prijava
BANJA LUKA, March 19 (FENA) - On the occasion of World Social Work Day, the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and the Associations of Social Work Professionals throughout BiH supported the Union of Social Work Students and Faculty of Political Sciences of the Banjaluka University in organizing the event “Promoting the importance of human relationships”, which concluded on 19 March 2019 in Banjaluka.
The OSCE Mission to BiH Head of Field Office Banjaluka, Dmitry Iordanidi, emphasized the important role of social workers in the community: “Bosnia and Herzegovina is in need of qualified social workers and the social protection system that ensures social stability by providing the most vulnerable members of the society with the access to services necessary for attainment of adequate standards of living”
The focus of the event was the role of social workers in BiH society. The needs, challenges and assistance methods for the social workers were discussed under the title “Promoting the importance of human relationships” which is used as a moto of this year event.
“For our citizens to get best quality service, it is important to invest in human resources, i.e. those employed in social protection institutions and nongovernmental sector active in providing social welfare for the citizens of the country as well as to provide better and high quality education,” said Sandra Dobrijević Šipka, Vice President of the Republika Srpska Association of Social Workers.
Previous years the causes for bad and low status of social workers were identified in external factors. A Chairperson of the Union of Social Work Students, Tamara Gaćanović, said this year the attention was given to self-representation of social workers and elimination of their degradation in BiH society.
“Great challenge is the fact that social workers accept labels attained, not due to their consent but burn out and exhaustion with more relevant issues they face on daily basis such as fighting for the lives of their clients,” Gaćanović added.
The OSCE Mission to BiH continues to enhance the capacities of social protection professionals to improve the reach and effectiveness of their services and their capacity to advocate for needed policy changes.
(FENA) S. R.
