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Sweden & Serbia

Democratic governance

Ongoing projects: Public Administration and Judicial Systems

For more information about projects regarding public administration and judicial systems, please contact programme officers: Ms. Svetlana Nesovic or Ms. Snezana Vojcic


1. Multi-Donor Trust Fund for justice sector support: access to justice in Serbia

The Swedish part of this contribution focuses on increased access to justice for all through the process of creating a viable free legal aid system in Serbia and to also improve the chain of criminal case processing. Swedish support also aims at developing a new Information and Communication Technology strategy for the judicial sector. The programme as a whole is supported by the Multi-Donor Trust Fund for Justice Sector Support, which Sida joined in 2009. Sida wishes to increasingly harmonise and coordinate Swedish support to the justice sector with other donors, as well as embracing a more holistic and programmatic approach.

The agreed Swedish contribution amounts to 31 million SEK (approximately 3.3 million EUR). The current project agreement will proceed until December 2019.


2. Development of police reforms in the Ministry of Interior


This project aims at supporting the development within the Serbian Ministry of Interior, through developing a reform strategy, development of the capacities for intelligence-led policing and establishing a forensic training centre within a developed system for forensic and crime scene training. The Ministry of Interior is implementing this project in cooperation with the Swedish National Police Board.

The agreed Swedish contribution amounts to 41.1 million SEK (approximately 4.3 million EUR). The current project agreement will proceed until December 2019.

3. Democratisation of the security sector and civilian-military relations

The aim of this programme is to enhance good governance within the armed forces and increase the democracy in the civil-military relations in Serbia. This is to be accomplished through civil society participation in the democratisation of the security sector as well as through access to advanced education and expertise. Good governance mechanisms will also be promoted through the inclusion of gender equality and enhanced communication with citizens regarding security sector institutions. The project includes support to the introduction of the e-Parliament system, i.e. the electronic management of the legislative process and support to Parliament’s outreach activities.

The agreed Swedish contribution amounts to 7.6 million SEK (approximately 0.8 million EUR). The current project agreement will proceed until December 2018.

4. Support to local governments in Serbia for EU accession

The programme is implemented in cooperation between Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities (SCTM) and the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR) and is a continuation of the successful programme carried out between 2011 and 2015. The central purpose is to contribute to Serbia's EU approximation through stronger democracy on the local level and equitable and sustainable development within the local self-governance sector. The new phase will introduce Municipal Support Packages (MSPs) with the goal of helping municipalities to make concrete progress in three thematic areas: environmental protection and services, improvement of the local business climate, and emergency management. The second component of the program will further develop SCTMs' capacity to ensure that local interests are acknowledged at national level. This component will address environmental protection, improvement of the local business climate, EU integration, gender equality, local emergency management as well as capacity development and sustainability for SCTM.

The agreed Swedish contribution amounts to 42.3 million SEK (approximately 4.3 million EUR). The current project agreement will proceed until September 2020.


5. Strategic management and EU negotiations of the Serbian Ministry of Interior   

The programme aims to support the Ministry of Interior in the development of in-depth management capacities in two key areas of forthcoming policy focus: strategic management and EU integration. The main objective is to contribute to increasing cost-efficiency in the MoI, thus directly enhancing public safety, transparency and most importantly EU accession efforts.

The agreed Swedish contribution amounts to 46.6 million SEK (approximately 4.9 million EUR). The current project agreement will proceed until December 2018.


6. Advancing accountability mechanisms in public finances

The purpose of the project is to advance the performance of state and non-state actors, both at central and local level for effective enforcement and prevention of the misuse of public funds. The objective of the initiative is to develop horizontal and vertical accountability mechanisms in the area of public finances, contributing to sound public financial management and decreased opportunity for corruption in Serbia. The project will support institutions at central and local level in establishing mechanisms to prevent irregularities, by instilling a full system of checks and controls and improving enforcement capacities of the prosecution and judiciary in processing public finance related cases.

The agreed Swedish contribution amounts to 18.8 million SEK (approximately 1.9 million EUR). The current project agreement will proceed until July 2018.

7. Integrated Response to Violence against Women and Girls in Serbia via UNDP

The project aims to further develop social and institutional environment that will contribute to zero tolerance and eradication of violence against women in Serbia. The specific purpose of the project is to improve legal and policy frameworks, strengthen prevention system and assistance mechanisms for survivors of violence and improve access to effective protection from violence through sustainable delivery of general and specialist services.

The agreed Swedish contribution amounts to 15.6 million SEK (approximately 1.59 million EUR). The current project agreement will proceed until June 2018.

Last updated 26 Jan 2018, 12.12 PM