Serbia needs public-private partnership for development of infrastructure

Belgrade, Feb. 23, 2010 (Source: serbiangov.rs) – Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic said today that Serbia needs public-private partnership for building local infrastructure which will attract foreign investment and quality communal services, higher employment rates and a rise in living standards as well. Speaking at a seminar on public-private partnership in infrastructure, organized by the World Bank (WB) office in Serbia, Djelic said that it is necessary to pass the appropriate legal regulations to facilitate development of this partnership. He added that amendments to the Law on Concessions should be adopted in the middle of this year. The existing Law on Concessions is suitable for large national projects, but it cannot satisfy the needs of local projects.
Djelic noted that representatives of the Serbian government, local self-government and WB agreed at a meeting held this morning at the Serbian government to initially work with smaller projects, for recycling and processing of waste waters, which would be at the same time linked to electricity production plants. WB expert Jose Luis Guasch said that public-private partnership can and should be a powerful instrument for investment in infrastructure. He explained that it can generate jobs and increase household income, particularly in highly indebted countries, such as Serbia. He observed that Chile and Korea have been the most active in promoting public-private partnership with 70% and 90% respectively of all projects there realized through that form of cooperation.
Guasch said that this form of partnership is mainly used in the field of traffic, water supply and sewage systems, waste collection and disposal, city traffic and building of schools and hospitals. The seminar was opened by head of World Bank office in Serbia, Simon Grey.