Brussels hosts donor conference for Serbia and Bosnia

Brussels hosts donor conference for Serbia and Bosnia

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić, who will participate in the conference, said he expected "several hundred million euros" to be collected to help both countries deal with the consequences of the disaster they faced in May.

Outgoing president of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso will meet with Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić and the chairman of Bosnia's tripartite presidency, Bakir Izetbegović, ahead of the gathering, organized by the European Commission, France, and Slovenia.

In addition to the institutions of the European Union, as well as many of the world's rich countries, the donors' meeting will be attended by several UN bodies, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the International Finance Corporation.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has already announced that it will provide a very favorable loan in the amount of EUR 500 million for Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, as well as other countries of the Western Balkans and EU member Croatia, that also, although to a much lesser extent, suffered flood damage in May.

The European Commission, announcing the event, highlighted the fact that the floods directly or indirectly affected over three million people in Serbia and Bosnia, heavily damaged home, health and school facilities, and key public infrastructure.

"The consequences of the flooding will affect the long-term socio-economic growth of both countries and can significantly impact their ability to develop or strengthen reforms," ​​the Commission said in Brussels.

Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina are not able to alone, and using their own means eliminate the consequences of the disaster and requested international funding for recovery and reconstruction, the EU also noted.

The gathering will be presented with the report of the government of Serbia on the assessment of flood damage and needs, a document produced with participation of representatives of the EU, the World Bank and 30 experts from the UN.

Director of the Serbian Government Office for Reconstruction Marko Blagojević said that the total estimated damage was at EUR 1. 532 billion, and that Serbia will get the 100 million from the EU, while he "could not specify how much money our country could get during the donor conference in Brussels. "

When asked to comment on the fact the EU invited Kosovo to attend, Blagojević said that the invitation came "in the manner determined by the Brussels agreement."

Serbian president's foreign policy Ivan Mrkić expressed his dissatisfaction with this decision of the EC. According to the Belgrade media, Priština will be represented by Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj, who will be sitting behind a plate with the name of Kosovo accompanied with an asterisk - as provided in a 2012 agreement on the territory's regional representation.

The donor conference will begin at 15:00 CET on Wednesday.