In focus > News 11/20/2017

On-the-Job Training for Employees of the Asylum Office Held on November 20, 2017

Within the project „Support to Strengthening Migration and Asylum Management in Serbia“ carried out by IOM Office in Serbia with the support of the British Embassy, on-the-job training for employees of the Asylum Office was organized in November and December 2017. The objective of this program was to provide support to employees by boosting skills for drafting and writing asylum decisions. The program provided training to eight employees of the Asylum Office. The idea was to utilize the experience we have acquired during creation and realization of the training to develop a program that all newly employed in the Asylum Office would undergo.

Having recognized the challenges that are encountered by employees in the Asylum Office, in cooperation with representatives of the Office and UNHCR, OIM has developed a program consisting of several important forms of direct support. In an orientation session, the employees have had an opportunity to exchange experience with experts/mentors about methodologies they apply when they collect the data on asylum seekers.

In accordance with needs that were identified, a mentoring support plan was developed, which encompassed an individual online mentoring and realization of group mentoring sessions with visiting speakers, such as Prof. Dr. Ivana Krstić, associate professor of the Law Faculty of University of Belgrade and Mirjana Lazareva Trajkovski, former judge of the European Court of Human Rights.

Within the program, an expert gathering was organized for representatives of the Office and the Asylum Commission about the new legal norms introduced by the Law on General Administrative Procedure. The gathering presented an opportunity for the gathered professionals to discuss challenges they encounter in their work, as well as directions and interventions that may contribute to align the practice at the national level.