In 2024, the Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation, together with its partners and thanks to donors and individual supporters, has assisted more than 23,000 citizens in Serbia with donations worth 2.5 million US dollars.
Through numerous development projects and humanitarian actions, the Foundation continued to support vulnerable families, agricultural households, civil society organizations, educational and healthcare institutions, animal shelters, as well as numerous individuals, particularly youth, women, and persons with disabilities.
The Foundation’s work in supporting youth, through employment support projects, regional cooperation, scholarship programs, support for young farmers wishing to stay in rural areas, improving media literacy, and promoting diversity, was awarded the Recognition of Kindness award by the Serbian Philanthropy Forum during the seventh National Day of Giving.
Through three funds for young farmers in Požega, Svilajnac, and Kraljevo, 39 young farmers received grants to establish their farms. Additionally, through seven youth funds in Obrenovac, Prokuplje, Zaječar, Vlasotince, Vladičin Han, Vranje, and Sremska Mitrovica, 100 projects aimed at improving the quality of life for young people and regional cooperation, initiated by informal youth groups, were realized.
For the 2024/2025 school year, the Foundation awarded 156 scholarships, including 121 scholarships for outstanding high school students from poor or single-parent families, 10 scholarships for students of agriculture and veterinary faculties, and 25 for students of medicine, electrical engineering, mathematics, and biology.
The non-profit IT requalification program "IT Bootcamp" continued, which has been running for six years in cooperation with a group of donors from the USA. During 2024, 154 young participants completed training in software testing (QA) and website development, with 41 young individuals finding jobs immediately after completing the course, which is about 27%.
The Foundation also continued its support for youth to become more actively involved in social, economic, and political life in the country and region, to be change-makers, and to more easily identify areas where the position of youth needs to be improved.
We also continued the fight for gender equality, continually promoted the Sustainable Development Goals and equality for all, and established the first incentive fund for the employment of people with disabilities in Kragujevac.
Significant are the continued efforts of the Foundation to support people who work in agriculture, with 305 agricultural household holders receiving 454,000 dollars in support, improving living conditions in rural areas for more than 1,100 people.
A total of 228 greenhouses were donated to farmers in Svrljig, Nova Varoš, Prijepolje, Užice, Lučani, Dimitrovgrad, and Medveđa, with the aim of helping small agricultural households to overcome the challenges posed by unstable climat.
Four agricultural revolving funds were established in Aranđelovac, Sečanj, Golubac, and Babušnica, through which 38 agricultural households received interest-free loans for agricultural production development.
In the municipalities of Požega, Arilje, Nova Varoš, Lučani, and Užice, expert workshops were held for 100 farmers on the safe disposal of pesticide packaging, while 500 kilograms of waste pesticide packaging were collected through organized actions.
In partnership with Serbia Business Run and 19 companies participating in the "Race for Forests," 13,182 oak trees were planted on 4.39 hectares in Fruška Gora mountain.
Homes for two families in Vlasotince and Vranje were reconstructed, four primary schools were equipped with new furniture, and nine high schools with 5,000 students received donations for maintaining modern STEM education.
A section of the water supply system in Kuršumlijska Banja was built, supplying water to 60 households, and valuable equipment was donated to the Clinic for Maxillofacial Surgery of the Faculty of Dentistry of the University of Belgrade.
During 2024, 200 food packages were distributed to flood-affected families in Svrljig and single parents in Pirot, Pančevo, and Zemun, while 25 food, firewood, and essential items packages were distributed to families in Kosovo. Sixteen families received wood stoves, and regular support continued for the Soup Kitchen of the Religious Charitable Guardianship of the Serbian Orthodox Church for distribution of 2,000 hot meals daily.
Through grants, mentoring, and capacity building, six civil society organizations were supported, regular monthly donations were provided to two animal shelters, and a modern van was donated to the Singidunum Crvena Zvezda Club for Basketball Players in Wheelchairs
The Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation thanks all partners and donors in the country and the diaspora, as well as civil society organizations, local governments, ministries, media, and all individuals who have been part of the large Divac team this year. Our investments not only change the lives of individuals but also lay the foundation for the sustainable development of Serbia. Together we can achieve much more, and with that idea, we will continue to assist the most vulnerable and continue to improve the quality of life across Serbia in the coming period.
