At the beginning of the new school year, the Elementary Municipal School “Kocho Racin” in Dojran received a new inclusive playground that can be safely used by all children, including the ones with disabilities. The first inclusive playground on the territory of Dojran is built with support by the company OKTA, as part of the cooperation with both the Foundation “Step by step” and the Municipality. This is the second donation made by OKTA within the project “Be IN, be INclusive, be INcluded”, which goal is complete and equal involvement of the children with disabilities in all school activities and strengthening their social and educational inclusion.
“As a company that gives special attention to the community’s wellbeing, we are always happy to participate in initiatives addressed to children. Our active contribution in this donor project signifies our continuous commitment for improving the conditions in education and creating equal opportunities for all children, despite their specifics. We hope that these playgrounds will be a place for a carefree children’s play, where the values of diversity and inclusion will be cherished and strengthened.” stated Vuk Radovic, Chief Executive Officer of OKTA.
The Municipality of Dojran has also participated by providing its support and enabling all necessary conditions for the successful implementation of the project.
„This playground will promote the inclusion of children with special needs in sports and recreational activities. It will also enable their proper growth and development. Of course, this noble project will raise awareness about diversity from an early age, as well as the awareness of the need for socialization and inclusion of children with disabilities in society. Let this be a motive for all of us together in the future, to open our hearts and show that we can do much more for the children with special needs, to be actively involved in their equal inclusion in all spheres of social life“, said Ango Angov, Mayor of Dojran.
The project “Be IN, be INclusive, be INcluded”, that for the past year, has been implemented by the Foundation for educational and cultural initiatives, unites different stakeholders to achieve one goal – full and equal inclusion of the children with disabilities in the regular elementary schools.
„This is the second inclusive playground that we are making in the framework of the cooperation with OKTA, as part of the project “Be IN, be INclusive, be INcluded” which is funded by the European Union. With these playgrounds, that we build in different Municipalities, we support the process of developing inclusive education, with a belief that the children through mutual play and socializing will learn to respect diversity and will have equal opportunities to participate in both school and extracurricular activities,” said Elena Misic, Project Manager at “Be IN, be INclusive, be INcluded”.
The support of education is one of the main pillars in OKTA’s CSR strategy. In this light, the company has also donated an inclusive children’s corner in the Municipality of Aerodrom in Skopje, moreover, within this current project, OKTA will also support the construction of another playground by the end of the year.
