Improvement of Working Conditions at the Faculty of Mining Engineering

The improvement of working conditions and development prospects of the Faculty of Mining Engineering of the University of Banja Luka located in Prijedor was discussed at the meeting held on 27 June 2023.

Rector of the University of Banja Luka Prof. Radoslav Gajanin, PhD, said that the regulation of ownership is a prerequisite for the faculty to participate in various projects, competitions and public calls, which means that it is also a prerequisite for further development. After the meeting that was held in the premises of the Faculty of Mining Engineering, he stated to the press that the issue of accommodation and food for students who are not from Prijedor should be considered by the time of the next meeting, which should be held in September. He also stated that the construction of a student dormitory should be considered, as well as the possibilities of having the grants increased.

Dean of the Faculty of Mining Engineering Prof. Svjetlana Sredić, PhD, explained that Prijedor needs a student dormitory and that it would certainly increase the number of students who are not from Prijedor, which is about ten percent on average. She believes that a permanent solution for the space of the faculty needs to be found, and that the secondary schools should have the fourth and third grades of the mining and geological educational profiles again.

Mayor of Prijedor Slobodan Javor said that this city is interested in considering the possibilities of building a student dormitory together with the RS institutions.

Director of the Iron Ore Mines ‘Ljubija’ Prijedor, Stanko Vujković, said that this company, in cooperation with the ‘ArcelorMittal Prijedor’ Company, will provide scholarships to four students of the Faculty of Mining Engineering from the next academic year. Vujković announced at the meeting on the improvement of working conditions and development prospects of the Faculty of Mining Engineering in Prijedor that in the next month, the property and legal affairs related to the ownership of these two companies over the land and the building where the Faculty of Mining Engineering and the Institute of Mining are located should be completed in the forthcoming month.

The representative of the ‘ArcelorMittal Prijedor’ Company Suzana Gašić said that the activities Vujković is talking about have the consent of the company's Board of Directors and that further dynamics will depend on geodetic and cadastral procedures.

Goran Bojić from the ‘Elker’ Company said that funds can and should be allocated from the iron ore concessions, which should be directed to development, for the faculty that trains personnel specifically for mining, geology and environmental protection.

Saša Bursać from the Prijedor Forestry says that the faculty is located in an old and dilapidated prefabricated building and that the ‘Ljubija’ iron ore mines and ‘ArcelorMittal Prijedor’ should finance the construction of a new faculty building from their profits from the exploitation of iron ore, and the city should provide the location and documentation that precedes construction. According to him, the city should also provide a location for a student dormitory, and the construction should be jointly financed by the private and public sectors.

The meeting was also attended by the University of Banja Luka Vice-Rector for International and Interuniversity Cooperation Prof. Milica Balaban, PhD, Deputy Mayor of Prijedor Žarko Kovačević, M.Sc., Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Mining Engineering Prof. Dražana Tošić, PhD, and Asst. Prof. Ljubica Figun, PhD, and Prof. Vladimir Malbašić, PhD.