Municipality of Stari Grad allocated 38,000 KM to pensioners

The President of the Pensioners' Association of Stari Grad, Kasim Halak, and the Mayor of the Municipality of Stari Grad, Ibrahim Hadžibajrić, signed an agreement today on a dedicated grant for pensioners amounting to 38,000 KM. The funds will be distributed to pensioners whose pensions do not exceed 400 KM and who present receipts for medicines, as well as their pension check. This is a regular annual allocation from the Municipality of Stari Grad for this category of the population, and it is estimated that around 760 pensioners will receive assistance, reports the BH News Agency Patria.

The President of the Pensioners' Association explained that these funds are distributed transparently and that pensioners can receive them only once a year, for which proper records are kept.

- Our Association has 6,500 members and has existed since 1998. Older members pay a monthly membership fee of 1 KM, and new members pay 2 KM, through the Pension and Disability Insurance Fund, and this is indicated on the pension check. In return, members have various benefits... When using spa facilities, they can get a discount between 200 and 270 KM for a ten-day stay, and when buying firewood, they can pay in installments, with guaranteed quality and quantity - Halak explained.

Halak said that no other level of government finances the Association's work and that they only receive assistance from the Municipality of Stari Grad.

- We distribute these funds to our pensioners, and every pensioner, not even necessarily a member of the Association, is entitled to receive financial assistance of 50 KM once a year. The Municipality of Stari Grad is the only one that allocates these funds to us - Halak said.

Members of the Pensioners' Association would like to be able to organize excursions, gatherings, and other activities, but they simply lack the space and resources for it. Mayor Ibrahim Hadžibajrić spoke to them about plans to open a Center for Healthy Aging in Stari Grad.

- This project should be completed by the end of the year, and then we will see the possibilities for its implementation. Unfortunately, we do not have a large enough space, a building of 200-300 square meters, that we could convert into a Center. We will consider the possibility of equipping facilities in local communities for these purposes, in order to provide our pensioners with the best possible conditions for healthy aging - Hadžibajrić said. He also emphasized that support for pensioners will continue, and the possibility of allocating additional funds for their activities will be considered.

According to estimates, there are about 9,500 pensioners in Stari Grad.