Within the framework of the project Access to Social Welfare and Health Protection for Vulnerable Groups in the South of Serbia - Phase II, implemented by Praxis with the support of the Foundation Caritas Luxembourg, which aims to improve access to health protection and social welfare for Roma and internally displaced persons in Pčinja District, on 5 December 2013 Praxis organised a meeting with representatives of municipal authorities, institutions and civil society in Bujanovac. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Social Welfare Centre, the Police Station in Bujanovac, the Republic Fund for Health Insurance - Branch Office in Bujanovac, the National Employment Service, the Office of the Protector of Citizens, the municipal Roma coordinator, the trustee for refugees and displaced persons, health mediators and representatives of non-governmental organisations Civil Resource Center, Youth Forum for Education of Roma - YFER and Roma Humanitarian Centre.

Pointing to current problems regarding access to the rights in the fields of social welfare and health protection, the participants particularly stressed the importance of the effective exercise of the right to be recognised as a person before the law, citizenship, registration of permanent and temporary residence, etc., as a condition for access to socio-economic rights.

As regards the rights in the field of social protection, the subjects of discussion were the actions of the Social Welfare Centre in Bujanovac regarding the right to financial social assistance for internally displaced persons accommodated in collective centres, that is, denial of the right to this category of citizens, which the institution bases on the opinion that this category of citizens meets a minimum level of social security. It was agreed with representatives of the Social Welfare Centre that Praxis would request the official opinion of the competent Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Policy.

Concerning the degree of availability of health care, it was noted at the meeting that the problem related to the exercise of this right required systemic solutions and that little could be done at the local level about the existing regulations in this field, given that, in line with the latest amendments to the Decree published in the Official Gazette of RS, numbers 54/2010, 124/2012 of 6 January 2013, the possibility of issuing health cards on the basis of statements on factual residence for persons without registered permanent or temporary residence ceased to exist, and at the same time it was concluded that this problem must be solved at the national level.

The representatives of institutions and civil society participated actively at the meeting, presenting the examples of good practice and stressing that access to rights can be significantly improved by the enhancement of cooperation between relevant bodies, but also gave examples illustrating that in cases where there was no such cooperation and communication, immeasurable consequences to the detriment of citizens ensued.