The final conference dedicated to the prevention and elimination of child marriage in the Municipality of Obrenovac was held on 27 November 2025. The event brought together representatives of the local government, the Obrenovac Social Welfare Centre, the National Employment Service, the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office in Obrenovac, the Obrenovac Police Station, primary and secondary schools, the Obrenovac Health Centre, the Youth Office, as well as Roma activists.

The conference was opened by Milica Vasiljević, Head of the Department for Social Affairs and Coordinator of the Mobile Team for the Social Inclusion of Roma. She highlighted the key results achieved by the Mobile Team over the past year, including the awarding of six scholarships to Roma university students and 57 awards to high school graduates. She particularly emphasized the importance of organized cultural activities for Roma children, as well as expectations that a larger portion of the budget will be allocated for the implementation of the Mobile Team’s Operational Plan in the upcoming period. On behalf of NGO Praxis, Executive Director Jelena Unijat welcomed the participants and presented the activities conducted within the project aimed at preventing child and early marriage. These activities included an initial review of local policies, data collection from relevant institutions and Roma activists, as well as workshops with primary school students in Obrenovac. Based on the collected findings, the document “Policy Brief: Prevention and Elimination of Child and Early Marriage in Obrenovac” was developed. Praxis external associate Ljiljana Lazarević presented key observations from the workshops held at Jovan Jovanović Zmaj and Ljubomir Aćimović primary schools in Obrenovac, while Praxis Public Policy Coordinator Marija Dražović presented the main findings and recommendations outlined in the Policy Brief.

During the discussion, representatives of schools and institutions shared their experiences in working on the prevention of early marriage and school dropout. It was noted that activities have so far been mostly reactive, while systematic preventive support has been lacking. Examples from practice highlighted the complexity of the issue, including cases of early marriage and school abandonment, as well as particularly vulnerable situations in substandard settlements and among internally displaced families from Kosovo. Participants agreed on the need to strengthen cooperation among institutions, Roma organizations, and the Mobile Team, especially in terms of work with families, as well as on the importance of reinstating the health mediator position, which has not been active in Obrenovac for three years. Positive examples from previous years—such as the successful cooperation between the Technical School and the Humanitarian Centre Rom in preventing dropout among Roma students—were presented as models that could be revived at the local level.

 At the end of the conference, several key steps for future action were highlighted:

• Strengthen work with families, especially in substandard settlements and among internally displaced persons, through field activities conducted by the Mobile Team.
• Introduce mentorship programs involving older students and university students from the Roma community who can serve as positive role models for younger generations.
• Create podcasts and other media content in which young people and adults from the Roma community share their experiences related to education, marriage, and personal development.
• Encourage schools to include workshops on the prevention of child marriage in their annual work plans, delivered by teachers, Roma university students, successful pupils, and other community educators.

The final conference confirmed that addressing child and early marriage is a complex process requiring continuous cooperation among all institutions and active participation of the community, supported by the local government. The event was organized within the project “Support to the Prevention and Elimination of Child Marriage in the Municipality of Obrenovac”, implemented as part of the broader project “Children’s Rights Are Human Rights”, supported by the Delegation of the European Union to Serbia and carried out by NGO Praxis in cooperation with the Užice Child Rights Centre.