Prizes awarded to the winners of the “Economics” competition

The Embassy of France in Serbia and its partners: Institut Veolia, Saint-Gobain, Veolia, Decathlon, Wiener Stadtische, HUOT, Fonroche lightning-BBA International, NALED, SKGO and the Delegation of the European Union, today jointly awarded prizes to the winners of the “Economics” competition at the embassy of France in Belgrade.

Award winners (Photo: Jovan Gojković, Embassy of France)

The “Economics” competition was conceived as a platform for the exchange of knowledge and examples of good practice between French and Serbian actors included in the programs of sustainable development of cities and municipalities in the following four areas: sustainable waste management, sustainable water management, sustainable urban mobility, energy efficiency of buildings.

A special subcategory of the competition is “Green Schools”, intended for primary and secondary schools in Serbia.

The head of the European Union delegation in Serbia, Ambassador Emanuele Žiofre, reaffirmed the joint commitment strengthening cooperation between local governments, schools, the scientific community and institutions in order to build a sustainable future.

The renewed partnership between the “Green Agenda for Serbia” and “Economics” initiatives testifies to this intention, while it fully fits into the framework of the Green Deal for Europe and the ambitious “Growth Plan” for the Western Balkans, which aims to support the region in implementing ecological and economic reforms.

Sandra Dokić, State Secretary of the Ministry of Environmental Protection of the Republic of Serbia, emphasized the importance of this project because environmental protection takes place and is implemented in local governments and that during their study visit to France, the award winners will be able to see how waste and water are managed there and apply it in their local self-government.

As she added, the Ministry of Environmental Protection has prepared four laws that will soon be on the agenda of one of the next regular parliamentary sessions.

The city of Novi Sad received an award for energy efficiency (Photo: Jovan Gojković, Embassy of France)

“We are proud to be a part of the “Economics” project for the third year in a row, because we want to build a healthier and more sustainable environment for generations to come,” said Vladan Ilić, general director of Saint-Gobain for Serbia.

“Saint-Gobain is committed to protecting the planetnot only through innovative solutions in construction, but also through projects like this one, in which we support the development of local governments and educate young generations about ecology, recycling and sustainability,” he added.

“I hope that many cities and municipalities will follow the example of this year’s winners, and we as a company will continue to contribute to the improvement of the quality of life through similar initiatives,” said Ilić.

After the award ceremony, the Cooperation Agreement with the Delegation of the European Union in Serbia, which made it possible, was renewed expansion of the “Economy” project as part of the “Green Agenda for Serbia” initiative.