On Friday, 17 October 2014, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to BiH Dr Daviddi officially opened the Mixed Secondary School Maglaj and Edhem Mulabdić High School in Maglaj, both reconstructed as part of the EU Floods Recovery Programme funded by the European Union. The school suffered severe damage during the floods in May 2014. The EU-financed restoration works included electricity refitting, new heating system, new sanitary systems, new flooring, joinery replacement, refurbishing of walls, thermo-insulated facade and roof. The total value of EU investment for the school rehabilitation was 339,733.78 EUR (664,461.51 KM).
“I am very happy to visit Maglaj to see first-hand how the EU’s financial support is concretely making a difference in the lives of the communities affected by the floods in May this year. The rehabilitation of these two schools is a good example of the results we strive to bring to the people with our post-flood recovery efforts. The European Union is financing numerous projects in the Maglaj Municipality to repair the flood damages, with the projected total investment reaching approximately 2.8 million EUR. This money, coming directly from the citizens of the European Union, is a strong signal of solidarity and our commitment to help the people of Maglaj to return to normal life as soon as possible,” said Dr. Daviddi.
“We would like to express our gratitude to the EU representatives for making us happy and for providing a place for work and stay in this wonderfully reconstructed school for 1000 students,“ said Edhem Mulabdić High School Principal Amela Hidić.
“This EU project on our school made happy more than 3,000 persons – out of which 1,000 students, some 2,000 parents and approximately 100 teachers, and this figure will increase from year to year. To invest in education, means to invest in the future of the state, which EU country members understood long ago. I hope that in Bosnia and Herzegovina we will also soon understand this and stop perceiving education as a consumer category,” said Mixed Secondary School Maglaj Principal Ermin Tankovic.
The total projected investment for Maglaj under the EU Floods Recovery Programme is at present 2,840,000 EUR (5,555,000 KM), and includes rehabilitation of 3 schools, 1 kindergarten, 1 public administration building and 1 health care centre, which are currently in the process of rehabilitation. In addition, two bridges in the Maglaj area are scheduled for reconstruction in November, and some 700,000 EUR (1,370,000 KM) will be invested in the housing rehabilitation. Social Welfare Centre in Maglaj and Primary School Maglaj in Bočinje are also on the list of facilities planned for reconstruction within the EU Floods Recovery Programme.
The visit continued with a tour of EU-financed rehabilitation site of JU Prva OŠ Maglaj, where 526,846.35 KM (269372.26 EUR) are being invested.
The EU Floods Recovery Programme was launched to restore normal living conditions in local communities and ensure that the aid reaches the most vulnerable people in the aftermath of floods in May. Funds are being used to restore public services and infrastructure, reconstruct housing units for the most vulnerable ones, and for social and economic recovery of local communities. The value of the overall programme was 43.52 million, of which 42.24 million were provided by the European Union.
This assistance is a part of the funds that the European Union pledged at the donor conference in Brussels in July. The activities of the EU Floods Recovery Programme focus on reconstruction of 4,000 housing units for approximately 14,000 residents, rehabilitation of key public services and infrastructure (including schools, medical facilities, water supply and sewer, and smaller roads and bridges) at 50 sites, as well as providing assistance to retain and generate around 2,000 jobs in flood-affected areas. The programme is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
For more information, visit the EU Floods Recovery Programme feature page
