"Strengthening the employment prospects in the sports sector for people with disabilities- STEPin"

The project "Strengthening the employment prospects in the sports sector for people with disabilities - STEPin" is funded by the European Union within the IPA II cross-border cooperation program Serbia - Bosnia and Herzegovina 2014-2020 with the support of the Ministry of European Integration of the Government of the Republic of Serbia and the Directorate for European Integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The funds intended for the implementation of this project amount to EUR 141,347.73, the European Union co-finances in the amount of EUR 120,145.57. The contracting authority for this project is the Ministry of Finance, Sector for Contracting and Financing of Programs from European Union Funds (CFCU) of the Republic of Serbia.

The project is jointly implemented by the Olympic Committee of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Paralympic Committee of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Faculty of Sports and Physical Education of the University of Novi Sad and the Taekwondo Club Zmaj in Ruma.

STEPin project is slowly coming to an end and today, July 22. 2022, at the premises of the BiH Olympic Committee, we hung out during the STEPin employment fair, where TMP Society for the Employment of Blind and Visually Impaired Persons d.o.o. presented their activities. Sarajevo, ATHLETA - Novi Grad Sarajevo Athletic Club, Tuzla Shooting Club for the Disabled, SPID Sarajevo Swimming Club and Oaza Association.

"STEPin project was a great opportunity for me to acquire new knowledge and skills for working with people with disabilities in sports. During the participation in the project activities, I also got the opportunity to work with children with difficulties, and the practical sessions and participation in Jobshadowing activities in parataekwondo in Ruma helped me to apply the acquired knowledge in practice. It was a great honor for me to participate in this project, and I hope that there will be similar projects and activities in the future", said Aela Avdagić, beneficiary of the STEPin project.

"One of the pressing problems in parasports is certainly the lack of professional staff, so the participation of the BiH Paralympic Committee in this project is of great importance. It is important to point out that the first online education for the needs of employment in parasport was organized in STEPin project, and even today there is an employment fair in the sports sector for persons with disabilities", said Osman Handžić, Secretary General of the BiH Paralympic Committee.

At the end, Aela Ajdinović, the project manager, said: "STEPin project actively promotes employment prospects in the sports sector for people with disabilities, serving as an example of an inclusive enterprise in which all activities are adapted to people with and without disabilities, with the message that it is time for us all to step together to a world of equal opportunities.

STEPin!"