The Balkans
Cross Cultures is a global network. On this page you can find information about our activities in the Balkans.
Bosnia & Herzegovina
In Bosnia all Open Fun Football Schools are organised in compliance with our so-called twin-city concept, meaning the children and adults from two or municipalities and three football clubs from organise an Open Fun Football School together across ethnic, political and/or social divides to meet and experience sharing and dialogue through fun games and activities.
Another program of Bosnia Herzegovina is the Mini Champions. This program manifestation was born in 2011, as a result of the promotion of the cooperation between UniCredit bank and Cross Cultures Project Association. Mini Champions is a social community event, organized on the core principles of Cross Cultures and with the main aim to invite groups of children and adults from different ethnic groups and socially challenged groups, to an joint, inclusive activity.
So far, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, we organized over 70 national, regional and international seminars, for over 6500 persons. On top of that Bosnia and Herzegovina has been a host to numerous working groups and meetings.
| Our work in Bosnia & Herzegovina | 2017 | 1998-2017 (total) |
|---|---|---|
| Partner since | 1998 | |
| Number of OFFS | 10 | 325 (+353 one day festivals) |
| Total number of children | 2,004 | 66,950 |
| Girls | 668 | |
| Boys | 1,336 | |
| Total number of volunteers* | 273 | |
| Female volunteers | 71 | |
| Male volunteers | 202 |
Source: Internal statistics.
* Leaders, Trainers, Assistants, and others.
Kosovo
In Kosovo, the main focus of the Open Fun Football Schools-program (OFFS) is on the integration of minorities particularly in and around the Serbian enclaves in the country.
By organising OFFS in Kosovo, Serbs and Albanians meet and play together, which still is a rare thing more than 10 years after the war, where reconciliation between the majority ethnic Albanians and the Serb minority remains elusive.
Kosovo is a landlocked area in the central Balkan Peninsula. It is a disputed territory and partially recognised state in Southeast Europe that declared independence from Serbia in February 2008. Serbia recognises governance of the territory by Kosovo institutions, but it still continues to claim it as its own.
| Our work in Kosovo | 2017 | 2006-2017 (total) |
|---|---|---|
| Partner since | 2006 | |
| Number of OFFS | 3 | 83 (+ 87 one day festivals) |
| Total number of children | 495 | 17,011 |
| Girls | 167 | |
| Boys | 328 | |
| Total number of volunteers* | 80 | |
| Female volunteers | 25 | |
| Male volunteers | 55 |
Source: Internal statistics.
* Leaders, Trainers, Assistants, and others.
Croatia
The focus of the Open Fun Football School-program (OFFS) in Croatia is on the former conflict areas, particularly in East and West Slavonia and Krajina, which are still struggling to heal scars of conflict. CCPA is furthermore having a strong focus of using the Open Fun Football Schools to promote healthy life style and girls’ football in cooperation with the national Football Association, HNS, and private donors.
Through the Open Fun Football Schools program, Cross Cultures is focusing on bringing children in Croatia of different ethnic groups together promoting peace and reconciliation.
| Our work in Croatia | 2015 | 2003-2015 (total) |
|---|---|---|
| Partner since | 2003 | |
| Number of OFFS | 8 | 214 (+ 183 one day festivals) |
| Total number of children | 1470 | 41,836 |
| Girls | 821 | |
| Boys | 649 | |
| Total number of volunteers* | 619 | |
| Female volunteers | 340 | |
| Male volunteers | 279 |
Source: Internal statistics.
* Leaders, Trainers, Assistants, and others.
North Macedonia
Open Fun Football Schools in North Macedonia has a vision to serve as an integrator of all the institutions and organisations that work with children. We want to reach this goal through mutual cooperation and with activity and education that follow our brand, which is recognized by its basic principles of multi-ethnicity, gender equality, sport for all, social dimension and the fun concept.
Correspondingly Cross Cultures' Open Fun Football Schools in North Macedonia wants to use the Open Fun Football Schools activities for the promotion of a wide variety of different positive values, such as: Healthy life style, safe and healthy environment, improvement of the sport lifestyle and supporter behavior, etc. -considering the plans and programs of our donors.
The country was a federal unit in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, but became independent following the collapse of the federation in 1991. More than 60% of the population is of Macedonian ethnicity, while larger minorities are comprised of Albanians, Turks, Romans, and Serbs.
Cross Cultures' Open Fun Football Schools program is focusing on bringing together children in North Macedonia of all ethnicity in order to bring peace and reconciliation to the area.
| Our work in North Macedonia | 2017 | 2000-2017 (total) |
|---|---|---|
| Partner since | 2000 | |
| Number of OFFS | 6 | 294 (+ 403 one day festivals) |
| Total number of children | 1,150 | 57,253 |
| Girls | 524 | |
| Boys | 626 | |
| Total number of volunteers* | 165 | |
| Female volunteers | 85 | |
| Male volunteers | 71 |
Source: Internal statistics.
* Leaders, Trainers, Assistants, and others.
Montenegro
Cross Cultures is focusing on peace, reconciliation and integration among Montenegros ethnic groups by bring children together at the Open Fun Football Schools.
| Our work in Montenegro | 2016 | 2007-2016 (total) |
|---|---|---|
| Partner since | 2007 | |
| Number of OFFS | 5 | 33 (+ 13 one day festivals) |
| Total number of children | 935 | 6,495 |
| Girls | 199 | |
| Boys | 736 | |
| Total number of volunteers* | 130 | |
| Female volunteers | 24 | |
| Male volunteers | 106 |
Source: Internal statistics.
* Leaders, Trainers, Assistants, and others.
Serbia
Serbia is a very important player in the Balkan region and correspondingly Serbia is also a very important player in the regional Open Fun Football Schools (OFFS) network. Cross Cultures works to enhance a cross-sectorial governance structure for building network and a coordinated dialogue-based cooperation between civil society organisations and the public sector in the field of juvenile crime prevention.
Cross Cultures focuses on bringing children in Serbia of different ethnicity together at the Open Fun Football Schools promoting peace and reconciliation.
| Our work in Serbia | 2017 | 2001-2017 (total) |
|---|---|---|
| Partner since | 2001 | |
| Number of OFFS | 8 | 279 (+ 401 one day festivals) |
| Total number of children | 1,524 | 54,906 |
| Girls | 606 | |
| Boys | 918 | |
| Total number of volunteers* | 170 | |
| Female volunteers | 63 | |
| Male volunteers | 107 |
Source: Internal statistics.
* Leaders, Trainers, Assistants, and others.