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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Good start for “Buy Serbian” campaign

Belgrade, 21 May 2004

Serbian Minister of Trade, Tourism, and Services Bojan Dimitrijevic has said he is satisfied with the launch of the ministry’s campaign to promote domestic goods and results of a recent opinion poll on the consumption of domestic products.

Author: FoNet

Dimitrijevic said that concrete results of the campaign will visible in the near future and announced that a donors’ conference will be held on June 4 to raise funds for the campaign. He added that the ministry will issue monthly reports on the campaign’s effects.

Deputy Minister Srdjan Sreckovic said that conditions have been created to further increase domestic production, boost employment, and raise the quality of domestic supply.

The results of the survey, which included 1,088 respondents, have shown that younger population is more inclined to buy imported products, and that the main reasons are quality (according to 71% of the respondents), greater confidence in foreign products (15%), and greater presence of imported goods in the domestic market (11%). According to the poll, the advantages of imported products are better quality (according to 44% of those questioned), better packaging (14%), and better advertising (12%).

Those who buy more domestic products said the reasons are confidence (47%) and affordable prices (36%), while 23 percent of the respondents said they buy Serbian goods because it is healthier.

As many as 94 percent of those questioned said buying domestic products helps economic growth, while 54 percent of the respondents think that multinational corporations are harmful to Serbia’s economy, because they represent unlawful competition. Also, 85 percents of those questioned has more confidence in domestic products than in foreign goods intended for sales in eastern markets.

The survey also revealed that the range of imported products which are perceived as better than domestic goods is rather wide, with most respondents mentioning home appliances and electronic goods (52%), automobiles (30%), clothing and footwear (24%), cosmetics and toiletries (18%). Domestic products perceived as better are foodstuffs (84%), clothing and footwear (19%), and detergents and home care products (13%).