majority of population, especially those vulnerable among displaced. Some 39 per cent of the IDP population in need is unemployed, while alarming 83 per cent of the Roma IDP households have a minimum of one unemployed member. Therefore, creating employment opportunities for members of vulnerable groups would support the process of their poverty eradication as well as their integration process. The general socio-economic position of IDPs has several main aspects: IDPs receive social assistance much more frequently than the domicile population; Their income structure is based on social assistance as much as on employment related income, and all of their income components are weak;  IDPs participate less in higher education, as compared to the national sample, and this is probably due to lack of financial resources; The position of IDPs on the labour market is particularly unfavourable and represents one of the crucial obstacles to their social inclusion. The picture of income is even worse for Roma IDPs. Briefly described, the structure of the internally displaced Roma households’ income is: a lot of pecuniary social assistance, some informal work, some formal employment and very limited pensions. An exceptionally limited number of households have received temporary benefit for IDPs and an equivalent numberhave received occasional assistance from family or friends. Consequently, 92 per cent of households of IDP Roma are below the at-risk-of-poverty threshold. More than two thirds of internally displaced Roma perceive employment or work-related advancement as a solution towards improvement of their economic status.