Mali: I presented Serbia's economic results at Tatra Summit

VISOKE TATRY - We gathered at the Tatra Summit - which has brought together more than 150 politicians, bankers and economists - to see Europe's position when it comes to industrial and overall economic development, and I presented Serbia's economic results and everything we can do and are doing together on the EU path, on which we firmly stand, Serbian First Deputy PM and Finance Minister Sinisa Mali said on Friday.

Speaking to Tanjug about the main topics of the GLOBSEC Tatra Summit 2025, attended by leaders from central and eastern Europe, Mali said there was an awareness that nearly all EU countries were registering low GDP growth rates.

"The question is: How to get things going again? Unlike in Serbia, the level of public debt is high in nearly all countries," he said.

"That is important for us because the EU is still our top trade partner and, directly or indirectly, we feel everything that is going on in Europe. Right now, you have the issue of accelerated digitalisation, where Serbia is not lagging behind, which is very important," he said.

Important demographic changes are underway as Europe's population is shrinking, which raises the question of whether the continent will have sufficient workforce in the years to come, he said.

"There is also the issue of the development of the defence industry, the issue of security and safety when it comes to the European continent. Let me remind you that the conflict in Ukraine is still ongoing and that there are still many trade disagreements, if I can put it that way, when it comes to the Trump administration, and tariffs that are introduced one day and scrapped on the following day," he said.

There is great uncertainty around the world and the question is how Europe is dealing with that, Mali said.

"For me, of course, it was important to say how Serbia is dealing with it. Let me remind you that 7.4 pct of our GDP goes to capital investments, so, in spite of global challenges and problems, Serbia has not come to a standstill when it comes to investments. I also noted the social element, which is very important because care for the people is something that gets forgotten. It is about increases of salaries, pensions and the minimum wage, about giving something to those who need our help the most," Mali said.

He said that, inevitably, energy had been discussed as well and that much needed to be done to ensure secure electricity supplies in the decades to come, given Serbia's accelerated economic development.

"We will need energy and cheap energy sources more and more. That is why we are investing a lot in renewable energy sources, but there is still much more to be done. When you look at energy sources, in China or America, they are cheaper than in Europe. That means your products are not competitive, you have nowhere to sell them. If you have nowhere to sell them, factories get shut down and people lose jobs," Mali said.