Keepin touch

Whether you have a question, comment, suggestion or any problem falling within the competence of the Government, send us your message and we will try to respond as soon as possible. If your problem does not fall within our competence, we will forward your message to the competent institution.

The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Serbia only country that has not lost a day of classes

Belgrade, 29 September 2020

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic stated at the closing of the GovTech 2020 summit, which was attended by numerous international officials, such as German Minister of Health Jens Spahn, that digitalisation and all electronic services have been invested in for years, which helped Serbia react effectively during the COVID-19 crisis.

Brnabic said that she could proudly say that all investments of the government of Serbia in digitalisation, new technologies, startups, ICT sector paid off.

Brnabic and Daniel Korski, founder of the conference, also talked about Serbia's experiences in the application of electronic services and gaining the trust of citizens when the digitalisation of public services is in question, but also about the 5G network and how Serbia is balancing between the USA and China on that issue today.

She spoke about the results in the field of digitalisation of education, new subjects and reminded that thanks to all that we were the only country in Europe where students did not lose a day of classes due to the transition to online schooling.

Also, the Prime Minister reminded that along with the reform of education, the priorities of the government of Serbia include the reform of public administration as well as the investment in the programmes planned by the Artificial Intelligence Development Strategy.

The Prime Minister said that she recommends the governments around the world to work on the application of new technologies and technological solutions as much as possible.

Brnabic added that this is exactly the key priority of the government of Serbia, together with the development of an economy based on innovation, not investment, which is a way for Serbia not to be a country of cheap labour and for its GDP to grow.

She reminded that the Artificial Intelligence Development Strategy was adopted at the end of December 2019, noting that Serbia became the first country in Southeast Europe and the 26th in the world to have such a document.

According to the Prime Minister, it will enable the development and application of artificial intelligence in education, science and public administration, and further acceleration of our economy.

Speaking about the education reform, Brnabic stated that Serbia needed only three days to switch to online classes for all primary and secondary school students.

As important results, the Prime Minister mentioned the connection of all schools to the Internet within a secure network – the project "Connected Schools" was launched, and digital teaching was provided.

Brnabic said that within the Digital World subject, students will learn to distinguish what is false news and what is not, how to fight against digital violence, but also with conspiracy theories and scepticism like those related to 5G technology.

The Prime Minister said that about a thousand students go to special IT departments, that a Master 4.0 programme has been introduced where universities cooperate with each other, with foreign universities and renowned lecturers.

According to her, the Science Fund has been established as a mechanism for competitive funding of science, and in two weeks, nine million euros will be allocated from the first call for youth projects.

She noted that the budget of the Innovation Fund has been doubled.

Along with the complete digitalisation of the education system, investments in technologies are equally important, she said and reminded that IT is the fastest growing sector in Serbia, that its annual growth is over 20 percent, and that even at the time of the pandemic it was 4.5 percent.

Everything we have done has paid off because the ICT sector is the fastest growing and brings more and more new jobs, which is important for the economy, she said, adding that she is sure that it would continue to be a priority for the next prime minister and the future government.

The Prime Minister stated that all this is a preparation for the future which will be characterised by sophisticated technology and the knowledge society, and added that new laws will, among other things, apply to cryptocurrencies.

Brnabic said that nothing that was done in the field of digital economy was done without consultations with the private sector and startups, and added that 5G is a fantastic technology that contributes to humankind.

We must find a way to communicate and we are united on that front – the government, business and civil society, and we must create an even stronger front to defend 5G, she said.

The GovTech Summit brought together a large number of innovators, statesmen, representatives of international organisations, directors and founders of technology companies, to review the conditions together and see how governments can function in the new technology era.