A New Era of Serbian-Italian Economic Ties

There are great opportunities for excellent economic cooperation between Serbia and Italy, business community arrived in Belgrade with aim to do good business and explore opportunities for cooperation in new sectors such as innovations in food production, green transition, e-mobility, and infrastructure.

The business communities of Serbia and Italy have the full support of the highest institutions and officials who put the economy at the top of their agenda. This is the message from the Business Science Forum which was held in the Palace of Serbia with the aim to strengthen cooperation between the two countries. The Forum, which was organized as part of the visit to Serbia of the Italian state-economic delegation led by Antonio Tajani, the Vice-President of the Italian Government, gathered more than 800 businessmen and representatives of institutions and associations. 

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, said at the opening of the Forum that Italy is a sincere friend of Serbia and that it was never among the countries that put heavy pressure on our country, but opened the door to cooperation.  "For us, Italy is a sincere friend that we could always count on when it comes to our European journey and cooperate in all important and not always easy issues. Italy was never among those countries that put heavy pressure on Serbia, but was here to help and open the door to an agreement and further continuation of cooperation, not conflicts or problems," Vučić pointed out. He said that Italian entrepreneurs are more than welcome in our country.

Vučić pointed out that the foreign trade exchange between the two countries reached 4.6 billion euros last year. "I am inviting all Italian companies to come to Serbia," said Vučić and added that Serbia offers a safe environment for investment.

Tajani pointed out that Italy wants to be more present in Serbia and the Balkans, which he said had strategic importance. "We started with a large Balkan country that is a candidate for EU membership. It is a political commitment of Italy, to be present again in Serbia and all parts of the Balkans. We want to continue to cooperate in the future with the people we have cooperated with in the past, Tajani said. At the same time, he thanked the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, and the Government of Serbia for the efforts to restore peace in the Balkans. As a financially developed country, Italy has four million small and medium-sized enterprises pointed out Tajani and said he was confident that the knowledge and products Italy has could be exported.  We are impressed by the number of businessmen at the business forum, for me, this is a sign that there is a willingness to cooperate and work together. Both Serbian companies and goods are welcome in Italy. We can do even more in the common interest, Tajani pointed out...

The President of CCIS Marko Čadež said that this is the largest bilateral forum in the past 10 years, with more than 250 Serbian and 150 Italian businessmen participating. He thanked Vučić and Tajani for putting the economy at the forefront of their agenda. 

The goal of holding this meeting is to improve overall economic relations between Serbia and Italy, to expand cooperation in the field of high technologies based on innovations and scientific achievements, as well as to present opportunities for new investments by Italian companies in our country. 
"Today we are here to do business," said Čadež and emphasized that Serbia is an excellent investment destination that has attracted two-thirds of the total investments in the region.
As it was pointed out, the exchange between Serbia and Italy amounts to 4.6 billion euros, 10 percent higher than last year, and according to the President of Serbia, it is expected that the production of Stellantis' electric car in Kragujevac which is scheduled for next year will significantly improve the exchange.

Three panels dedicated to energy and a green transition, agriculture, and infrastructure were held at the forum. About 600 bilateral business meetings (B2B) of Italian and Serbian companies have been scheduled. The multi-sector Italian business delegation was made from the sectors of renewable energy sources, waste and wastewater management, circular economy, biotechnology and agrotechnology, transport and logistics, railway machinery manufacturing, services, steel industry, construction industry, tourism and hotel industry, wood industry, and textiles. 
Representatives of the scientific community, faculties, institutes, and associations also participate in the forum.
The forum was organized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia (CCIS) with the support of the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) and the Italian Embassy in Serbia.