Minister of Trade and Services Slobodan Milosavljevic said that building a practical and effective framework for competition protection in the Serbian market is a complicated process and a big challenge for the government and the Competition Protection Commission.

Speaking at the Competition and Competition Protection conference, Milosavljevic said that this is an important requirement for establishing businesses in the market, intensifying economic activity and attracting new investors.

A first step was made in 2005 by the harmonisation of the Serbian market with the European market through the Competition Protection Law. The new Competition Protection Law, passed in 2009, has strengthened mechanisms for the implementation of competition rules, he said.

The current legal framework however is inadequate for the full implementation of market competition rules and it must be amended, the Minister said.

The purpose of competition protection is not to protect the competitor rather to protect the market, he said.

Representative of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Paul Moffat said that the current environment can also step up the EU integration process, as well as Serbia’s economic development.

Moffat welcomed the adoption of the new Law on the protection of competition, stressing that a great deal has been done in Serbia regarding development of the legal framework.

He added that a number of other practical matters have yet to be completed, including the development of a code of conduct regarding competitiveness.

Head of the European Integration Section at the European Commission delegation Alberto Cammarata said that Serbia and the European Commission will work together on the implementation of this Law and carefully monitor its enforcement.

The conference was organised by the Centre for Liberal-Democratic Studies and the EBRD.