Identity Statement

Reference Code

HU OSA 363-0-2

Title

Country Files

Date(s)

1992 - 2007

Description Level

Series

Extent and medium (processed)

28 Archival boxes, 3.5 linear meters

Context

Name of creator(s)

American Refugee Committee

Content and Structure

Scope and Content (Narrative)

This series constitutes the backbone of the collection. Materials are organized by country (all the former Yugoslav republics except Slovenia, plus Albania). Each country file has sections dedicated to ‘Background and Research Materials’ (press coverage of major events, newsletters and news advisories, interviews, reports and studies written or published by other organizations, etc.), and ‘Grants and Projects’ (grant proposals, grant correspondence, interim and final reports, documentation of the implementation of ARC projects, etc.). Further country-specific materials like ‘Correspondence’, ‘Internal Correspondence and Memoranda’, ‘Trip Reports’ and 'ARC Publications' complete a country file. For background and research materials covering multiple countries a separate country file named ‘Former Yugoslavia (Multiple Countries)’ was created.

The most relevant documents in this series—in terms of the work of ARC in former Yugoslavia—are the ones found in the sections dedicated to ‘Grants and Projects.’ Proposals submitted to funding agencies reveal both the needs in the conflict-torn Balkan region and the funding priorities of institutions like the UNHCR, the US Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, or the governments of Ireland and The Netherlands. Grant-related correspondence filed along with the grant proposals, grant agreements and project reports, testifies to the close cooperation between donors and relief organizations during the largest refugee crisis in recent European history. Finally, the ‘Grants and Projects’ files in this series show just how varied the work of ARC was in former Yugoslavia: ARC distributed humanitarian aid, provided counseling for refugees, helped rebuild houses and broken infrastructure, supported small businesses, provided educational and vocational training, organized ‘go and see’ visits across borders, and so forth.

Accruals

Not Expected

Conditions of Access and Use

Conditions governing access

Not restricted

Languages

Bosnian, Croatian, English, Serbian

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

A sizeable part of the documents was created at the headquarters of ARC in Minneapolis, with the rest being likely created on-site in the ARC country offices in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia. Documents originating in Europe are typically printed on DIN A/4 size paper; documents born (most often photocopied) at ARC headquarters are typically printed on 8.5”x11” Letter size paper.

Description Control

Archivist's note

Arranged by Kwame Varga and Mark László-Herbert; described by Mark László-Herbert, February 28, 2021.