Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic stated Monday that investments into development of the broadband Internet, electronic banking and trade are bound to yield long-term results, underlining that they are also vital for the development of economy, small and medium-sized companies in particular.

At the opening of an international conference entitled European Dialogue on Internet Governance-EuroDIG 2011, Cvetkovic said that since the beginning of its term of office, the Serbian government has been working on the adjustment of the Serbian regulatory framework for the development of telecommunications and information society to the EU directives.

Cvetkovic underlined the importance of this two-day meeting in Belgrade, recalling that the international conferences with similar topics have been held in Strasbourg, Paris and Geneva, which illustrates its relevance for the development of all countries in Europe, and in the world.

The prime minister noted that the Internet is not just a social phenomenon, but is of immense importance for economic and social development. Therefore, all countries should invest in new knowledge and modern technologies, as well as actively participate in the dialogue aimed at improvement of the Internet.

Ending his address, Cvetkovic emphasized that official institutions should expand their capacities, in order to achieve a steady development within the EU, and voiced hope that would be one of the main messages of this conference.

The conference is bringing together 400 participants from Serbia and abroad. One of the hosts of this meeting is State Secretary at the Ministry of Culture Jasna Matic.

This is the first time that the EuroDIG conference has been organized outside Western Europe, its host being Digital Agenda Administration of the Republic of Serbia.

The event is supported by the Council of Europe, Swiss Federal Office of Communications, Diplo Foundation, European Broadcasting Union, Serbian National Register of Internet Domain Names, Serbian Agency for Electronic Communications, EUnet, and Petnica Science Centre.