She is engaged with the BIRN Hub Office in Sarajevo, supporting regional operations. Her main responsibilities include strategic fundraising and donor engagement while overseeing the network’s monitoring and evaluation systems.
Verica is a senior programme and fundraising specialist with over 25 years of experience in humanitarian and development work across the Western Balkans and Eastern Europe. She has led initiatives on protection, gender equality, socio-economic inclusion, public advocacy and governance, working with UN agencies, INGOs and donor consortia.
In her recent role in Moldova and Ukraine, Verica guided a strategic shift from emergency response to sustainable protection and economic empowerment, securing institutional funding and advancing localization. She has managed diverse donor portfolios, implemented multi-agency projects with partners, such as UNDP, WHO, UNOPS and IOM and has provided technical assistance to government institutions and civil society.
Her work combines evidence-based programme design with strong fundraising skills, informed by extensive research on migration, housing, livelihoods, disaster risk reduction and resilience. Verica’s strategic vision and regional expertise aim to strengthening BIRN’s ability to deliver impactful and regionally grounded interventions.
She studied at the University of Novi Sad, majoring in English Language and Literature. In addition to her formal education, Verica has taken advanced training in risk and crisis management, humanitarian negotiation and project management, while gaining certifications in gender-based violence response, migration governance, programme design and funding frameworks for multi-sector interventions.
Alongside her native Serbian, she speaks English and French.