NALED has presented the new edition of the Grey Book
Abolishing the fee for land conversion, speeding up and simplifying the legalization process and the introduction of eRefferals are, according to NALED members, three reform priorities in 2022. from the 14th edition of the Grey Book.
The Grey Book features 21 new recommendations, including the introduction of "green" public procurements, the eAgrar platform, non-cash payments of all taxes and fees, the establishment of an online register of non-tax duties, rearragment of flexible forms of work, issuing a unified tax certificate and the usage e-delivery notes in trade.
- We have have witnessed the 13th and the 14th edition of the Grey Book, serving as a common path to a better and reformed society. Despite the fact, the proposed reforms were often difficult, we successfully introduced electronic building permits and a cadastral reform that resulted in more than 50,000 construction sites and billions of dollars invested in Serbia. As for the ministry I am currently in charge of, we are participating in projects worth close to 50 million euros, and are directing Serbia into a safe and progressive energy transition - said Zorana Mihajlović, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Mining and Energy while addressing the public at the conference.
There are 22 new recommendations, marked with EU badges meaning that solving them would contribute to a faster adoption to European standards - the need to reduce the burden on wages, the introduction of personal bankruptcy and regulation of work for foreign employers, harmonization of food declaration and donation, improvement of wastewater management, green funds and other environmental regulations.
- We had great success in the finance field - eInvoices, a unique electronic system that will improve transparency and secure payment for 130,000 users, and eFiscalization that will record transactions of almost 200,000 taxpayers in real-time, creating less space for shadow economy and better consumer protection. The Department of Agriculture has also started the process of digitalization with the introduction of the Food Safety - Central Register of Facilities and the adoption of the legal framework for electronic registration of more than 400,000 agricultural holdings and electronic aid applications - said Dejan Đokić, President of NALED Executive Board. The Grey book has completely or partially implemented 143 recommendations, 50% of all recommendations that were made.
The Ministry of Finance has once more, implemented the most recommendations, with the share of recommendations made to the MF falling from 40% to a quarter of that amount, meaning that, the number of requests made to institutions is balancing out. On the other hand, the Ministry of ecology and the Ministry of health, are experiencing an increasing number of challenges, with other sectors following in the same footsteps, demanding an equal effort to reforms.
The Minister of Labor, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs Darija Kisić, and the Minister of Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications Tatjana Matić have also addressed NALED members at the conference. The head of the EU Delegation to Serbia, Emanuel Ziofre, the manager of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) for Central and Southeast Europe, Ari Naim, and the head of the IMF office in Serbia, Julia Ustyugova, spoke on behalf of the international community reflecting the future of reforms in Serbia.
Special awards for contribution to reforms
At the 14th Annual Conference on Economic Reforms, NALED traditionally awarded prominent individuals and teams employed in the public sector who have, in cooperation with NALED, made the greatest contribution to the improvement of the business environment in 2021.
For the introduction of eInvoices and eFiscalization, the award went to the team of the Ministry of Finance - Nenad Vlaketić, Sonja Talijan, and Vuk Delibašić.
Jovanka Atanacković, State Secretary of the Ministry of Mining and Energy, was awarded for her exceptional contribution to the improvement of the legal framework in the field of energy and for creating grounds for greater investments in renewable energy sources.
The team of the Ministry of Agriculture - Marko Saranovac, Vedrana Ilic, and Bosko Umetic was awarded for team contribution to the reform of the system of incentives in agriculture and the establishment of the legislative framework for the introduction of the digital platform eAgrar.
Assistant Minister of Labor Sandra Grujicic, Sanja Gavranovic, Katarina Dencic, and Vukasin Grozdic were awarded for joint contribution to the drafting and adoption of the Law on Social Entrepreneurship.
Special recognition for improving the conditions for recycling glass, batteries, and light bulbs in the city of Kragujevac went to Dragan Marinković, head of the department for environmental protection of the City of Kragujevac.
NALED has traditionally awarded special recognitions to the media. Andjelko Utješanović, editor of economics at the Tanjug news agency, and Marica Vuković, editor of economics at the Beta news agency, were awarded for their contribution to quality and objective reporting on initiatives to improve the economic environment.
