Head of the World Bank office in Belgrade Loup Brefort stated that the strengthening of agriculture and industry is Serbia's great development chance which will be mentioned in Country Economic Memorandum that the World Bank is preparing for the next three years, in cooperation with the Serbian government.

At the Kopaonik Business Forum 2011, Brefort said that catering industry in Serbia is now 50 percent of what it was at the end of the 1980s.

The strengthening of competitiveness so as to improve export from Serbia and thus generate a speedy and sustainable development is very important for the economic sector, Brefort said.

Speaking about unused potentials, he pointed to the agricultural land and warned about the country's agricultural underperformance at the time when food prices in the world are rapidly growing.

When it comes to the trade and logistics sector, Brefort said that Serbia has a strategic position as a transit country, but the average speed of trains in 34 km/h, compared to the EU (80 km/h).

According to Brefort, another thing which may cause concern is a potential shortage of electric energy in Serbia in the next five years.

Brefort commended the government's measures for overcoming the negative effects of the crisis, as well as the banking system and the improvement of the business climate, particularly the reduction of the excess administration.