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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Tourism as development opportunity for Serbia

Novi Sad, 8 February 2006

Serbian Minister of Trade, Tourism and Services Bojan Dimitrijevic said today that tourism represents an opportunity for the development of Serbia and is potentially its most important export product.

Speaking at the presentation of the initial phase of the project themed "Strategy for tourism development in Serbia" in the Vojvodina parliament, Dimitrijevic recalled that in 2005 this economic branch collected a record $305 million of direct foreign currency revenues, and that in ten years tourism could yield an annual profit of more than $2 billion.

However, Dimitrijevic said, if Serbia is to significantly increase its profit from tourism, it must work rapidly and efficiently and attract large investment on all levels.

The minister explained that the idea of "Strategy for tourism development in Serbia" is to divide the country into several clusters on the principle of competitiveness, and added that Vojvodina currently represents the strongest region in that respect.

He mentioned Vojvodina as currently being the most developed tourist region in Serbia because it has recognised opportunities for development. According to a new development strategy, the province will represent one of the most important clusters in the future tourist division of Serbia.

Together with other rivers, the Danube probably represents Vojvodina's most important resource, which should become an integrating factor with neighbouring and central European countries, such as Germany and Austria, which are possible investors in this area, the minister said.

He warned that the biggest problem at this stage could be chaotic development, because some self-governments are not coordinating their efforts but working for the benefit of their municipalities alone. Therefore, it is crucial that all interested parties work together and create a unique master plan for the Danube, out of which everybody would benefit.

According to Dimitrijevic, Serbia has the potential to make a considerably higher profit from tourism , but such a task requires a system, so that all resources and potentials become networked and used in the best possible way.

Dimitrijevic announced several large tasks in 2006 in the sector of tourism, such as the completion of the most important activities in defining tourist brands of Serbia, continuous large scale investment in communal infrastructure, accelerated privatisation of large hotels and attraction of the biggest domestic investors interested in this sector.

Dimitrijevic announced that the state agency for tourism development will soon be established to provide the basis for serious foreign investment.

He presented to participants the results of a last year's research on Serbia's tourist potential, as well as proposals for development composed by one of the most renowned European consultancy agencies "Horwath & Horwath Consulting" from Zagreb.

Regional Secretary of Economy Sinisa Lazic, Professor at the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade Stipe Lovreta and Miro Dragicevic of "Horwath & Horwath Consulting" also attended the meeting.