The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden donates €3 million to the Government of Serbia for implementation of the program “Preparing for the negotiations in the process of accession of Serbia to the European Union in the field of environmental protection – ENVAP 3”
The program will focus on supporting the relevant Ministry, the negotiating group for preparation of the negotiations, the Environmental Agency, as well as the implementation of communication strategies necessary for the successful implementation of the Program.
“Ecology is a very important area that needs to be dealt with continuously and thoroughly and requires the coordinated action of all relevant institutions and citizens. Donation of the Government of the Kingdom of Sweden, worth about three million euro, should help the Government of Serbia on its path of Euro integration, but given the fact that Chapter 27, which concerns the protection of the environment, one of the most expensive and most demanding chapters in the negotiation process, it is very important that this assistance is being used in the right way and focus on solving important problems in this area. The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden invests about 100 million euros of the total development aid to Serbia because it is in the interest of both countries and it is strategic support to Serbia on its path towards the EU”, said H.E. Jan Lundin, Swedish Ambassador in Serbia.
So far, the Government of the Kingdom of Sweden helped Serbia the most of all the other member states of the European Union when it comes to solving problems in the field of environmental protection, and this donation is a continuation of their selfless support for our country.
“While the environment is a complex section, in march 2016 the Government of Serbia and the competent Ministry, with the support of international and local experts, received support from the European Commission, which has recommended the opening of Chapter 27, with no initial criteria. We know that after the chapter-opening the most important job is waiting for us, and with the financial support of the Government of the Kingdom of Sweden is more than valuable, because it is good preparation for negotiations and is vital for their success. The evidenced about the complexity is a fact that we are expecting hard work in the sector of water supply, waste management, wastewater and industrial pollution, in which we will spend the next 25 years and an investment of over 10 billion euros”, said Stana Bozović, State Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and environmental protection.
The Government of the Republic of Serbia approved four agreements this year in the environmental field – Support of infrastructure development in the environmental field (EISP), Priority infrastructure development program in the environmental field (PEID), Management of chemicals and Program for preparations for negotiations in the process of accession to the EU in the field of environmental protection (ENVAP 3). At today’s press conference, the Program “ENVAP 3” has officially signed the Agreement on cooperation between the relevant Ministry and the Swedish Environmental Agency, which was signed by Stana Bozović, State Secretary of the Ministry and Ulrik Westman, the High Representative of Sweden Environment Agency.
Bearing in mind that Serbia has many challenges on its path in the European Union, it is important that the public is familiarized about the program concerning the preparations for the negotiation process. “An important component of this program is communicating with the citizens, in order to increase the visibility of reforms in various segments of the environment. Media will play a key role in this because it is necessary to bring closer to the citizens the importance of environmental protection, but also familiarize them with the results of the negotiations in this area”, said Srdjan Majstorovic, Deputy Director of the Office for European Integration.