Daniela Gašparíková, UNDP Resident Representative to Montenegro

Speech at the launch event on the occasion of the online enrolment of undergraduate students 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Rector Božović,

Pro-Rector Mićunović,

Minister Srzentić,

General director Ojdanić,

Dear future students,

Starting a Higher Education is an important moment in the lives of young people and their families, and often times a culmination and reward of the many years of efforts.  As such, it represents a critical step towards future professional career opportunities.

Knowing the University admissions process can seem staggering, UNDP partnered with the EU, the Government, and the University of Montenegro to design a completely automated electronic service to help prospective students navigate through the enrollment process. Our objective was to help ensure students’ transition to University goes as smoothly as possible, is more accessible and and it offers the best possible experience.  

Collaboration is thekey and UNDP is leveraging the strengths of these collaborations to supports the country to better understand opportunities for positive digital disruption, embed cultural change and create smarter digital services for citizens and businesses. With our partners, we have supported roll-out of a number of electronic services - focusing on improving citizen experiences - such as the electronic platform for enrolment of children in elementary schools & kindergartens and online business registrations.

Dear prospective students,

Asyou embark on your exciting academic journey, at UNDP we are confident - that the year ahead will be full of rewarding experiences. We realize the studies these two years have been harder than ever. But by getting here you’ve already shown great resilience and dedication in a way that fills all of us with hope for the future.

You enter high school on the wings of two profound shifts we have witnessed over the last decade:

Firstly, learning as a process is not anymore confined to any specific age group. More than ever before, it has become a life-long endeavour. It may take different forms at different stages of our lives but given the speed of change world is experiencing these days, it never really stops.

Secondly, it is expected that in coming years above 78% of all new jobs will require qualifications and skills in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Therefore, to grasp job opportunities brought on by technology development and digitalization,  I would like to use the opportunity to encourage more of you, and especially young women and girls, to pursue STEM education as an integral part of studies, regardless of the area of your academic choice.

Never stop growing and challenging yourself to be your best, but always remember that …as the saying goes…  "While it is good to have an end to journey toward, it is the journey that matters in the end the most."