After several months of work, the draft Local Action Plan for the prevention of female reproductive organ cancer in the Municipality of Gacko has been completed and submitted to the Mayor's Office for further action. The document, together with the initiative, the decision to form the Working Group and the necessary explanation, will be submitted to the Gacko Municipal Assembly for inclusion on the agenda of the first upcoming session.

This is an important and concrete step towards establishing systemic prevention and more accessible health care for women in Gacko, and is the result of the "Be a step ahead" campaign, which the Women's Association "Riječ" is implementing with the support of the PRAGG project.

At a meeting held in the Municipality of Gacko, members of the Working Group for the development of the Local Action Plan, representatives of the local government, the Women's Association "Riječ" and councilors in the local parliament discussed the next steps. It was jointly confirmed that the process continues through the prescribed procedure, after which the Municipal Assembly will decide on the document.

As announced on the official website of the Municipality of Gacko, the completed draft plan is the result of intensive work by the Working Group, analysis of the current situation and consideration of the experiences of other local communities. The document provides for a number of specific measures that should improve prevention and early detection of diseases. Among the proposed measures are the procurement of necessary medical equipment for the Health Center, more regular engagement of gynecologists and radiologists, organization of mammography examinations at least once a year, as well as the continuation of education and public campaigns on the importance of preventive examinations.

"We have been working intensively for three months on the development of the Local Action Plan. We have tried to create a document that will bring women's health care closer to citizens and at the same time institutionalize it. Prevention and early detection of diseases must be a priority," emphasized the president of the Women's Association "Riječ" Anđelka Boljanović.

The Mayor of the Municipality of Gacko Vukota Govedarica announced full logistical and financial support from the local administration, emphasizing that it is important that after the adoption of the document, it does not stop only at the planned measures, but to proceed with their actual implementation. The formation of a monitoring team was also announced, which will monitor the implementation of activities and report on the results.

According to the official website of the Municipality, Gacko is the first local community in the Republika Srpska to complete the development of such a document.

From initiative to systemic solution

As a reminder, the process began in February 2026 with the launch of the "Be a step ahead" campaign, with a clear request that the prevention of female reproductive organ cancer should not be based only on occasional actions, but should become part of a long-term and financially supported local policy. On March 12, representatives of the Women's Association "Riječ" presented the Mayor of the Municipality of Gacko with an official initiative for the development and adoption of the Local Action Plan. During that meeting, the local administration's support was already expressed and preparations for the formation of a working body were initiated.

The Mayor then appointed a five-member Working Group, which also includes a representative of the "Riječ" Association, which ensured that the organization that initiated the initiative directly participated in the development of the document. The first meeting of the Working Group was held at the end of May, and the President of the Gacko Municipal Assembly Siniša Mandić then expressed full support for the process in writing.

Member of the Working Group and the Health Committee, Dr. Hristina Janjić Zirojević, pointed out that since the beginning of these activities, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of women coming for preventive examinations, which shows that informing and talking to citizens is already yielding concrete results.

From the first initiative to the drafted document, the campaign has shown how important joint action by citizens, civil society organizations, health workers and institutions is. The next step is the adoption of the Local Action Plan by the Gacko Municipal Assembly, and then securing funds and responsible implementation of the planned measures.

Follow the association's Facebook page for all the news.