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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Public sector rationalisation to create efficient administration

Belgrade, 2 October 2009

Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic said that according to preliminary estimates public administration personnel should be reduced by 10%, adding that employees who are doing a good job should have nothing to be concerned about.

In an interview with the magazine Policija Danas, Cvetkovic said that personnel reduction will be done so as to create a more efficient state administration and local-self governments and a generally improved public sector. He said that he is convinced that it is possible to create an efficient public sector with a smaller number of employees.

He explained that the purpose of the personnel reduction is to create a better administration, reduce expenses and to turn the state into an efficient service which will address the needs of the people. He said that reforms will be implemented at all levels in accordance with the law. Speaking about the Serbian government’s packet of social measures, Cvetkovic said that adequate measures have been taken in keeping with Serbia’s economic capacities, adding that strikes do not resolve problems but rather they point to the underlying problems.

I believe in systemic and long term solutions. The state cannot implement short term solutions which will not give lasting results. We need to create a healthy economy which will be able to compete on the international market, said the Prime Minister. Commenting on the increasingly frequent attacks by hooligans and other cases of violence within Serbian society, Cvetkovic underlined that violence is not only typical of Serbia, but that prevention of violence is a test which the state will not fail. The Serbian Prime Minister said that everyone has the right to freely express their opinion, but no one has the right to do that by using violence – neither on the street, nor in the family, nor at stadiums. No one has the right to abuse other citizens or destroy property and to think they will not face justice for doing so. Speaking about the Pride Parade, Cvetkovic reiterated that the government will ensure that every citizen can exercise his freedoms, which are guaranteed by the Constitution and laws. I am not happy that this gathering was not held and the government is not trying to distance itself from such an event. We clearly supported the event, just as we will clearly and effectively suppress hooliganism in Serbia, according to the law, the Prime Minister said.

He praised the work of the Ministry of Interior and underlined that Serbia has laid solid foundations for a long-term systematic fight against all forms of crime and corruption. The economic crisis and economic problems which Serbia has been dealing with for several decades, as well as the heritage from the near past and the fact that Serbia is a country in transition undergoing serious social changes, all these things in their own way generate various forms of crime, Cvetkovic explained and added that despite such circumstances the Serbian Ministry of Interior has been achieving excellent results.