A solemn reception at the National Assembly House marked the beginning of the Student Practice Programme at the National Assembly for a new generation of interns.

The ninth generation of students to intern at the National Assembly in the next nine months, was welcomed by the National Assembly Speaker Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic, Mike Harvey, US Deputy Ambassador and USAID Mission Director in Serbia, Thomas Kelly, NDI Director in Serbia and Veljko Odalovic, National Assembly Secretary-General.

Addressing the students, Assembly Speaker Djukic-Dejanovic expressed belief that their creativity, energy, knowledge and skills are a valuable investment in their future, as well as the future of Serbia and its development and that, after their internship, they would promote the National Assembly as a pillar of democratic development in Serbia. “I am sure that this experience will provide essential training for future professional challenges, as well as personal success as an incentive for your further professional positioning”, the Assembly Speaker said.

USAID and NDI Directors, Mike Harvey and Thomas Kelley stressed the importance and role of the parliament for the development of social democracy, expressing pleasure that these two international organisations could assist the National Assembly in the realisation, strengthening and improvement of the Student Practice Programme. Addressing the students, they emphasised the importance of allowing the youth to gain insight into the functioning of the supreme legislative body in the country and the role that the National Assembly has in the process of bringing Serbia closer to the European Union.

National Assembly Secretary-General Veljko Odalovic thanked the National Assembly Speaker and international organisations for their support of the Student Practice Programme. He said that the National Assembly wished that more young people who had gained theoretical knowledge, become acquainted with how the parliament operated in practice. He added that the National Assembly was a very complex mechanism and that by working with the committees, deputy groups or support services the students would gain insight into the adoption of laws and assembly procedures. He wished the students success, expressing belief that they would benefit from the knowledge they gain during their internship.

On the behalf of the new generation of interns, Vladimir Stojanovic, student of the Faculty of Law, addressed the gathering, thanking the National Assembly, USAID and NDI on the behalf of all his colleagues for the opportunity to gain their first work experience at the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia.

The Student Practice Programme was launched in 2003 and has so far been attended by more than a 100 students from various faculties. This year’s generation of interns comprises 24 students that will train at the departments, committees and deputy groups, and the best would be offered the chance to take the state examination and become civil servants.