1. If you had to advertise Serbia as an investment destination, what would you put as the country’s biggest asset?
Serbia has great potentials in agriculture, production of organic food, as well as in the field of renewable resources and ICT. There, I believe, lays possibility for future cooperation between Serbia and Norway. Otherwise, Serbia is a European country, with good transport connections, and competitive labour force, both economically and professionally. High unemployment rate and low wages, along with the ever-improving investment climate, should be used as an advantage to lure investors.
2. How can the EU accession contribute to better investment climate in Serbia?
Norwegian businesses like to know the rules of the market so they can compete in the field of their expertise on an equal footing. Therefore, every step that Serbia makes towards the European Union and every new law adopted and implemented thus improving the investment climate is additional incentive for Norwegian businesses to look into possible investments here. Please keep in mind that Norway, which is not an EU member state, has nonetheless opted to harmonise its legislation with the EU legislation in most of the fields. Being part of a joint market operating under the same rules is of great importance for every economy.
3. How can Serbia promote itself as a good place to invest in?
Despite big assets, the chances are small that Serbia will lure more investors without any promotion. We, as an Embassy, will be happy to help Serbian institutions in this regard, of course. This is why we have a very good cooperation with the new Serbian ambassador in Oslo, who is very enthusiastic about the possibilities for improvement of trade, and this is why we work together on establishment of the Serbian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce, or a business council, possibly attached to the Serbian Chamber of Commerce. The forming of this organization has yet to be agreed upon, but the steps are being taken in this regard.
4. Are there any agencies helping Norwegian companies enter the Serbian market?
On the Norwegian side there is the Innovation Norway, which is owned by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries and the Norwegian county authorities. This is Norwegian Government’s most important instrument for innovation and development of enterprises and industry, as well as a major supporter of companies looking to invest abroad, helping them with strategic advice and operational assistance during their internationalization process. On the Serbian side there’s RAS (Razvojna Agencija Srbije), which should take up where SIEPA has left off, and which should be a very good source of information for potential investors. There’s the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, which can also provide certain services. There is Nordic Business Alliance, an organisation gathering Nordic and Serbian companies, which assists its members and promotes Nordic values in Serbia. There are also some private consultancies, operating on the micro level, with specific fields of interest.
5. Are there any indications that some Norwegian companies are interested in investing and in what field?
The renewable, clean energy and high technology are interesting fields for Norwegian investors. The Embassy receives sporadic questions from Norwegian companies interested to invest, whether it is to move their production to Serbia or to avail themselves of highly skilled ICT engineers, etc. However, it is much more often that the Norwegian companies contact us after they have already established cooperation with local partners, and have been operation in Serbia for a while. The same goes for Macedonia and Montenegro– two other countries the Embassy covers. Therefore, the benefits of the EU accession process are already and will yield more results in this regard in the three Balkan countries, should they continue with reforms on the way towards the European family.
