On the occasion of the completion of construction works on family houses, representatives of GIZ Serbia and EHO visited three families in Sremska Mitrovica on October 20, 2022. It is part of a total of 22 houses in Sremska Mitrovica, Ruma and Pećinci, which EHO provided this year with assistance to improve housing conditions, as part of the project intended for returnees from Germany and other Western European countries " Assistance for a New Start. The project also partially supported non-returnees living in poor housing conditions.

This support provided construction materials necessary for the repair of houses, professional assistance of EHO engineers in the field during construction works, as well as paid installation and ceramic works for the new bathrooms. Other construction works were carried out by the families themselves. The goal was to provide better housing conditions for the selected families, which would contribute to their easier (re)integration into the local community.

Jelica Velić, a widow from Laćarak, who lives in the house with a large family, says that it means the most to her that she got a bathroom. Ružica Spasojević, also from Laćarak, breaks down in tears every time she tells how she begged everywhere for help and in the end, when she had almost given up, she got material for a new roof, which she could never have earned on her own. Petar Nikolić from Mačvanska Mitrovica, who spent 3 years with his family in Germany seeking asylum there, now lives with his wife, son and grandchildren, in a house with new carpentry, laminates and facade, which really means a lot to him.

The services provided are supported, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, under the “Migration for Development” (PME) Programme.