Velimir Ilic
Ilic said at a press conference held at the Serbian government that this Ministry continued the work started by the previous government which has so far made 1,000 facilities and several thousand apartments from various programmes and paved around 3,000 kilometres of road with asphalt.
He said that the negative item in the work of the Ministry is suspension of works on the ring road around Belgrade. He explained that this ring road is necessary in order to unburden the Gazela bridge, whose reconstruction should begin in spring next year.
The Minister said that in 15 days, a highway to Niska Banja will be put into operation and that Loznica-Sabac road will be finished within five days.
Ilic said that great attention has been paid to reconstruction of roads in mountainous regions and gave the example of the Zlatibor-Kokin Brod road, leading to Kopaonik, and construction of infrastructure on Stara Planina mountain.
He said that many local roads have been reconstructed in the Raska district, as well as in eastern Serbia where infrastructure has been neglected for years.
He said that the tender has been closed and funds provided for water supply of northern Kosovo and that now Serbian parliament should give guarantees for that loan.
Ilic said at the press conference that Belgrade airport will not be privatised, but that privatisation is being prepared for "Jat Airways" and "Jat Tehnika."
He said that reconstruction of Nikola Tesla airport is being completed and that everything is ready for the beginning of construction of the cargo centre.
The Minister specified that 1,909 airplanes of various companies fly over Serbia every day, which is a very big number, and that is why it is necessary to increase the quality of services.
Speaking about the railway, Ilic said that the Serbian railways as a system will not be privatised, but that privatisation and lease of some parts of the railroad is possible, if local authorities or individuals show interest in that.
Ilic said that six train stations have been renovated this year, and the Ministry's task is to continue with that work and to dedicate itself to electrification of the parts of the railroad, which is one of the main reasons for delay of trains.
He recalled that the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development approved two credit lines worth €140 million, intended for reconstruction of rail infrastructure and motor pool.
Ilic said that legalisation of building structures is one of the big problems the Ministry faces and its resolution largely depends on local authorities.
The Minister explained that legalisation is not efficient because the fee is between €5 and €250 per square metre, and explained that this range is a problem because citizens wait for the fees to be lower.
He added that it is necessary to establish exact prices for legalisation in Belgrade and other parts of Serbia.