The Office of Combating Drugs of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, the humanitarian organization “Reto- ima nade” and with the help of the City Administration of the City of Zrenjanin, held a conference entitled “Alternative models of rehabilitation and resocialization of drug addicts in the Republic of Serbia”. The conference was held on March 21, 2023 in the Baroque Hall of the City Hall of the city of Zrenjanin, and on that occasion, a reception was first organized with the mayor Sima Salapura. The goal of this conference was to bring the public closer to the work of the HO “Reto – ima nade” and to introduce it to alternative models of rehabilitation and resocialization of addicts.

In addition to the representatives of the “Reto-ima nade” HO, the representatives of the City Administration of the City of Zrenjanin, the Office for Combating Drugs of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, the General Hospital “Đorđe Joanović” from Zrenjanin, the Network of Organizations for Post-Penal Support of Serbia and the organization “Izlazak”, participated in the conference. The conference was opened by the deputy mayor Saša Santovac and on that occasion he pointed out that the City of Zrenjanin is dedicated and devoted to the improvement of the community and the environment and to the preservation of the health of its citizens and expressed satisfaction with the organization of the conference on this topic in the City of Zrenjanin.

The director of the Office of Combating drugs of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, Mr. Milan Pekić, thanked the “Reto – ima nade” center for their cooperation, emphasizing that the process of resocialization and rehabilitation is an indispensable process that leads to the complete recovery of drug addicts. He emphasized the importance of cooperation between institutions and that the drug problem is a problem for the whole society and not just one ministry, as well as that the stigma faced by people who use drugs is unjustified. With the presentation, the representatives of the “Reto – ima nade” center informed the conference participants about the long history and capacities of this therapeutic community, the main goals and methods that lead the users of the center to rehabilitation. A particularly important part of the conference was the panel on the personal experiences of former drug addicts, which are very important in raising awareness about this problem.

Since its establishment in 2004, HO “Reto – ima nade”, until today, more than 2000 users have passed through the center’s programs. Since 2019, the Office of Combating Drugs has signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the humanitarian organization “Reto – ima nade”, and since then several conferences, lectures and visits have been held. The “Reto- ima nade” center is once again recognized as an important link in the rehabilitation and resocialization processes of drug addicts in Serbia and as a center that is highly motivated to actively work on the aforementioned processes with the active cooperation of competent institutions.