Fiscal consolidation plays important part in EU integration

BELGRADE - Serbia's Minister without Portfolio in charge of EU integration Jadranka Joksimovic said on Monday Serbia was conducting a fiscal consolidation to achieve economic recovery, and that those measures were important for the country's EU integration as well.

"The citizens should not think that we are doing this because it was imposed by the EU, on the contrary, this government started implemeting those measures with courage and resolution in an effort to revive the Serbian economy," she told the parliament.

The essence of the measures is to consolidate the public finances so the people would feel some benefits, and not simply to open the first chapters of the accession talks with the EU, she explained.

The parliament is discussing the reforms that earlier government did not want to or did not dare implement, and if this government fails at it, the people will suffer the consequences, she noted.
"This government has absolute support from the people to start the reforms that will bring benefits in the medium run, and the budget was created in the context of EU integration," she stressed, adding that no country of the Western Balkans had started the same kind of reforms as Serbia.

"We are the first country to form a national framework for investments in infrastructure in order to secure cooperation between national institutions, the European Commission and international financial organisations in funding infrastructure projects," she said.

The European Commission welcomed that, and the poposed budget will be a good signal meant garner good opinions, she pointed out.

Photo Tanjug, T. Valic