Upon the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and UNICEF Office in Montenegro, the Chairperson of the Committee on Education, Science, Culture and Sports, Mr Radule Novović, participated in a meeting devoted to the review of previous results and planning of the 2019 -2020 Work Plan of the Government of Montenegro and the UNICEF Office.
The meeting was organised with the aim to identify the key results achieved during the implementation of the 2017-2018 Work Plan with regard to children in Montenegro, as well as to exchange opinions on strategic ways of action and cross-sectoral priorities for the period 2019-2020. The meeting has been introduced by Ms Ana Dautović, UNICEF Office in Montenegro's specialist for the issues of child rights monitoring system, Mr Ivan Ivanišević, Director General of the Directorate General for Multilateral Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms Fiona McCluney, UN Coordinator and Mr Osama Makavi Kogali, Head of the UNICEF Office in Montenegro. In the opening statement, they mentioned the commitment to achieving results for all children in Montenegro, in accordance with the current cooperation program between the Government of Montenegro and UNICEF.
The key results of the Program of Cooperation between the Government of Montenegro and UNICEF were presented by Ms Michaela Bauer, UNICEF's Deputy Representative for Montenegro, and Ms Ana Dautović. They presented a review of the progress achieved during the implementation of the 2017-2018 Work Plan, with regard to opportunities and challenges they have been facing, and pointed to the key lessons from the implementation of the 2017-2018 Work Plan.
The meeting was also attended by adolescents and young people from Montenegro, who had the opportunity to participate in initiatives such as Upshift, U-report, skills development program and hackathons. Adolescents and young people presented their views on key priorities for change in Montenegro and pointed to the importance of strengthening cooperation for the benefit of all children in Montenegro.
Also, the meeting covered cross-sectoral priorities and further steps to achieve the desired results for children, especially the most vulnerable categories, as well as the Draft of the 2019-2020 Biennial Work Plan. Ms Michaela Bauer and Ms Ana Dautović presented in the end cross-sectoral priorities for the sake of reaching a consensus on strategic ways of action and priority areas for the 2019-2020 Work Plan.
