Chakrabarti to visit Serbia from August 31 till September 1

The president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Suma Chakrabarti, will pay a two-day visit to Serbia starting with August 31, during which he will meet Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, the bank announced.

Chakrabarti will visit Serbia from August 31 till September 1 in the second phase of a wider regional tour that will culminate in a speech, delivered in the Serbian Parliament, about the EBRD support to the regional integration of the states in which the bank operates and getting the Western Balkans closer to the European Union, says the announcement delivered to Tanjug.

– In Belgrade, President Chakrabarti will meet Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic and representatives of diplomatic, financial and business communities – the announcement says.

The announcement adds that he will deliver a speech at the National Assembly of Serbia, where he will praise European integration “as a powerful force promoting efficient markets and reforms”.

It is expected that Chakrabarti will say that the Western Balkans region “knows better than most how important cooperation is as an investment in the future” and that he will point out that raising the level of cooperation between the Western Balkans countries, as they are working on bringing themselves in line with the EU, has already produced results.

The president of the EBRD will also emphasize the importance of integration to the economic growth and competitiveness and discuss “internationalist values that are at the heart of the EBRD's mandate”.

Chakrabarti, who visited Kosovo, Albania and Montenegro in late July, will visit Bosnia and Herzegovina from August 30 till 31, prior to his visit to Serbia.

Ahead of the visit, the president of the EBRD stated that the Western Balkans was one of the bank's priorities.

– We remain committed to actively supporting regional integration, including better connectivity in the areas of transport and energy. I am looking forward to deepening our cooperation further and discussing new ideas during my visit tot he region – Chakrabarti said.

The EBRD is one of the biggest investors in the Western Balkans, with over EUR 9.5 billion worth of investments, funding a wide range of crucial infrastructure, energy and financial sector projects and providing support following the global economic crisis and the devastating floods of 2014.

The EBRD has invested EUR 4.4 billion in 204 projects in Serbia so far, as well as EUR 1.9 billion in 133 projects in B&H, the announcement says.

EBRD Evropska banka za obnovu i razvoj

Vlada Republike Srbije

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

EBRD

Suma Chakrabarti

Aleksandar Vucic

Government of Serbia

EBRD investments in Serbia