UNMIK/PR/406

PRESS RELEASE - 8 November 2000

Social Assistance Applications to be Accepted

PRISTINA---The Department of Health and Social Welfare has announced that applicants for the Social Assistance programme Category II are now being accepted by the Centres for Social Work.

 The Category I programme is already assisting families in which no one is able to work.  Category II will assist the most vulnerable among families in which someone is able to work but not able to find employment.  However, as the programme's  resources are limited, only a small number of families will be able to receive assistance. For this reason, strict eligibility criteria have been established. These include:

- No one in the family may be receiving any income in exchange for work (either full or part-time) or through self-employment.

- Every member of the family capable of work must register with the Office of Employment and must actively seek work.

- The family must be without resources, and must not be receiving any assistance from family members within or outside Kosovo.

- The family must not own more than one-half hectare of land (exemption is possible for families unable to access their land for security reasons).
- There must be at least one child under the age of five (or family must have in their full-time care an orphan under age 15).

- The family must not own a motor vehicle, tractor or automobile.
- The family’s name must be on September food distribution lists.

Before applying at the Centres for Social Work, all able-bodied members of potential applicant families must complete a declaration of unemployment at the Office of Employment. With these declarations, the family may receive an application form. They will also be required to present documentation proving they meet all the above criteria.  Before approving the application, the CSW will make home visits to verify all information provided.

For persons who are unable for security reasons to access either the CSW or an Office of Employment, provisions are being made through the Municipalities to ensure they can obtain needed documentation.