With the final tests, candidates’ presentations and awarding of certificates, the fourth and final cycle of the YALS project, sponsored by the US Embassy in Serbia, “Teaching English to employees in local self-government units with a focus on practical skills needed for more effective communication with EU partners” was completed successfully.

YALS member schools implemented the training in 14 municipalities throughout Serbia (Palilula, Savski Venac, Vračar, Čačak, Jagodina, Kruševac, Kula, Leskovac, Niš, Prokuplje, Trstenik, Valjevo, Vlasotince i Vrbas), and more than 180 employees in local governments, placed in 15 groups of trainees, had the opportunity to improve their knowledge of English. The project participants had the opportunity to improve their English skills with the aim of more effective communication between civil servants and foreign partners. The focus was on acquiring practical language skills that will improve written and oral communication. During the course, participants also had the opportunity to communicate with native speakers which, according to them, was a significant experience.

Having completed four cycles of this project successfully, YALS received the most complimentary remarks from the US Embassy and a proposal that the Embassy would like to support our next major event – the annual YALS conference targeted at teachers and directors of foreign language schools. It will be a jubilee one (the 20^th conference), organised by our association and, much to our pleasure, we will host about 100 guests from Serbia and abroad. We also look forward to continuing our fruitful cooperation with the English Language Department of the US Embassy in Serbia.