FORUM "DIALOGUE AGAINST STEREOTYPES – WE ARE ALL THE SAME” (VIDEO)

During their two-day stay in South Serbia, President of the Coordination Body for the Municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja, Zoran Stankovic, the United States Ambassador, Michael Kirby, and Secretary of State for Youth at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Nenad Borovcanin, visited the "Agro-Adria" and “Nura-Plast” companies in Presevo, met with the young leaders and participated in the forum “Dialogue against Stereotypes – We are All the Same”.   

The lack of agreement between Belgrade and Pristina doesn’t mean that the two sides can’t reach a compromise, said the U.S. Ambassador, Michael Kirby, at the forum in Bujanovac.  

“Upon return of the delegation from Brussels, this issue is still talked about a lot in public.  I firmly believe that Serbia must seize this opportunity to fight for a starting date for negotiations with the European Union ", he added. 

"As far as the region of southern Serbia is concerned, the economic underdevelopment of this part of the country is a difficult and big issue. The data show that the gross domestic product in Serbia is 68 percent of the one recorded in 1989. South of Serbia's GDP is probably lower than 68 percent, said the U.S. Ambassador Michael Kirby.

During the forum "Dialogue Against Stereotype-We are all the Same”, which was organized in Bujanovac by the Centre for Democracy and Development of South Serbia and the regional news agency JUGpress, and which was supported by USAID, through the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC), the U.S. Ambassador to Serbia, Michael Kirby, said that one of the stereotypes that he would like to reject was that private business was bad.

“The state isn’t able to create new jobs. That’s why it’s necessary to understand that this would be possible by starting private businesses.  We closed all regional offices that we have and we are directing the saved resources to the development of small and medium-sized enterprises in Serbia. We made several successful clusters in South Serbia and we helped with training the people ", said Ambassador Kirby.

“Prime Minister Ivica Dacic and I are going to the States in May to present Serbia’s potential to the U.S. investors. If the investors are willing to come to Serbia, why wouldn’t they come to the southern part of the country, too.  In addition, Serbia has to better present its opportunities. Regarding the "selling" of its advantages, Serbia wasn’t as successful as other countries were, although it has a lot to offer ", said Ambassador Kirby.

Serbia has to decide whether it will be a black hole, said in Bujanovac Sulejman Ugljanin, Minister without portfolio in the Government of the Republic of Serbia.  

“Serbia isn’t far behind on the road to Europe. The current state representatives inherited the problems that no one was resolving over the previous two years.  Normally, a patient who has neglected his teeth asks his dentist to extract a bad tooth. It was different in Brussels- the patient wished to have his tooth saved, while the doctor said that it should be extracted.

"This is no time to complain, and this must serve as a lesson to us," said Mr. Ugljanin, who believes that the current government wasn’t unsuccessful in Brussels, but that it was successful.  

“There are 46 underdeveloped municipalities in Serbia. Underdevelopment is the most serious disease of any society. We must provide the answers to all the economic problems that we have. Serbia is a future developed agro-industrial complex and a tourist destination. Not everything is so bleak and there is hope.   To do this, we will need the help of the EU, the wider international community and the United States ", he added.

Through donations made by Switzerland, Norway and other countries in the region of South Serbia, a lot of money was invested over the last ten years. However, only three percent of the investments ended up in development of the industry, "said the UN Resident Coordinator in Serbia, William Infante.   

„The income of citizens in this part of Serbia is less than 50 percent of the one reached in 1989.  I wonder how people can survive with double lower incomes than those achieved two decades ago ", he added.  The perspective of this region lies in creating jobs and in improving economic conditions, said Mr. Infante. The region has a solid infrastructure, a good workforce that can effectively produce everything that meets the European and world’s criteria.  

"The message that should be sent from South of Serbia is that there is a good, high quality and trained workforce here, as well as the built-up infrastructure, transparency and compliance with all laws," said Mr. Infante.

Bujanovac, Presevo and Medvedja can count on the support of the Coordination Body.

"In this part of the country, two major problems were identified –compliance with the adopted laws and the sanctioning of those who violate them, and determining what the municipalities and cities have in common", said the President of the Coordination Body, Zoran Stankovic.

“When it comes to South Serbia, we talk only about the resolution of political issues. The solving of economic problems is of secondary importance. That is why we are in constant contact with foreign ambassadors. The government of the Republic of Serbia and the Coordination Body shall deal with the issues of a better life and prevention of emigration from this area, while having all those political issues be treated by means of discussion between the relevant ministries and local residents. In order to promote the potential of Bujanovac, Presevo and Medvedja, we will organize, in cooperation with the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, a fair of the  investment opportunities in April ", said Mr. Stankovic.

One of the biggest problems of 46 underdeveloped municipalities four years ago was the lack of strategic and planning documents, it was said at the forum. These problems are being slowly resolved by each of the devastated areas.  

"Thanks to the Coordination Body, seven businessmen from Bujanovac received the grants for job creation. Funds shouldn’t only be sought from the government of the Republic of Serbia and foreign donors. We have to ask ourselves what and how we are doing. Over the last eight months, 200 jobs were created in Bujanovac, while 1,200 euros is allocated from the municipal budget for each newly employed person. In addition to the lack of funds, our big problem is the sale of goods on the market of Kosovo and Metohija ", said the mayor of Bujanovac, Nagip Arifi.

"Reaching an agreement between Belgrade and Pristina would be good for both the citizens of Serbia and of Kosovo. Free passage of people and goods is in our mutual interest ", he added.

This was the fifth "Dialogue against Stereotype-We are all the Same" forum.   

Source:  Jug Pres