Southern areas "should have priority in development"

GADZIN HAN Ivica Dacic stated says southern Serbia should have priority in the development of the country because of the risk of people leaving the area. The prime minister announced a meeting of government members and representatives of southern Serbia in Leskovac next month. Southern areas "should have priority in development" At the official session of the Gadzin Han municipality when himself and Head of the EU delegation in Serbia Michael Davenport delivered the keys to apartments for 15 internally displaced families from collective centres, Dacic said that southern Serbia bears geo-strategic importance and warned that there is a risk of the population leaving the area. Dacic warned against the possibility that some other ethnicities could declare this part of Serbia their own in 100 years from now. He said that unemployment is biggest in southern Serbia and in some municipalities exceeds 50 percent, and the search for a solution to the issues of refugees and IDPs is taking an unacceptably long time. According to him, there are two ways to solve the problem - either by the return to areas from which Serbs fled by restoring their property and original status, or by integration into Serbia's society. He said that the return to Kosovo and Metohija is being conducted at a rather slow pace and only 4,000 IDPs returned to the area. The prime minister said that the previous governments did not deal with difficult problems such as the Kosovo-Metohija issue and the economic situation in the country. Nobody wanted to implement unpopular measures, and the current government decided to take on the risk for the sake of Serbia's future, Dacic said. Dacic received the charter for the development of the municipality and his personal engagement in the removal of the consequences of floods. Charters were also delivered to representatives of the EU delegation in Serbia and Public Water Management Company Srbijavode, while letters of appreciation were presented to UNHCR, USAID and author of books on Zaplanj Vladimir Vuckovic. The construction of the apartment block for accommodation of socially vulnerable and internally displaced families cost EUR 260,000 and it was built with the funds provided by the EU and UNHCR. (Beta, file) Tanjug

Southern areas "should have priority in development"

At the official session of the Gadžin Han municipality when himself and Head of the EU delegation in Serbia Michael Davenport delivered the keys to apartments for 15 internally displaced families from collective centres, Dačić said that southern Serbia bears geo-strategic importance and warned that there is a risk of the population leaving the area.

Dačić warned against the possibility that some other ethnicities could declare this part of Serbia their own in 100 years from now.

He said that unemployment is biggest in southern Serbia and in some municipalities exceeds 50 percent, and the search for a solution to the issues of refugees and IDPs is taking an unacceptably long time.

According to him, there are two ways to solve the problem - either by the return to areas from which Serbs fled by restoring their property and original status, or by integration into Serbia's society.

He said that the return to Kosovo and Metohija is being conducted at a rather slow pace and only 4,000 IDPs returned to the area.

The prime minister said that the previous governments did not deal with difficult problems such as the Kosovo-Metohija issue and the economic situation in the country.

Nobody wanted to implement unpopular measures, and the current government decided to take on the risk for the sake of Serbia's future, Dačić said.

Dačić received the charter for the development of the municipality and his personal engagement in the removal of the consequences of floods.

Charters were also delivered to representatives of the EU delegation in Serbia and Public Water Management Company Srbijavode, while letters of appreciation were presented to UNHCR, USAID and author of books on Zaplanj Vladimir Vučković.

The construction of the apartment block for accommodation of socially vulnerable and internally displaced families cost EUR 260,000 and it was built with the funds provided by the EU and UNHCR.