On May 20, 2025, a working meeting was held at the Semberija Cultural Center in Bijeljina, organized by the Center for Social Work Bijeljina and the Association of Women with Disabilities "Impuls," with the goal of promoting the public call for the provision of personal assistance services. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Center for Social Work Bijeljina, the Red Cross of Bijeljina, the Association of Women with Disabilities "Impuls", the Regional Association of People with Muscular Dystrophy from Bijeljina, and the Association of People with Muscular Dystrophy from the Banja Luka region. Although a significant number of organizations dealing with disability-related issues operate in the city of Bijeljina, the lower turnout at the meeting indicated that many of these organizations are not in a position to provide personal assistance services and, most likely, did not attend the meeting for that reason.

Tanja Milinković, Executive Director of the “Impuls” Association, stated that the advocacy campaign, carried out in cooperation with the PRAGG project – Proactive Citizens for the Adoption of the Decision on Extended Rights – began in June 2023. The decision was adopted in 2024, after which the Center for Social Work in Bijeljina developed a Rulebook on the provision of personal assistance services. Just a few days ago, a public call for personal assistance service providers was also announced. She added that without the development of this service at the local level, persons with disabilities have no rights and are completely excluded from all social events and community life.

Mila Stojanović, Head of the Department for Social Protection at the Center for Social Work Bijeljina, stated that the Center is the lead institution for personal assistance activities, with financial support from the City Administration of Bijeljina. She explained that the public call is seeking a partner organization from the territory of the city of Bijeljina. She welcomed the attendees and expressed hope that one of them would become a social partner to the Center in relation to personal assistance services.

She emphasized that the Center has already developed a Rulebook for the provision of personal assistance services, and subsequently published a public call for personal assistance service providers. Potential partners from non-governmental organizations were invited to the event, with the intention of jointly undertaking this demanding and serious task, aiming to ensure that the end users are satisfied. She highlighted that with a bit of effort, at least some of the problems faced daily by persons with disabilities could be overcome. She spoke about the conditions outlined in the public call and the many challenges related to meeting those requirements, but also expressed hope that this service would be successfully launched to the satisfaction of its end users.

A particularly important contribution came from Radovan Ristić, a representative of the Association of People with Muscular Dystrophy of the Banja Luka Region, especially from the perspective of a service provider - an area the Association has been involved in for the past 15 years. He stated that it is a positive development that Bijeljina will become the third local community in the Republic of Srpska to offer this service, and that it is encouraging that the City Administration has recognized this as one of the most essential services for persons with disabilities.  Ristić pointed out that the regulations set by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare of the Republic of Srpska are unnecessarily strict, and shared that the association he represents had to wait as long as ten years to receive approval from the Ministry to provide personal assistance services. He added that the rulebooks regulating this area are poorly designed and actually hinder organizations from applying for calls related to the provision of personal assistance services.

He explained that organizations are required to employ at least two full-time professionals - such as a lawyer, psychologist, special education teacher, or social worker, two of whom must be listed in the Rulebook - which presents a serious burden for organizations that lack stable sources of funding. Moreover, he noted that there is neither a real need nor sufficient work for such professionals to be employed full-time. He emphasized that personal assistance must, in the future, be regulated by law so that it is no longer treated as an extended right within the field of social protection, but rather as a guaranteed right. At the end of his remarks, he encouraged the representatives of the associations present to apply for the public call, stressing that the worst-case scenario would be for persons with disabilities not to receive personal assistance at all.

Aleksandar Savić from the Red Cross of Bijeljina expressed his organization's intention to engage in providing personal assistance services, stating that they already meet the majority of the necessary requirements. He noted that since December 2024, they have been offering home assistance services. Savić emphasized that they have the staff needed to deliver such services, as well as a sufficient number of vehicles at their disposal. His only concern, he said, lies in the procedures of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, which, in his experience, are very slow in issuing responses and official decisions.

Finally, although there was a prevailing belief in Bijeljina that no organizations would be interested in providing personal assistance services, that expectation has proven to be unfounded. It is now increasingly evident that the service will soon be launched for those who need it most. The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare must seriously reconsider the level of operational support it provides to organizations engaged in social and health care services. The rules currently in place are outdated, excessively strict, and often seem more likely to hinder than to help the most vulnerable groups. Instead of enabling access to necessary support, these regulations can effectively block certain types of assistance. Any delay in reviewing and issuing approvals for personal assistance service providers in Bijeljina directly denies persons with disabilities the opportunity to live with greater dignity.

It remains to be seen how many organizations will apply before the public call closes. As a reminder, the call is open until May 31, 2025. According to the Center for Social Work in Bijeljina, if no organizations apply within this timeframe, a new public call will be issued.