The “Student Caravan” served as a platform for the Fund for Active Citizenship (Fakt) and the non-governmental organization “Alfa Center” to introduce “De facto for Youth,” a three-year initiative aimed at fostering civil society through youth inclusion and empowerment, to interested university students at the Faculty of Philosophy in Nikšić.

Anica Maja Boljević, Fakt’s Executive Director, shared that two grant schemes form the foundation of this program: “O-ruk” and “Youth Leadership,” with a total funding pool of 360,000 euros available for project support.

According to Boljević, the program prioritizes areas and topics such as youth engagement and dialogue at the community level, volunteering, innovative approaches to youth employment, environmental and climate activism, culture and creative industries, mental health and combating peer violence, as well as youth sports and recreation.

She further detailed that while the “Youth Leadership” program targets civil society organizations, the “O-ruk” program is designed for less developed organizations, informal local groups, and youth activists, particularly those based outside of Podgorica.

“The ‘O-ruk’ grant scheme is focused on supporting initiatives that respond timely to the challenges faced by the youth in their community, with the potential to involve as many young people as possible, bolstered by support from the wider local community. The total fund available for this grant scheme is 180,000 euros, with project durations ranging from two to four months and funding amounts between 3,000 to 6,000 euros for individual projects,” explained Boljević.

The call for applications will remain open throughout the program duration, pending the availability of funds. A commission will convene at least five times a year to review the initial applications, with the first evaluation occurring on April 20th for submissions made by April 3rd.

Grant recipients are eligible to reapply for support after their final report has been submitted and approved, although the maximum funding available to a single applicant (an organization or a group of at least three members) throughout the three years of the “De facto for Youth” program is capped at 30,000 euros.

Nađa Dragović, Marija Perović Boljević, and Nenad Golubović from Fakt, along with Sanja Đedović from “Alfa Center,” discussed the project, application process, and potential ideas for implementation. They were encouraged in their participation by the Dean and Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy, Tatjana Novović and Biljana Maslovarić, along with representatives from non-governmental organizations that have successfully executed numerous projects with the support of Fakt.

The “De facto for Youth” project is funded by the European Union, with co-financing provided by the Ministry of Regional Investment Development and Cooperation with Non-Governmental Organizations.

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